Whether you're looking for a challenging game of golf or a relaxing day at the beach, Dana Point is the destination of choice for Southern California visitors. Our beaches are renowned for swimming and surfing. And when you've finished playing try some of the culinary treats to be found throughout the city and harbor in our award winning restaurants. Follow the links above for all the information you'll need to plan your visit. Dana Point - The Most Romantic Place in California.

From the headlands, early Native Americans watched the sea for whales and Indian trading canoes from the Channel Islands. During the Spanish and Mexican eras of the 1800s, the sheltering coves welcomed wind-blown ships bringing manufactured goods from faraway ports to trade for the hides of thousands of cattle that grazed here on mission and rancho lands.

Richard Henry Dana, an ordinary seaman aboard the “Pilgrim,” one of the trading ships from New England, wrote about his voyage in his classic book, “Two Years Before the Mast.” In it he called the local coastal scenery “the only romantic spot in California.” And so the headlands were named for him in 1884, as was the beach town that grew beside them. Dana Point Harbor was built in the historic bay, opening to small craft in 1971. Dana Point became a city in 1989.

- Doris Walker -