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Sunset
Gondola 16370 Pacific Coast Highway, Huntington
Beach, CA
Gondola
Reservations
When we began
writing about gondola rides in California a
decade ago, we didn't stop to think that there
are two types of gondolas. First there's the
gondola that goes by many names such as Palm
Springs Aerial Tramway, or the South Lake Tahoe
Heavenly Ski gondola. But what we really
intended was to discuss the traditional water
vessel that is black or wood grained, shaped
like a canoe with distinctive ornamentation, and
steered by a standing gondolier who rows with
very long oars. That's the gondola ride that
you'll find at some of California's beaches
ranging from San Diego in the south to Lake
Merritt in Oakland to the north.
Living in
Orange County, the gondola rides I've taken for
years with family and friends have been at
Naples in Long Beach. Then several years ago,
two of my favorite gondoliers from Naples formed
their own company called Sunset Gondola. They
opened their business in another nearby by, just
a few miles from Naples. Sunset Gondola steers
in the harbors and channels of Huntington Beach
and Sunset Beach.
How does the
new ride stack up, compared to Naples? It's
quite a bit different actually. The gondoliers
really earn their keep in Huntington Harbour.
While it features one or two bridges the tour
passes under (for kissing), there's a lot more
open water as the channels are wider than
Naples. Shown in the photo above is Trinidad
Island. For most of the Sunset Gondola ride,
you're not particularly close to the houses and
mansions, though you can see them well enough.
In Naples, you can practically reach out and
touch the neighbors who sit out on their
bayfront patios, sipping wine and watching
people have a good time on a gondola ride.
Since I've
become a gondola ride aficionado, it's hard to
get a bad ride. Gondoliers are trained and most
stay in the craft or trade for decades, much
like they do in Italy. So when you book a ride,
you find the gondolier is half the fun of the
excursion. And with their expert skills, they
are all about the ride--and about discretion,
when required.
While I love
the Naples gondola rides, and I've tried the
Coronado Island gondola in San Diego, I
like
Huntington Beach's gondola rides for two
reasons--Tim Reinard and Tyson Davis. These guys
built their business on a dream that they could
bring joy to tourists and vacationers, lovers,
birthday boys and girlfriends getting away for
the day.
I want these
guys to get their just desserts, and hope you'll
support them by booking a pleasurable ride with
two of America's top ranked gondoliers.
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