In January 2019, 20 hockey loving Melbourne Ice fanatics gathered in Los Angeles as the 2019 New Year broke. Greeted by the gorgeous California mild winter weather, the adventure began in style with a stroll along the famous Hollywood Boulevard. The tour officially kick-started with a day trip to Universal Studios for some action-packed rides followed by a tour of Beverly Hills, Santa Monica, Muscle Beach and the Hollywood hills. 

It wasn’t long before the Ice Jerseys were proudly displayed as we headed to Staples Center for a VIP stadium tour and center ice photo moment. The hockey started with the hottest team in the NHL, Tampa Bay Lightning taking on the LA Kings, including a trip down to the rooms for a fist bump to welcome the Kings to the center ice... WOW!

Early, the next morning, we headed to Anaheim for a two-day park experience at Disneyland as the Anaheim Ducks hosted the Vegas Golden Knights at the Honda Center.

Game-3 of our NHL tour saw us head to the ‘city of sin’ to experience hockey’s newest franchise - the Golden Knights host the New Jersey Devils, and what a show it was! Post-game we got to enjoy the bright lights of one of America’s famous cities before rising early and heading out to the Grand Canyon. 3 hours in a bus and we were greeted by one of the 7 Wonders of the World in its full glory, covered in fresh snow right to the valley floor, an amazing experience for all.

Next stop was at San Jose to see Connor McDavid’s Edmonton Oilers take on Eric Karlsson, Brett Burns and the rest of San Jose Sharks. Sitting up high in the corporate area, we were joined by Melbourne Ice import alumnus and 3Peat Champion Doug Wilson as the Sharks put on a master class.

On the final day of the tour, we took a day trip around the beautiful city of San Francisco, a bike ride across the Golden Gate Bridge, hopped on the running boards of the famous cable car and enjoyed a fun day at Fisherman’s Wharf.

A big thanks to all our travellers, our partner Escorted Tours for hosting us all and a special mention to the ROW I GOONS who showcased their fantastic ‘Melbourne Ice Jerseys’ on the west coast of the USA.

 STOP PRESS: to all ‘East Coast’ fans of MONTREAL, TORONTO, OTTOWA, BUFFALO & ???? the 2020 COAST TOUR is ‘currently under construction’ and will be released in March 2019.