Travel Guide: How to Spend a Weekend In Newport Beach, California
How to spend a weekend in Newport Beach
We’ve been slowly getting back into travel with little weekend getaways (check out my Los Alamos guide here) and recently did a few nights in Newport Beach. With a new(ish) baby, we’re always looking for places that are easily walkable and have plenty of outdoor activities. Newport is it! Honestly it’s the perfect destination for anyone: girls getaway, families with young kids, or a couples retreat. We stayed at the Lido House aptly named “your local beach house” which is centrally located to ALL.THE.THINGS! Not kidding when I say that we didn’t have to get in the car the entire time and had access to amazing food, great shopping, and gorgeous beaches.
Keep scrolling for the top 10 things to do during your next Newport Beach trip plus all the deets on our stay at Lido House. If you’re a mama, I’m also sharing a detailed itinerary of our trip with our 10 month old.
King Suite at Lido House in Newport Beach
Top 10 things to do on vacation in Newport Beach, CA
Where to Stay: Lido House
Why Lido House? Location, location, location!
It is a 3 minute walk to Lido Marina Village which has amazing shops like Jenni Kayne, Aesop, Clare V. and Sugar Paper plus dining options like Nobu (sign me up!), Malibu Farm, Zinque, and Rye Goods. And those are only just highlights - there’s more!
Take a 5 minute walk and your toes are in the sand of Newport Beach! Or you can take advantage of their on-demand shuttle service which will drop you off and pick you up. On top of that they provide all your beach essentials: umbrellas, chairs, and towels.
15 minute car/ferry ride and you’re on Balboa Island which is a whole day vacation spot within itself (see more below)
As a new mama or thinking back to my single self when the *cocktails were flowing* extra heavy - being able to walk everywhere is such a beautiful thing!
The vibes at Lido House are modern nautical - they’re doing nautical the West Coast way if you know what I mean. We stayed in a King Suite with a gorgeous balcony which was perfect with baby girl. We set her up in the little living room area and were able to veg on the balcony and get some sun while she napped. You’d think being so close to the beach that you may not use the pool but we used it every day and I’m glad we had the option. Although it was sunny and warm out, the winds at the beach were actually pretty intense the day we went, so we only stayed for a bit then headed back to our happy place: Lido House Pool. Baby girl LOVED the daybeds there! P.S.: if you’re hanging by the pool you have to order the panko crusted chicken tenders and the burger.
There’s an amazing restaurant on property called the Mayor’s Table - get the spicy tuna toast and crab carbonara and thank me later! We didn’t spend too much top on the rooftop but there’s a gorgeous bar called Topside that does bevvies and bites too. Oh also, there’s a coffee shop on property as well. Really you have everything you need if you didn’t want to leave the property the entire weekend!
Stay at Lido House in Newport Beach
What to Do
We were only there for two nights and I feel like we hit a lot but only just touched the surface of what Newport Beach has to offer. Here are some of the highlights:
Go shopping at Lido Marina Village - or at least window shop! Jenni Kayne, Aesop, Clare V., Marrow Fine, Elyse Walker, and Sugar Paper are just some of the amazing stores located in a few block radius.
Get Lunch at Malibu Farm - just great fresh food and yummy cocktails. They also have a really great kids menu that includes salmon, quinoa and veggies.
Visit Balboa Island - home of the frozen banana, insanely gorgeous houses, cute restaurants, and the Balboa fun zone. Definitely a must if you have school age kids, for couples looking to have a fun day, or people like us who just want to look at fancy houses haha.
Pick up Bear Flag Co Fish Burritos - and bring ‘em to the beach or take them on a duffy boat ride! They are so fresh, delicious and easy to transport.
Take a sunset duffy boat ride - or if you want to have a full day on the water, you do you! We did a beautiful early evening ride with vino and Bear Flag Co burritos.
Go to the beach - miles and miles of gorgeous shoreline! We walked there every morning and it was such a treat.
Have dinner at Mayor’s Table - and get the crab carbonara or the burger. Promise you won’t be disappointed!
Grab pastries and coffee at Rye Bread - just absolutely YUM! Get an extra chocolate croissant for later… you’ll thank me!
Eat at Mama D’s - so I’ve never actually eaten here but EVERYONE slid into the DM’s saying it was a must when they saw we were in Newport. I don’t think the EDPfam would ever lead us astray!
Enjoy Rooftop drinks at Topside - two words: THE VIEW!
What to do in Newport Beach, California
Our Schedule with a 10 month old
Our daughter is on a two nap schedule, so we planned all of our activities around her naps. It honestly worked out so well and gave us a well deserved break a few times a day to enjoy the gorgeous Lido House property.
Day 1: LA to Newport is roughly 45 min and really a quick drive if you time it right
9:30am leave Los Angeles right before her first nap so babe could sleep in the car
11 - 2pm Hang at Lido Marina Village and lunch at Malibu Farm
2pm Check in at Lido House (we requested early check-in ahead of time and they were able to accommodate)
2:30pm Put baby down for a nap and unpack
4:00 - 7pm walk to the beach, hang by the pool, and feed babe dinner before bath and bed
7:30pm put baby down and dinner at Mayor’s Table (the restaurant was right below our room at Lido)
Day 2:
8:00am grab coffee + breakfast at Crew + Coffee (at Lido House) and beach walk
9:30 - 11am baby napped and we worked in room and hung out on patio
11:30 - 4pm poolside hangs at Lido House and baby nap 2:30 - 4
5:00 - 6:45 Early evening duffy boat ride and dinner on the boat
7:30pm put baby down and enjoy wine in our patio then movies in bed
Day 3:
8:00 Breakfast at Rye Bread and walks around Lido Marina Village
9:30 - 11am baby nap and we packed up then checked out once she woke up
12:00 - 2:30 took Lido House Shuttle to the beach with their umbrella and chair set-up but ended coming back to the pool because it was really windy
2:30 headed home at the start of nap 2 so babe could sleep in the car
Typically with our daughter I like to do 3 night trips because packing and unpacking is A LOT especially with hotels that have 4pm check-in times. By the time you check-in and get sorted the first night is done with! BUT with this trip, because it was so close to LA and we were able to secure an early check-in time/enjoy Lido House amenities late into the last day, two nights seemed like just the right amount. I would highly recommend for a weekend or midweek getaway if you have a little!
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