Sometimes the best getaways are those little gems that your nearby city holds. Located just a short boat ride away from Newport Beach, Catalina Island offers a romantic and laid-back experience. The best part is getting away from the L.A traffic and finding yourself on an island that has almost no cars.
Once you lose sight of the city and those freeways are long gone, you will find many restaurant options, entertainment, beauty, and relaxation. A one-night stay will do best to enjoy the island without rushing, but one day will also give you enough time to explore it.
Fun things to do on Catalina Island
1. Ride a Bike
With no option to rent a car (not that you need one), the next best thing was to rent a bike for a few hours to stroll the cute streets of the island. It’s fun to get a good workout, especially if you ride uphill to the Wrigley Memorial & Botanical Garden.
2. Drive a Golf Cart
If you prefer, you can rent a golf cart to get around the island. They serve well for every time you want to go uphill to catch a beautiful sight of the island.
3. See and feed fish on a Glassbottom Boat
Bringing the underwater world right to us was pretty fun. We fed the colorful fish that thrived among the kelp found in the Lover’s Cove Marine Preserve during our boat ride.
4. Walk the Island to find some great views
The best way to get around Catalina Island is on foot. We spent most of our time walking and searching for views where we could capture the beauty of the island. The furthest we walked was to the botanical garden, and that only took 30 minutes. Everything else is even closer.
5. Relax on the Beach
Descanso Beach Club is a restaurant and bar located right on the beach. Here you can rent cabanas or a lounge chair while relaxing and enjoying the view. You can also relax at South Beach and Middle Beach, located on each side of the Green Pleasure Pier. Both are within walking distance of shopping, food, restrooms, and activities.
6. Visit the Casino
The Catalina Casino, which was built in 1929, is both a ballroom and movie theater. It’s also known for its art and beautiful views. If you decide to do the casino tour, you’ll learn about the building’s history, see a short film and theater, go behind the scenes, explore the ballroom, and enjoy the beautiful views of the island.
7. Pick some fun activities
Besides riding bikes, the island has many options for fun. You can go on a zip line tour and fly 300 feet above the Descanso Canyon. You can go on a jeep tour to see bison roaming around Catalina. Or you can go kayaking, paddle boarding, or snorkeling.
8. Explore the Wrigley Memorial and Botanical Garden
The memorial and garden are just a 30-minute walk away or a quick trolley ride. The name might sound familiar to you because of the famous chewing gum, and you are on the right track. Sir William Wrigley bought most of the island in the early 1900s. Now, he has a memorial named after him because he played a significant role in the island’s history. The Botanical Garden is an excellent place to explore the plants and take in the ocean views from afar.
The Wrigley Memorial itself was our favorite. The monument was primarily made from material found at Catalina Island. It includes red roof tiles, glazed tiles, and blue flagstone. From the top, you get those fantastic views we just mentioned.
9. Do some shopping
Catalina Island has many small shops. You can find anything from souvenirs to pottery and art.
10. Drink Micheladas
Something we enjoyed while at the island was stopping for some delicious Micheladas. It was the best way to relax before walking the pier or laying out on the beach. Get your drink on at Mi Casita Mexican Food.
11. Indulge in a Dessert
It’s no secret. We have a strong sweet tooth for ice cream and pastries. Catalina Island was quite pleasant because it fulfilled our need to feed those sugar cravings. You can stop at Scoops for some ice cream, but they also serve Starbucks. A stop at Big Olaf’s will get you that delicious ice cream picture above, and last but not least, Lloyd’s has some delicious candy!
12. Eat your way around the island
Because food is the way of life, right? One of our favorite eateries was the breakfast at Original Jack’s Country Kitchen. We stopped here because we saw a long wait line outside the restaurant, and since no one was living a rushed life during their visit to Catalina, we decided we would also wait.
It definitely was worth it. We also enjoyed some delicious pizza at Antonio’s Pizzeria and Cabaret. Finally, we savored a quick snack (a yummy chili cheese dog) at Avalon Seafood Fish and Chips on the pier for a reasonable price. However, many places we didn’t make it to are pretty popular such as The Lobster Trap, Luau Larry’s, and Avalon Grille.
