While couples dance the jitterbug, Joe Arno throws a slender arm around his wife Rose. They both smile. And suddenly, it's the 1930s, all over again. Catalina Island can be reached from numerous Southern Californian coastal communities. There are also boats from San Pedro, Newport Beach, Oceanside and San Diego.
New ferries make the journey in an hour.
Companies also offer commercial helicopter service from Long Beach, San Pedro, Burbank and Los Angeles. Ron Gluckman is a Hong Kong-based reporter who spends most of his time roaming around the nether reaches of Asia. Like most native Californians, he had never been to Catalina Island, until an assignment for a travel magazine allowed him to visit this lovely island. This story ran in Going Places, the Malaysian Airlines magazine. A similar story by Ron Gluckman ran in May 1999 in Sawasdee, the Thai Airways magazine.