Welcome to Balboa Island! The houses are quaint and enchanting. The living is creative and carefree. You can spend your day walking around the beautiful boardwalk, boating, biking, shopping, or lounging.
Don’t be surprised when you can’t choose between mouth watering mandarin, authentic mexican, spicy italian, premium prime-rib, rack of lamb, or good ol’ broiled burgers. And as your fun-filled day comes to a close and you watch the sun gently set in glittering hues of orange and red.
Balboa Island is an area of Newport Beach, California actually comprising three islands in Newport Harbor. Balboa Island is the largest. The smaller island to the east of Balboa Island is Little Balboa Island. The smallest is Collins Island to the northwest of Balboa Island.
The Balboa Island community is joined to the mainland by a bridge on the northeast of Balboa Island, and a privately-operated fleet of three, three-car ferryboats (Balboa Island Ferry) which provide access across the harbor to the Balboa Peninsula which lies to the south.
Tourists from all over the world come to stay on the island in one of the many vacation rentals, year after year as tradition. They enjoy the summer days at the beach and evenings on the main street having dinner in the many restaurants, after dinner having their Balboa Bars at the ice cream shops and getting bags of saltwater taffy at the old fashioned candy store.
Local tradition has it that Balboa Island is where the frozen chocolate banana was first marketed. Snack shops on Marine Avenue will dip a frozen banana on a stick into chocolate sauce and dredge it in ground nuts or candy sprinkles. Another popular island confection is the Balboa bar, a square of vanilla ice cream on a stick that is prepared in a similar fashion.