13. Enjoy the sunset cruise back
As if all that wasn’t enough, the ride on the ferry is an adventure itself. On the way back, you might be lucky enough to experience a beautiful sunset.
Tell us, have you ever been to Catalina Island? What was your favorite thing to do?
It looks like a great getaway! I definitely want to go there the next time we’re in LA. I guess riding a golf cart with the kids would be fun 🙂
It really is. What’s nice about it is it wasn’t congested with traffic and the views were great. I’m sure your kids would love riding around in a golf cart!
I still have my 520 number, and live in Cali. Small world. We love Catalina Island and go fairly often so I am surprised Buffalo Milk didn’t make the list, especially if you’re having Starbucks later. Next time you go you will have to check it out.
How funny! We refuse to give up our 520 number. I love finding Tucson people in California. We went last minute and heard of Buffalo Milk before leaving. Definitely have to check it out next time. How fun that you guys get to go enjoy Catalina. It’s always a nice getaway.
The cool thing about Catalina Island is that a lot of people do not know we have an island that is part of Los Angeles County. Stopped on the island on one of those 4 days cruises. I remember how beautiful everything was. I really want to go back and see if I can spot the buffalo that live on the interior. #WeekendWanderlust
It’s such a nice getaway isn’t it!? We also missed the buffalo on our trip there, maybe next time. Hope you get to go back soon to enjoy the things you missed! Besides, it’s only a short ride away. ?
Thanks for the ideas and I would like to go for dessert bike and sunset(not necessarily) in order ? @ knycx.journeying
Both were great so I’m sure you’ll enjoy the island a lot!
What fun! We have not been to Catalina in a long time! (The ‘next generation’ went camping there last summer…we’re still waiting for her review!) It doesn’t look like it’s change much over the years. I love that it’s so close, but is a great getaway! Thanks for sharing.
It was definitely a great getaway and makes you feel you’re away from the city. It’s nice to have places like these sitting close by. Hope you get to go back again.
I have always wanted to visit Catalina but never seem to squeeze it in whenever we are in LA. This all looks like so much fun. I really must make the time on our next trip out west.
It’s definitely hard to squeeze in with so many other great things to do around L.A. It took us two years to finally get here and it was worth it. Hope you make time to get to it one day.
I’ve wanted to go to Catalina Island for a long time, and you’ve done everything I would want to do. Looks like such a great place to explore.
Catalina island is indeed a revelation. There are so many enjoyable activities out there. A leisurely walk or a cycling in the lovely environs is something that immediately appeals to me. I would of course love to catch that mesmerizing sunset too.
It was the perfect getaway!
Thanks for the recommendations. Love the sound of cycling around the island to see the sites. The desserts don’t sound too bad either!
Cycling around was quite fun. Hope you get to visit one day.
Oh yes I very much like the look of that Botanical Garden! I love those 🙂
It was a nice desert garden. 🙂
feeding the fish sounds so cool! that’s definitely going on our bucket list!
Hope you get to go sometime!
So good to have a cool and relaxing place like Catalina Island to escape the busy big city! However it must not be that hidden gem if Starbucks managed to find it . . . I would enjoy my stay in Catalina Island with a couple of micheladas, ice cream and a nice sunset
The best part is that it’s an escape from the traffic since no cars roam on the island but the local’s. The micheladas were actually our favorite part! We went back three times to a Mexican restaurant to have them haha. 🙂 Hope you get to go one day if you haven’t already.
This looks like a really good place to take the kids. They would love the glass bottomed boat and the beach. Not to mention the ice cream!
Your kids would definitely enjoy the glass bottom boat, the beach area, and pretty much everything else. 🙂 Hope you get to go one day.
What a great place to get away for a few days! Sign me up for some Micheladas, ice-cream and sunsets! What a perfect combination!
The micheladas were the best part haha! Hope you get to go one day. 🙂
Catalina Island seems like the perfect place for a holiday, and it looks so pretty! Thanks for sharing ?
Reading this post is so much fun!
Catalina is so beautiful!
I hope I can visit in the near future:)
Thanks for sharing!
I hope you visit too. You’ll love it.:)
This place looks great! One of my very first memories of travelling was looking through a glassbottom boat in the sea below. This post brought back some amazing memories for me. Awesome!