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Media Contact: Penny Elia DANA POINT FESTIVAL OF WHALES – A CELEBRATION OF THE CALIFORNIA GRAY WHALE'S MAJESTIC MIGRATION Dana Point, Calif. – The 39th annual Dana Point Festival of Whales, Saturday and Sunday, March 6 & 7 and 13 & 14, celebrates the return of the once-endangered California Gray Whale with a leviathan-size event. This annual celebration draws more than 100,000 visitors from around the world to Dana Point each year during the height of whale watching season. “Dana Point offers visitors a great opportunity to get up close and personal with these incredible creatures and also enjoy sightings of other sea life unique to the California coast,” said Donna Kalez, chairperson of the Festival of Whales. “Dana Point’s Festival is unique in that so many areas throughout the City are involved. Whether it be the Street Faire in Towne Plaza, Ocean Awareness and our grand finale concert/BBQ/wine and beer garden near the Orange County Sailing & Event Center in the Harbor, or the Ocean Institute, visitors get a real feel for our great destination and can even be transported free of charge on our Festival shuttle that offers stops at each event venue. Visitors can actually “migrate” just like the whales! However, what our visitors really want to experience is the thrill of spotting a pod of gray whales, a mega pod of dolphins or other sea life, and Dana Point Harbor offers the very best location along the California coast.” Located midway between Los Angeles and San Diego, experts report that Dana Point’s 200-foot cliffs serve as a landmark for migrating whales. Nearly 25 percent of the gray whale population follow the coastline during migration – which means many whales pass by Dana Point daily. An added bonus is Dana Point’s harbor design that allows for a quick trip out to sea so that whale watchers can spend more time spotting whales than winding through a harbor. For updated information on events and a wide variety of whale watching excursions, call 949-472-7888 or 1-888-440-4309 or visit online at www.festivalofwhales.org. Media Note: Whale watching excursions depart daily, and complimentary trip arrangements and/or accommodations for the media are available beginning the middle of December through the end of the Festival. Please contact Penny Elia at 949-499-4499 to make arrangements for an excursion. Full-color images are available online at www.festivalofwhales.org. |
