Comments (0) Best Ship of Ghouls (1936) - 2010
Queen Mary
You think of Long Beach as the home of Snoop Dogg, Warren G and the band Sublime, but it’s also the adopted home of the Queen Mary. Nothing’s more gangsta than a luxury ocean liner featuring nightlife opportunities, Art Deco opulence, a history of undercover service in WWII (under the maritime nom de guerre Grey Ghost) and inclusion as a place of interest in paranormal/ghost-hunter literature. Built in 1936 in Scotland and then docked into restful retirement in Long Beach harbor in 1968, the Queen sits anchored off a sylvan spit of land, looking back onto surprisingly scenic downtown Long Beach. Dine in style at Sir Winston’s or the Chelsea Chowder House, buy gifts at the various shops, take in a jazz or blues set at one of the cool, opulent, Deco-themed lounges, and play shuffleboard or croquet. Or just amble this enormous seagoing vessel’s endless rooms, corridors, passageways and staircases and absorb the museum-like historical displays while hanging in the company of some salty — but good-hearted — old seafaring ghosts. 1126 Queens Highway, Long Beach. (562) 435-3511, queenmary.com.
—Adam Gropman
