Thanks, both of you!!!
Sherry - I've been wondering where you were....
We're staying at the Residence Inn, Long Beach. The one near the marina area. We have a 9 year old boy with us - and the aquarium doesn't interest us only because we are members of the Melbourne aquarium and go very regularly. We're looking for typically local things to do that can only be done in Long Beach. In terms of food, we're adventurous - and we also live in a multicultural city that prides itself on food and food diversity (we are reputed to be able to boast that in amongst the thousands of restaurants in this city, we have over 300 different types of cuisines of the world). So, I'd say let us know your favourites...we prefer to go to restaurants that the locals love and recommend. Happy with the cool local thing as it would seem we can do the ocean view on Catalina Island.
I didn't get the Catalina Island guide but went on line to have a look at all the things to do. I was considering doing one of the jeep tours but wasn't sure if that was the most effective use of time. My husband was interested in hiring the golf cart and using that to get around. The 3 for 2 deal sounds great.
Depending on how we are feeling on the Saturday (after our 15 hour flight the day before and going without sleep for 30 hours
), we would like to take the earliest boat out (or at the latest the 8 am boat ride). The flying fish tour sounds fantastic. I'll put in on the list. We're there very early May; so if it's not running we'll probably go with the Semi Submersible.
Love the recommendation for either Antonio's or Armstrongs. It gives us the option to work it out when we get there - and depending on what the boy wants to eat.
Well, I would say that if you can't make the earliest boat to Catalina and end up on an 8:00 a.m. boat, if you can stand it, skip breakfast when you get to Avalon and go right to the golf carts. The boat will get you to the island in an hour, and by 9:00 a.m., people are already descending on the golf cart place with the '3 hours for the price of 2 hours' deal. You will find that there are 2 or 3 places to rent golf carts or other land vehicles on Catalina, but unless something changed, there is only one place that offers the 3 for 2 deal, and that will be the very first golf cart rental you encounter when you disembark from the boat. You will start following the natural path into town from the boat, and you will see the golf cart place on your left hand side. I am thinking that if you stop to eat breakfast after 9:00 a.m., by the time you finish, then schedule and pay for any tours you may want to do for the day (you need to get those lined up before you do too much else in Catalina so they don't book up) and get back to the golf cart place for the 3 for 2 deal, the golf carts may be rented out and you'd have to wait for people to start bringing them back. However, if you take an early boat out from Long Beach (and I can see why you would be exhausted!), and get to the island a couple of hours earlier than that, then you will have time to eat breakfast, line up some tours for yourself (or whatever activities you decide to do that have to be scheduled at a certain time) and get back to the golf cart place before it gets too crazy.
If worse comes to worst, you can rent a golf cart from another place without the 3 for 2 deal, but that is the best deal.
I would skip the Casino tour unless you have a great interest in architecture. It is beautiful inside the ballroom, but if you are only on the Island for one day, and you are outdoorsy people, I wouldn't bother with that tour. I would only suggest doing it if you were there for more than one day.
Yes, if the Flying Fish tour is running when you get there - and they do start it in May, but the dates change - then, by all means, do that at night when it starts and take the latest Express boat back to Long Beach. The Flying Fish are attracted by light, so the boat captain shines a big spotlight on the rocks and cove, and it attracts the flying fish by the hundreds. Suddenly, you see all these fish with wings jumping in the air, gliding across the water, glowing in the light - and the boat you are in is totally open and uncovered, so you can see the fish right in front of you, basically (in fact, sometimes they jump IN the boat, as I hear, though that did not happen when I did the tour). It's a lot of fun!
The Semi-Sub is like the Subs at
Disneyland, except with real ocean life. They feed the fish off the side of the sub, so all the cool sea life comes swimming up to the boat for the passengers to see up close, and as I said, we saw a big ol' shark swimming along the bottom of the ocean. That was cool! I definitely like the Semi-Sub better than the glass bottom boat, although the glass bottom boat seems to be very much associated with Catalina.
The cruise to Seal Rock does what it says - it takes you out to some rocks where seals and sea lions are lounging in the sun and playing in the water. It's a fun little thing to do.
Yes, Antonio's (there are two Antonio's in Catalina - make sure you go to the one that is along the water, next to Armstrong's) has a lot of things on the menu; it's great if you ask to be seated at an outdoor table by the water, because you can see fish swimming under the water and sometimes you will see a random flying fish glide by. But, again, even though I am NO seafood fan at all, everyone I know who has eaten at Armstrong's tells me that they have wonderful food, so I recommend it anyway. There is another restaurant right next to Antonio's and Armstrong's called the
Busy Bee Cafe. I used to love that restaurant, and would have gladly suggested it to you, as it's great for breakfast, lunch or dinner. But I read some reviews of it online last year and supposedly the management changed and the food quality is not as good as it once was. So I am not sure if I should suggest it or not. But it was really good at one time!
There are lots of other places to eat as well - by no means did I give you a complete picture of all the restaurants - but those are some standouts!
