Opera-singing SLO native brings Venetian gondola to Morro Bay. Here’s how to take a ride
Imagine taking a nighttime gondola ride, the gondolier serenading you softly as the lights of the city and the moon set the stage for romance.
That’s now possible in Morro Bay, where a new business is offering one-of-a-kind tours.
Central Coast Gondola holds its grand opening Friday, June 30.
After 22 years as a professional gondoliere in Southern California, San Luis Obispo County native Stephen Anastasia has brought his rowing passion, his professional singing voice and the Gianna, his elaborately carved and decorated Venetian wedding gondola, to the North Coast
Anastasia — who answers to “Stefano” when he’s in his traditional gondoliere attire of striped T-shirt, flat-brimmed straw hat and sash — can take from two to six people at a time on the water at a time. He offers tours for everything from family outings and corporate cruises to weddings.
“They can ride around the bay, look at wildlife or we can pull into a quiet area so they can have a private picnic,” Anastasia said by phone June 20.
SLO County native started career in music
Anastasia, a fourth-generation San Luis Obispo County native, was born in San Luis Obispo in 1976 and attended C.L Smith Elementary for a while before his family moved to Atascadero.
He finished his education through high school in Atascadero, attended Cuesta College, then got his teaching credential for choral and vocal arts for kindergarten through 12th grade from Long Beach State.
Anastasia met his future wife Janette Marks in a 1998 college choir class in Long Beach, where they lived for 25 years.
He is the pastor of Paso Robles Church of the Nazarene, and his wife is the office manager there.
Business owner went from opera singing to gondola rowing
After earning his master’s degree at UC Irvine, Anastasia was a professional opera singer for a decade and worked as a music professor for a dozen years.
He learned to row at Gondola Getaway in Long Beach, and worked there for 15 years starting in 2000.
In total, Anastasia amassed more than two decades of rowing expertise working there and for Sunset Gondola in Huntington Harbor and Gondola Adventures in Newport Beach, all while pursuing his other careers.
“I think I was the first gondoliere in Southern California to work for multiple companies,” Anastasia recalled.
He worked at Gondola Adventures in Newport Beach for his friend Greg Mohr, who’s known in the industry as Mr. Gondola or Gondola Greg, from 2010 until Valentine’s Day this year, when Anastasia quit.
Anastasia bought the Gianna gondola from Mohr the next day.
“The Gianna was the first boat Greg ever bought, he loved it and he really didn’t want to sell it,” Anastasia said.
Eventually, Mohr relented, and has since moved to Texas, where, according to Anastasia, “business is growing substantially.”
Singing is still in Anastasia’s blood. Gondola riders can request serenades from the baritone.
What makes the Gianna special?
According to Anastasia, the Gianna is Morro Bay’s first gondola and one of only five authentic Venetian wedding gondolas in the United States.
“Gianna was brought to the United States by investors, believing that they could sell her to The Venetian in Las Vegas,” Central Coast Gondola’s website explains. “This was impossible, however, as the hotels canals were not designed to take boats the length of an authentic Venetian gondola.”
The boat was then given to Brides magazine, and Gondola Adventures in Newport Beach purchased it at auction.
Anastasia’s classy 36-foot craft was made in 1961 in Venice by noted artist Il Santo.
Bronze statuettes of cupids, mermaids and angels — known as cavalli — adorn the vessel, traditionally used to transport a newly married couples from their wedding to a reception. Persian-style rugs provide secure footing for riders and the gondoliere.
Dennis Marks, the uncle of Anastasia’s wife Janette, applied decorative gold leaf throughout the boat.
Central Coast Gondola fleet features 2 boats
Central Coast Gondola also has another boat, a Venetian pupparin craft. The sleek, shorter, lighter and narrower racing boat Contessa that can carry four oarsmen is currently being refurbished.
“If the Gianna is like an executive cab, the Contessa is like a sports car,” Anastasia said.
On Mohr’s blog, he described a pupparin as “a transition boat, because young men are usually the ones racing her, guys who are typically on their way to becoming gondoliers.”
In 2013, Anastasia won the solo distance race rowing a gondola in the 2.5-mile U.S. Gondola Nationals, a grueling sprint through the canals of Huntington Harbor and Sunset Beach.
“I’ve been wanting to do this for well over 10 years, bring a gondola back home,” Anastasia said, “but it was never the right time or the right boat before.”
When can you get ride a gondola in Morro Bay?
After the grand opening, Central Coast Gondola will offer rides on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays for now. Schedules and available cruises will depend on what customers want, and when.
Anastasia hopes to secure permanent docking facilities for his Venetian boat fleet so he can leave the Gianna in the water overnight.
Until then, he’ll continue what he’s been doing during his test runs of the wooden craft — launching each day and hauling the gondola out every night.
How much does a Central Coast gondola cruise cost?
Central Coast Gondola’s website lists the price for private Venetian gondola cruises for two at $130 for 60 minutes or $190 for 90 minutes. Extra passengers cost $25-$30 each.
Optional services that add to the price include providing a custom-printed message in a bottle, flowers and pairings of charcuterie and wines, although passengers can bring their own snacks, meals or beverages.
Passengers younger than 13 must wear life jackets. In the case of cool weather, the vessel is outfitted with blankets for snuggling.
Due to demand, there’s a $20 surcharge for cruises at sunset.
“Some people want to go out during the day, and others at night,” Anastasia said. “It’s absolutely exquisite to be out on the water at night, silent, really beautiful … and it’s actually quite warm in the boat.”
Central Coast Gondola
For details about Central Coast Gondola call 805-363-4363, email cruises@centralcoastgondola.com or visit centralcoastgondola.com. You can also follow the business on Facebook or Instagram.
