Sherry E. How many days would you recommend to stay on the Island?
Well, it sort of depends on what kinds of people you are traveling with and what activities they might be interested in. I find that most people I know (including myself) started out on our first Catalina visits doing a very full, long day in Avalon - from early morning until nighttime (whenever the last boat left). Then, we found that we really enjoyed it and wanted to go back. It was kind of addictive for us all. I saw it happen with people I brought over to Catalina as well. It seems to work for a lot of folks that way, where instead of starting off with a weekend, they start with a day and then they end up going back for a weekend or longer on the next trip.
If you are with an outdoorsy bunch of folks who would be interested in cruising around the hills in a
golf cart (kind of the quintessential Catalina activity, I think), doing some of the nature tours like the
Flying Fish Tour (which is great fun and it only runs at night during the summer, because that's when you see the most flying fish), the
Semi-Sub (really cool - like the DLR subs but with real fish and sharks and things!!) or the
Cruise to Seal Rocks, or perhaps taking a
"Safari Bus" tour to the "other side" of the Island and seeing all kinds of buffalo along the way, you will need time.
If you are interested in pedal boating or renting a motor boat or getting some kayaks, you'll need time. If you want to parasail or try the brand new Zip Line, you'll need time. Nature hike? Time will be needed.
So I would suggest, to start out with in Avalon, either do a full, long day trip - taking the very first boat out in the early morning and the latest boat back at night. Try a couple of the tours, maybe rent a golf cart, eat at a couple of the restaurants, and see if you like Avalon. Chances are, if you
like it you will
love it and want to make it an annual thing. That's what seems to happen - the people who really like Avalon end up loving it and want to go back repeatedly. If you don't like it, you will be glad you didn't get stuck there for a full weekend!!
If you know for a fact that your group would be interested in some of the activities I mentioned - or any others that are available on the island - then you might be safe in starting out with a good, solid weekend trip, like a full Saturday and a full Sunday. I started out with a day. Then, next time, it was a 2-night stay. Time after that, I stayed a full week (a full 7 days and nights). I have also done 3-night stays and 4-night stays. And I have gone back to doing really full one-day trips after I have stayed multiple nights. I can always kind of adapt to what amount time I have and make the most of my day based on that, but I would never do less than a full day. It just wouldn't be worth the $$$.
Sherry - looks like I've got some re thinking to do.
I wouldn't want you to spend all that money on the boat fare and not really be able to get a full, long day out if it. It wouldn't really be worth the money spent, I don't think, because you wouldn't have more than a few hours to kind of look around and seek out activities. You wouldn't be able to make the most of the island, or try any of the good food or possibly try one or two of the better tours.
