Tickets will be handed out, first come first served, at Irvine Metrolink Station on Feb. 1
ORANGE – Orange County residents are invited to commemorate the Lunar New Year on Saturday, Feb. 1 with a free celebration at the Irvine Metrolink Station, followed by a Metrolink ride to Chinatown in Los Angeles for the Golden Dragon Parade.
The Irvine kick-off event begins at 8 a.m. and the first 200 guests will receive free round-trip Metrolink tickets to ring in the Year of the Rat at the 121st Golden Dragon Parade.
Kick-off event festivities include prizes, refreshments and dragon dancers.
The address for the Lunar New Year Kick-off Event is Irvine Metrolink Station, 15215 Barranca Parkway, Irvine, CA 92618. Free parking will be available.
Riders can also take advantage of Metrolink’s $10 Weekend Pass, which allows passengers to ride to any Metrolink destination all day Saturday or Sunday. The pass includes free rail and bus connections throughout Southern California.
Following the celebration in Irvine, attendees can ride the 9:28 a.m. or 9:48 a.m. train to L.A. Union Station. From there, they can transfer for free to the Metro Gold Line to Chinatown to view the 1 p.m. parade.
After the parade, riders can return home swiftly by taking the Metro Gold Line towards Atlantic and exiting at L.A. Union Station. The Metro Gold Line runs every 15 minutes.
At L.A. Union Station, they can take the Metrolink Orange County Line toward Oceanside.
When purchasing tickets, Metrolink riders can save time and avoid lines by using Metrolink’s mobile app, which can be downloaded for free at the App Store and Google Play.
For train schedules and event details, visit www.octa.net/lunar or www.metrolinktrains.com.
