52 weekend getaways: Family and kids

It's a prime location. Although I never noticed it in three decades of breezing past on the Pacific Coast Highway, Newport Dunes lies just a block from PCH and Jamboree Road, so close to the shops of Fashion Island you can almost hear them tearing down the Circuit City sign and (keep hope alive!) putting up the new Nordstrom. Generations of locals know Newport Dunes for the fake whale that floats in its lagoon every summer and the fireworks it sends up every Fourth of July. But for my little family of three, this was an unknown quantity -- not a hotel or condo or rental house, not camping, not a rustic cabin. The resort has its own marina; a little dock; a playground; an upscale restaurant with retractable roof (the Back Bay Bistro); a general store that rents golf carts, Segways and bicycles; and best of all, its own little lagoon, with tiny bay waves lapping at its own crescent of sand, the scene punctuated by meandering ducks, gulls and shore birds. Even after rates rise for summer, it's easy to see the lure of a few lazy days here. -- Christopher Reynolds Read more: Newport Beach for kind of cheap family lodging Planning your trip: 1131 Back Bay Drive, Newport Beach, CA 92660; (949) 729-3863, www.newportdunes.com.

It’s a prime location. Although I never noticed it in three decades of breezing past on the Pacific Coast Highway, Newport Dunes lies just a block from PCH and Jamboree Road, so close to the shops of Fashion Island you can almost hear them tearing down the Circuit City sign and (keep hope alive!) putting up the new Nordstrom. Generations of locals know Newport Dunes for the fake whale that floats in its lagoon every summer and the fireworks it sends up every Fourth of July.

But for my little family of three, this was an unknown quantity -- not a hotel or condo or rental house, not camping, not a rustic cabin. The resort has its own marina; a little dock; a playground; an upscale restaurant with retractable roof (the Back Bay Bistro); a general store that rents golf carts, Segways and bicycles; and best of all, its own little lagoon, with tiny bay waves lapping at its own crescent of sand, the scene punctuated by meandering ducks, gulls and shore birds. Even after rates rise for summer, it’s easy to see the lure of a few lazy days here.

-- Christopher Reynolds

Read more: Newport Beach for kind of cheap family lodging

Planning your trip:

1131 Back Bay Drive, Newport Beach, CA 92660; (949) 729-3863, www.newportdunes.com.

  (Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times)

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San Diego Zoo's Wild Animal Park

“It’s cheaper than going to Africa, I’ll say that,”” Christine said as she scanned a rolling savanna where giraffes, gazelles and elephants ambled within a few dozen yards of a tent she shared with her husband, Jim.

For the Claremont couple and more than 50 other safari wannabes like me who spent a chilly Saturday night in March at the San Diego Zoo’s Wild Animal Park, the aptly named Roar & Snore camp out was also enlightening, fun and a little eerie. But not necessarily restful.

-- Jane Engle

Read more: San Diego Zoo’s Wild Animal Park offers overnight camping near wildlife

Planning your trip:

San Diego Zoo’s Wild Animal Park, (800) 407-9534, www.sandiegozoo.org.”

  (Don Bartletti / Los Angeles Times)

Monterey Bay Aquarium

Dawn is coming soon. The lights are off, the sound system silent and the beasts of the Monterey Bay Aquarium have the place mostly to themselves: the otters, the anemones, the octopuses, the great white shark in the big tank, the lame young albatross in its rooftop cage -- and Kacey Kurimura, who’s at the kitchen sink in her apron and waterproof boots, reaching for a knife.

Maybe the sea never sleeps, but this is how the day begins at the Monterey Bay Aquarium. Before this one is over, 2,881 visitors will troop through, that young shark will fill up on a mere 3 1/2 pounds of fish, the albatross will dance with a new friend. And the jellyfish expert will get stung, which happens about three times a week.

-- Christopher Reynolds

Read more: Behind the scenes at the Monterey Bay Aquarium

Planning your trip:

The Monterey Bay Aquarium is about 320 miles (5 1/2 hours) from downtown Los Angeles to Monterey. www.montereybayaquarium.org.

  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times )