Lantern Bay Park

Beautiful grassy park overlooking the harbor and docks. Small playground on the east end of the park with public restrooms. Lots of picnic tables near the playground and benches right at playground edge. Close to many good restaurants just a quarter mile walk to the strip mall west of the park. Great access up a giant workout of a staircase or a ramp the borders the park.

This is a lovely park, with fantastic views of the ocean and the harbor. The parking is very limited, small little lot at the bottom of the hill and street parking. It is sad because of the drought most of the grass is dead. The new grass they planted in the spring is dirt now.

Hey, Google, show me something neat-​o in Dana Point. I’m feeling like I want to be outside, but I don’t want to be «too outside» if you know what I mean. Don’t put me on a breakwater where an angry sea lion will bite me or splash me with briny ocean water. Okay, parks… that’s good… this is a good start. How about something a little elevated with a view? I want to be above everyone, physically, like I am their king. King of the Sea Village is what I’m looking for. An amphitheater? That’s different. I’m liking this. Some trees and a shady place to sit and eat a small royal picnic would be wonderful. Oh, and please remember to refer to me as your «majesty.» Lantern Bay Park you say? Sounds great. Looks like Jeeves can park at that tiny lot on the right after turning onto Park Lantern. Bring the car around and let’s go. Oh, and one more thing: I hate to be *that* king, but please remember to address me by my proper title when in public, okay?

I love this park! It has amazing views of Doheny and the Harbor. The playground is fairly small but perfect for toddlers and young kids. There are no swings. The height of the equipment is not that high so if they do tumble it’s not too bad. The surface is that rubbery material which I love! No wood chips or sand! There are picnic tables nearby and plenty of grass to run around. There’s a short walkway that you can use strollers on for a leisure stroll. Parking is either on the road or in a parking lot that’s rarely full.

I selected this venue for my wedding ceremony (we had the ampitheater area). It is a beautiful area and the perfect spot for my wedding. It was an easy process to reserve the venue and get everything squared away. Like I said it was perfect for my wedding and the pictures will be beautiful and I couldn’t imagine it anywhere else.
The only thing that became the big problem was that they over-​reserved the park. There was a birthday party, Hawaiian dance class going on, as well as the normal park people. I wouldn’t have minded but there was already limited parking so with all of the activities going on, there was absolutely no parking left for my guests. I, as the bride, had to start my wedding late due to the parking issue. DO NOT HAVE YOUR WEDDING HERE IF IT IS MORE THAN 30 PEOPLE!!! And it was on a Sunday!!! So not only did I have no parking, I also had some extremely rude people who walked and ran across my aisle as the ceremony was going on AS THE BRIDESMAIDS AND I WERE WALKING DOWN THE AISLE!!!
Yes there is parking along the hill and yes there is a free parking lot at the bottom of the hill, but if they over reserved the area (which you won’t know until the day off), you and your guests will have a very difficult time parking.
Other than that it was perfect. We were able to decorate early with no problem, tear down was easy, we took pictures inside one of the circles with the view of the ocean in the back, breathtaking view; it was just the large amount of activities at the same time and the little parking that wasn’t soo great!

I wanted to elaborate on my previous review of this place. I still love this park! haha.
LOCATION:
Absolutely beautiful location. The view is the best! This park overlooks the harbor and ocean. What better way to enjoy the great outdoors ;).
PARKING:
There is a parking lot across the street from the park (down the hill). It is a free lot. You can also park on the street — Eastern Lantern St (street the park is off of) and Golden Lantern (street to the North of the park). Parking on the street is free as well.
PARK:
There is a playground located at the East end of the park. There are bathrooms there as well — those are the only bathrooms for the entire park. There are walkways throughout the park. Picnic tables and BBQ’s are located throughout the park. There is also a beautiful wedding ceremony area that overlooks the water. It has stadium-​like seating and a long walk way coming down to the seating area.
EXERCISE:
This park is great for exercise — there are so many things to do. There are a few exercise classes that happen at this park. I don’t know all of them, but I have seen them happening. I personally like to go to the FREE Yoga in the Park (
). It is donation base and happens everyday at 10am. I also love to run the stairs at the West end of the park.

Love this park! It sits high up on a hill overlooking the Dana Point harbor! So beautiful. I’ve been going to «yoga in the park.» It’s donation donation based, everyday at 10 am, and the teachers rock!

Oh my goodness this park is pretty amazing for it’s great views of the ocean. This is a great park to spend with someone you love because in the evening it can be very romantic. This park is all about the views because sits high on a hill. There’s one playground but there are a few picnic tables.
There are a lot of trees for shade but there are a lot of open spaces if you want to sunbathe. This is a pretty big park and a lot of people do come here. On Sundays I believe there is free yoga in the park because I seen a lot of females in their yoga attire.
If you walk up the stairs to get to this park you will be very tired when you get to the top. Or you could just drive up the hill and park on the street but there is a small parking lot where you can park also. Parking maybe an issue on the weekends so you may want to get there early.
If you haven’t been to this park you must come here if not you are definitely missing out on a beautiful view.

