Hello Santa Catalina Island, CA

I booked a trip with an all woman’s group to Catalina Island! I didn’t know anyone, but I made friends fast! You can read about my experience with the group in my post on the gratitude page called New Friends at Catalina Island. It was such a beautiful day to experience the island. The sun was shining, the water was clear and the company was amazing.

I arrived at The Port of Los Angeles-Catalina Sea and Air Terminal early in the morning. I had grabbed Starbucks on the way, so I was fueled and ready to have a wonderful experience! I would have gotten sea sick in the past, but I didn’t get sick at all. I shared the boat ride with some ladies who really made it a fun trip!

When we arrived on the island we headed straight to the local coffee shop for coffee and food. The cafe was called Catalina Coffee and Cookie Co. I ordered avocado toast with scrambled eggs, bacon and arugula. It was amazing! I already had coffee so I didn’t want to get another and be over caffeinated. I had packed water so I didn’t need anything special to drink.

After we ate, we explored the island a bit. We went around the town looking at the cute shops and hiked up to a bell tower. As we approached the tower the bells rang, it was perfect timing! The view was amazing from up there. The water was perfectly clear and so blue! It was such a gorgeous day.

The whole group met up for a glass bottom sea tour! It was really interesting. We all boarded this boat where the center part of the boat floor was glass, so you could see in the water. The captain fed the fish so we got to see them swarm under the boat and follow us as we continued our tour. There were many different fish we got to see. I took some videos of the experience, so make sure to check them out on Instagram @SunshineGrowsHere. It only lasted about 45 minutes, which was good because there’s no bathroom on board. If you are interested in seeing what is below the water without getting wet, this is the tour for you!

After the tour, we explored some more, grabbed food and then relaxed on the beach. We did put our feet in the water, it was chilly but if you really wanted to swim you could. The high temperature for the day was only 67 degrees, but it felt much hotter when you were in the sunshine. Swimming in the water would have definitely cooled you down.

Passed the casino is a nice beach area where there is a restaurant and more shops. We went over there but the beach was super crowded. In the future, I would definitely rent a cabana or one of the chairs to relax on and get away from the crowd. It wasn’t meant to be, but now I know for next time.

I grabbed an ice cream from Llyod’s and it was delicious! I got butter pecan flavor. We ate at a couple restaurants on the island. The food was good, but not great. When we were getting ready to head back, I grabbed an iced coffee from the coffee shop from earlier that morning. It was delicious! I had a long drive ahead of me, so I needed to be awake.

The boat ride home was bumpy, but I still didn’t get sea sick. I visited with my new friends and it went by quickly. The sunset was beautiful.

What a wonderful day on Catalina Island. The next time I visit, I will definitely research food places, rent a golf cart, rent a cabana and leave the island earlier. There are also bison you can see on the other side of the island which would be very cool to see. I highly recommend going to Catalina Island at least once. There are many more excursions you can do on the island that I did not do on this trip like a submarine tour, island tour, parasailing, snorkeling and more.

Also, don’t forget to keep up on sunscreen during your visit. I applied a couple times, but definitely not enough. This is my favorite face spray sunscreen, my favorite body sunscreen and this is my favorite body spray sunscreen. I also used my favorite beach towel. It is made with special material so the sand doesn’t stick and it dries really fast. (I am an Amazon affiliate, so I may get compensated if you use my links.)

I can’t wait to plan my next trip! Stay tuned for the next Traveling with Sunshine post!