page_title: Santa Catalina Island (California)
section_title: Tourism
hierarchical_section_title: Santa Catalina Island (California) / Tourism
caption_attribution_description: English: Avalon Catalina photo D Ramey Logan
context_page_description: Santa Catalina Island is a rocky island off the coast of Southern California in the Gulf of Santa Catalina. The island name is often shortened to Catalina Island or just Catalina. The island is 22 mi long and 8 mi across at its greatest width. The island is located about 29 mi south-southwest of Long Beach, California. The highest point on the island is Mount Orizaba. Santa Catalina is part of the Channel Islands of California archipelago and lies within Los Angeles County. Catalina Island is the easternmost of the Channel Islands.
  Catalina was originally settled by the Tongva, who called the island Pimuu'nga or Pimu and referred to themselves as Pimugnans or Pimuvit. The first Europeans to arrive on Catalina claimed it for the Spanish Empire. Over the years, territorial claims to the island transferred to Mexico and then to the United States. During this time, the island was sporadically used for smuggling, otter hunting, and gold-digging, before successfully being developed into a tourist destination by chewing gum magnate William Wrigley Jr. beginning in the 1920s. Since the 1970s, most of the island has been administered by the Catalina Island Conservancy.
context_section_description: Over one million people travel to Catalina Island every year, accounting for $166.7 million in annual direct spending on the Island.
  Glass bottom boats tour the reefs and shipwrecks of the area, and scuba diving and snorkeling are popular in the clear water. Lover's Cove, to the east of Avalon, and Descanso Beach, to the west of the Casino, are popular places to dive. At Casino Point is the Avalon Underwater Dive Park, which was the first non-profit underwater park in the United States. The area flying fish and the bright orange Garibaldi are attractions. Parasailing is also offered. Jeep and Bus tours are given of the interior, which is a conservation area managed by the Catalina Island Conservancy. The Catalina Island Chamber of Commerce & Visitors Bureau operates the official island visitor center and provides visitor services  assists tourists with any information on how to get to Catalina Island.
  Two Harbors is the second, and much smaller, resort village on the island. Located at the isthmus of the island, northwest of Avalon, it is the primary landing spot for those who wish to tour the western half of the island. It is accessible by boat from San Pedro and by bus or boat from Avalon. While tourists rarely have an opportunity to surf, two beaches on the "backside" of Catalina offer good waves: Shark Harbor and Ben Weston Beach. There are also camps called Camp Cherry Valley and Camp Emerald Bay on the northeastern end of the island that offer summer camps for children and Boy Scouts.
  The Catalina Island Museum, formerly located in the historic Catalina Casino but since 2016 in a standalone building, is also an attraction as it is the keeper of the island's cultural heritage with collections numbering over 100,000 items and including over 8,000 years of Native American history, over 10,000 photographs and images, a large collection of Catalina-made pottery and tiles, ship models, and much more. The museum features dynamic exhibits on this history, an art gallery, special exhibitions traveling from around the world, and a unique Museum Store. Programs include First Fridays at the Museum, an annual tour of the historic Tuna Club, a Holiday Symphony Concert, book signings, gallery talks, an annual silent film benefit and more. From 1927 until 1937, pottery and tiles were made on the island at the Catalina Clay Products Company, and these items are now highly sought-after collectibles.
caption: Avalon in March 2015
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