Nice park with a great view…
Came here for the first time to see the free Shakespeare in the Park last year. They presented «The Tempest». It was great but I would have loved to check out the park a little more but we barely got there in time for the play. Looks like a great place to run or enjoy a nice stroll. A definite great place for a nice picnic.
Just bring a sweater or jacket if you’re going later in the day or evening because it does get cold since it’s near the coast.

I saw some people drive right up to the top of this park. I don’t know or care which street they took because the journey up is half the fun.
Starting at the corner of Dana Point Harbor Dr. and Golden Lantern St., you will see a set of stairs and to the right of the stairs, a sloping paved path. Choose your journey.
I decided to bypass the stairway and slowly wrap my way around instead. My friend groaned that we were taking the «handicapped» route. I replied, «The journey up is half the fun.»
For a park on a hill, Lantern Bay Park is vastly larger than say, Signal Hill, and the air is much cleaner than say, the Bluffs at San Pedro. The view is not sweeping like Point Dume in Malibu, but the drive, needless to say, is much shorter.
Aside from the view of the bay, the park also has a playground and is dog-​friendly. Unfortunately, I found 3 clumps of dog poop throughout the area so a message to dog owners: unless Fido is a prodigy dog who can bag his own poop, it’s still your responsibility.
Watch where you lay, but otherwise, this breezy park is great for a brisk walk, a pleasant view, and an afternoon nap to finish it all.

Such a great way to start the day. It’s a great workout, Amazing location and beautiful views!

This is a hidden gem in orange county.
Went to the park for a wedding ceremony and was quite delighted with the park overall. The park has everything you could ever want. plenty of grass to have a picnic, do some tanning or just throw a frisbee around. There are walking and biking paths that go around the park. And did I mention the views, awesome panoramic views of the ocean. You can sit there and watch the surf.
This park is a must visit

This park is breath taking and is on a cliff with well kept green green grass. I recommend it here for weddings because it can do for any budget. I was able to reserve the amphitheater area of Lantern Bay Park for my wedding for just $ 300 so much cheaper than churches, and with a ocean view. The great thing about this amphitheater is the long row of trees and sidewalk that drop you into the center of this amphitheater. ITs breathtaking and made my Dad cry when he realized how much time he would have walking me down the aisle.
Also because its a stadium the concrete seating would easily hold over 300 people. I had about 90 use the concrete for seating and it was lovely. There is plenty of room too for chairs on the grass in the center. Some pictures I’ve seen with 4 chairs per row on either side fit over 80 chairs in the center and im certain more would have fit. The view from any area in the park here is beautiful with lots of ocean views.
Also had power supplied at the amphitheater which was nicely hidden and never seen in our wedding photos. SO I got the joy of microphones, a dj and a pianist. There are bathrooms close by a playground for kids and a additional parking lot off to the side. The parking fills up quickly but it is worth the view for everyone.

This park is AMAZING. It’s never too crowded and the view is SPECTACULAR! you can BBQ and theres plenty of shade and tables. the only thing downside would be the parking, because if it is crowded you are screwed.

Incredible views and they hold free yoga in the park.

This is an AMAZING park. Beautiful view, great parking, tons of space for parties and picnics. There is also a FREE YOGA class offered every day 10:00am. Such a wonderful class, inspiring, breathtaking. Something every one should try!

Gorgeous!!! Wow. We went here on a perfect day! 70’s and breezy. Great place to have a picnic. Just an awesome ocean view!

GORGEOUS !! GORGEOUS !! AMAZING !!!
There is a play ground here. Nice walking paths, LARGE grassy area’s and an UNBELIEVABLE view of the ocean. Up on a hill, cool breezes. Amazing. I saw this from Coast Hwy, I initially thought it was a golf course, but knowing the area a little bit, I knew there was no room for that. What a beautiful park. Great for yoga as the other posted stated. Great for taking kids, reading, chilling out, taking a nap. who knows.

I really enjoy this park. If you’re feeling like you need to «feel the burn» just try walking up that hill — it’s a steep one! If not, you can always drive up the hill and park pretty near the top, near the entrance to Marriott Laguna Cliffs Resort.
The views from this park are spectacular as you can see all of Doheny Beach, Dana Point Harbor and beyond. The breezes are lovely and it never seems to be hot here. There are lots of good areas for doing yoga or for stretching, and other than the occassional loud wedding at the Marriott wafting your way, it’s usually very peaceful here too.
There are picnic tables, lots of trees and shade, and it always looks very clean. I think they also have playground equipment, but I am always here for yoga and don’t ever wander over that way.
This is a great park for relaxing, exercising or reading.