We took off for a few days before Christmas to visit Long Beach and Santa Catalina Island. Next day we hopped a ferry to Catalina. Only 30 miles from Los Angeles, Catalina has 1 town of 3000 people, clean air, and litle else. Most of the island is a nature conservancy where 300 bison roam free. The island has a limit of 700 cars and the waiting list is 8 years long.
Most people own golf carts, which is just fine for bopping around town and picking up groceries.
Being the off-season, there were no crowds, in fact, many restaurants were closed for the season. They say that in summer, you can't even find room to place your towel on the beach.