I was so excited for this day as it was the day to spend on Catalina Island. It's something I've wanted to do for so long. Corey had never been either, so we planned the whole day. We left L.A. at 8:30 a.m. and got back home around 9:30 p.m. so it truly was an all day event. BUT not what we expected. Talk about a tourist trap! And trapped indeed. We were on an island!!
Started out by taking the Catalina Express from downtown Long Beach. We upgraded to the Commodore Lounge with more comfy seats and a free beverage. The ride over to the island took an hour and it was pleasurable. I finally got to see the Queen Mary close up since we went right past it in the Long Beach harbor. I also got to see Point Fermin Lighthouse from my seat on the boat.
Our "ride" to Catalina Island
The Queen Mary
Upon arriving at Catalina Island I have to admit that I found the whole environment to be absolutely beautiful! The water was gorgeous, filled with white yachts and sailboats, and fabulous little houses tucked into the streets and up the side of the hill. A little representation of, let's say Monaco or Greece. I was so excited to be able to spend the day in this "magical" place. Upon closer inspection, it was so crowded with tourists and beach bunnies. There were cute shops and restaurants and everything was packed. Of course it was. It was Sunday of the Labor Day weekend and it was hot and it was Avalon.
My first views of Avalon
The famous casino (not really a casino)
Yachts and sailboats and fishing boats, oh my!
The 'hood
The people.
There are shops and restaurants on Casino Ave, then a walkway, then the "beach."
Our plan was this:
- Avalon Scenic Tour - recommended to do to get to know Avalon; booked and paid for ahead of time.
- Eat lunch.
- Rent a golf cart and drive around the island. Well, drive around Avalon and get some good pictures; visit the Casino and tour the ballroom and theatre and museum; drive up to the Wrigley Memorial and the Chime Tower.
- Walk around town. Possibly go on the Icons of Avalon Tour with wine tasting (for Corey) and possibly go on a Dolphin Quest.
- Glass Bottom Boat Tour - something I've always wanted to do; booked and paid for ahead of time.
- Embark our Catalina Express at 7:00 p.m. for our journey home, having spent a really fun, adventurous day on Catalina Island.
So off we went on the most ridiculous scenic tour I've ever been on. I could not understand a word the bus driver/tour guide was saying. She must have been about 80 years old and talked like she'd had a stroke. The couple in front of us on the "bus" were rolling their eyes as much as we were. She sounded very scripted and honestly, I couldn't tell if she was joking half the time or what! She literally kept yelling at the tourists in golf carts, calling them idiots and morons through her microphone headset, loud enough for them, and us, to hear! At one point we drove past the pet cemetery and stopped to watch a family climbing up the path to bury their dead pet. For crying out loud, can we say inappropriate??!! I was able to get one or two good pictures from the top of the hill but mostly thanks to some guy on the other side of the bus. She literally only stopped twice for us to stand and take photos. I'm not sure I learned one single thing about Avalon. It was a joke! A surreal experience.
The house where Mr. Wrigley used to live.
Our tour guide, Becky, told us she blindfolded her husband and took him up here once as a surprise. But she also told us she put him in cement shoes and he's at the bottom of the ocean.
I think I heard that right! Geez!
After that waste of time and money tour we went and found a cool looking place for lunch. The atmosphere of the joint was fun - eating peanuts and throwing the shells on the floor (they stole that from some other restaurant I've been at). Corey was craving a burger and he said it was good. I had a plate of linguini and scallops which was large enough for 4 people. The sauce was alfredo and it was good, if not a bit under seasoned. The scallops were from a can, small and most definitely under seasoned. I put a dollop of parmesean cheese on every bite. And our server barely spoke, English or otherwise, and was quite grumpy. The best part of lunch was the view and the root beer float.
The view from our window at lunch
Then it was time to find ourselves a rental golf cart. They are all over the island, for tourists and residents alike. Hardly anybody owns a car on the island. We waited in line at the first rental place only to be told after being there for awhile that they were all sold out of rental golf carts. We'd have to wait an hour to try again. So we walked down to the other place, waited, and also got told that they had just sold out. And this girl was none to nice about it. Out of luck on driving around and exploring the island in a golf cart. We had tried to do an advance rental of a golf cart while we were at the terminal in Long Beach, but the computer would never let us complete the transaction. We couldn't print out anything . . . it was all so ridiculous.
We walked over to the casino, which I had read enough about to know that it was something Corey would enjoy - old Hollywood, art deco, etc. Nice walk along the beach (albeit hot) only to get there and find out that the last tour had departed at 2:00 and it had sold out. We could not just walk through it ourselves. Oh brother. There was another tour at 3:00 (Behind the Scenes) but it was sold out. We ended up paying $5.00 each to go into a tiny little museum and learn about some Hollywood stars - most especially Charlie Chaplin and Paulette Goddard - and their connection to Catalina Island. It was interesting, but was hoping to see and learn a little more about the actual casino environment.
While waiting for our next tour, we hung out at a little bar, talking about the superficiality of the whole Catalina Island experience. People were parasailing, snorkeling, scuba diving, exploring under the water in a semi-submersed submarine, zip-lining, sun bathing, kayaking, fishing, partying on their boats and paddleboards and surfboards, drinking, shopping, and driving their golf carts. Everything seemed to be done in "tour" mode for those of use visiting from the mainland, and the exclusive set were hanging out on their boats. It was all so plastic.
Up next: the Glass Bottom Boat tour. At least this time we could understand the tour guide, and he was knowledgeable and seemed a bit more genuine. But what a crock!! The only time we saw fish was when the guide threw fish food into the water!! It was a joke!! And the fish were not that interesting. I think maybe we saw three or four different kinds and they were all the same color, except for the orange ones, which we could see without going on a boat tour. It was the most ridiculous tour. I enjoyed watching the seaweed grow. Oh brother!
Wow, right?
We got done with that tour about 5:15, so we zoomed over to the golf cart rental kiosk to try one more time. Yay! We got a cart for an hour. The girl behind the counter was so unfriendly and when she gave us the map and told us where we could go (yes, we couldn't just drive around and do our own thing) she was totally thinking about something else as she was rattling off directions and drawing all over our map with a sharpie. I wanted to slap her and say "hey, we're real people ya know!!!"
I started out driving but realized right away that the cart wasn't really designed for short legs, so I let Corey take over. He seemed to have a better idea of where to go anyway. The coolest thing we did was pick up some golf cart hitchhikers, needing a quick lift to the helipad for their helicopter tour. They were nice people, finally!!! After we dropped them off, and with my very poor navigation, Corey drove along the ocean and then up the hill so I could get some good pictures. Bless his heart - I'm so glad he was my travel partner for the day because he was being far more patient than myself. We drove to the Wrigley Memorial - I really wanted to see it and see the views from the memorial - but you had to park the cart and walk up a hill and, of course, PAY to get in to see it even though you could see it from the gate. I just said "Forget it!!" We drove around trying to find the road to the Chime Tower but I could not understand the Sharpie directions, so we just kept driving around until our time was up. Oh well, at least it was nice to say we did it, and it was cooler riding around in the cart.
In our much coveted golf cart - $40 an hour
Views from our golf cart excursion.
We had about half an hour after we turned our golf cart in, so Corey did a little window shopping and walked on the semi-sandy, semi-rocky beach. The water was warm! Mercifully, it was time to go home! Tired and disappointed we just vegetated on the ride back to Long Beach. Well, at least we can say we know NOT what to do the next time - if there is a next time - we go to Catalina Island.
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