Surrounded by floating lights

People love to watch the Newport Beach Christmas Boat Parade. And over a million people will enjoy the festival of lights this year, according to the Newport Beach Chamber of Commerce. But for hundreds or even thousands of people, watching from right on the waterfront still isn’t close enough to the action.

Not to worry. There are multiple ways to watch the fun from the water. You can rent boats of all shapes and sizes, from personal kayaks to chartered Duffy electric boats to huge yachts, to view the parade in the harbor. It’s become a popular way to enjoy the show. Many area rental company representatives say their boats have been reserved for weeks.

“Depending on the size, it can range from a dinner cruise with Pacific Avalon Yachts to a personal gondola,” said Jessica Roswell, spokeswoman for the Newport Beach Conference and Visitors Bureau.

One less ordinary way to take to the waters this weekend is aboard the tallship Lynx, built to emulate a 19th century privateer schooner, though for the parade it uses its motor rather than sails. Jeff Woods, Lynx foundation director of operations, said that the ship, which offers both private charters and individual tickets on different nights, gets into the holiday spirit by setting off its cannons.

“We fire at all the yacht clubs, all the bay clubs,” he said. “There’s even some guy with a shotgun firing blanks, and we take him on, too. It’s a ‘prepare to be boarded!’-type deal.”

Woods said that the number of boats on the water, both participants and spectators, made getting around pretty hectic.

“There are a lot of boats in the water,” he said. “People out there are drinking, and it’s full of kayakers who don’t have lights, so you can’t see them.”

Kayaking rental agencies in the area do not rent after 6 p.m. in Newport Harbor for liability reasons, employees said.

For a more personal look at the parade, Newport retiree Joseph Monday takes customers in groups on his large gondola, the Crystal Swan. He said there was no better way to see the festivities.

“We pull out near Newport Bridge and we see the beginning of the parade go by, then [we] slide into the private residential canals,” he said. “People can stand up and walk outside and watch the lights swirling in slow motion around us.”

Monday said that the canals were calmer than out in the bay, where the commotion never stopped.

“It’s crazy out there. Luckily my gondola is big and white so people can see me.”