Archive for the 'Catalina Island' Category
Four-day Baja Mexico cruise in 2010 for $154
September 25, 2009 5:56am
You could easily spend more money staying at home than hopping aboard one of Carnival’s four-night Baja cruises. These short, round-trip excursions from Long Beach stop at Catalina Island and Ensenada, Mexico — just a fun, quick and inexpensive dose of the cruising life.
Deal: On the Carnival Paradise, the trip is available to advance bookers for incredible prices, for certain dates in 2010. Book way ahead for the lowest price I’m seeing, which is for the sailing leaving Monday evening, Nov. 29, 2010 (and returning on Friday morning, Dec. 3). An interior stateroom is available for $154 per person (before taxes and fees; based on double occupancy). After taxes and fees, for two people, that’s a total of $393 — or less than $50 total, per person, per day.
Rest assured, you can still get a good deal not quite as far off. For sailings Jan. 18 and Feb. 1, 2010, pre-tax rates start at under $180 per person. Read the rest of this entry »
Top 10 snorkeling spots: Catalina, Hawaii and more
September 22, 2009 8:56am
Grab your goggles and flippers and head for Lover’s Cove on California’s Catalina Island, which rates among the top 10 places to snorkel in a list compiled by Coastal Living Magazine. Papalaua Wayside Park on Maui, Hawaii, was another entry on the magazine’s list in the July-August issue.
The snorkeling spots, compiled by underwater photographer Tanya Burnett-Palmer, are all in the U.S., Central America and Caribbean. The complete list includes Dean’s Blue Hole, Long Island, Bahamas; Buck Island, St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands; Crystal River, Fla.; Rockhouse, Negril, Jamaica; Pigeon Cay, Honduras; Stingray City, Grand Cayman Island; Hol Chan Marine Reserve, Belize; and Bimini Islands, the Bahamas.
The article says Catalina’s Lover’s Cove is a “protected area [that] sports kelp forest, rock reef, and a menagerie of cool-water inhabitants. Guides and operators can help you in by boat, or try heading out on your own from the Pebbly Beach access stairs; just don’t forget your flag marker.”
—Rosemary McClure, Special to the Los Angeles Times
Photo: Dean’s Blue Hole in the Bahamas is prized for its snorkeling. Credit: Bahamas Ministry of Tourism
Catalina Island activities package: Enjoy unlimited free tours, movies, golf, ferry transport with your hotel stay
September 18, 2009 5:59am
Feeling bored lately? A quick trip to Catalina Island can cure that for you. Visitors who are looking to sail, snorkel, hike, golf, kayak, shop or just kick back and enjoy the view of everyone else having fun are welcome. Now that the summer crowds are lightening up, Catalina is ready to pamper guests who prefer the quiet of the off-season. Visit Catalina Island is offering a brand-new travel package that includes hotel accommodations, ferry transportation and unlimited free access to more than 14 activities including boat tours, golf, movies, backstage historical tours of Avalon Casino and more.
Deal: The Catalina Island Unlimited Free Activities package, which includes accommodations at Pavilion Lodge or Hotel Atwater and round-trip transportation aboard the Catalina Express or Catalina Flyer, starts at $117 per person, per night (midweek) and $175 per person, per night (weekends) with a two-night minimum. But they’ve tacked on more free things to do on the island than you could possibly take advantage of. Based on a la carte pricing, it’s more than $350 savings per adult if you could do them all, including the ferry ride. More importantly, the package introduces you to numerous ways to explore and have fun on the island — and will keep you super-busy. Even if you just want to escape to the island to relax, there are activity options suited especially for chill-axing.
Tested: I tested dates at Pavilion Lodge and found the package available the first weekend in October (Oct. 1-3) for a total package price of $713 including taxes for a room with two double beds. It was the same price for a room with a king bed. I was drawn to this hotel over the Hotel Atwater because the Pavilion has free high-speed Internet in the rooms, and photos of guest rooms on the website seemed to be more upscale than Hotel Atwater. However, the Atwater is only half a block from the beach. Unlimited Free Activities package rates for the same weekend at this hotel were $373 for an exterior queen bedroom. To compare, I tested prices on TripAdvisor (via Travelocity) for the Pavilion Lodge on Oct. 1-3, and the rates were $194 Thursday night and $324 Friday night, pre-tax, or $575 for both nights after tax.
Cruise ships shift course to avoid Hurricane Jimena in Baja California, Mexico
August 31, 2009 5:42pm
At least four cruise ships sailing out of Southern California are making last-minute itinerary changes to avoid powerful Hurricane Jimena, which today, Aug. 31, is heading toward Baja California, a resort-studded peninsula in Mexico. Although Jimena’s course is unpredictable, landfall could occur by Tuesday, forecasters said.
In Cabo San Lucas, part of the area under a hurricane warning, workers this afternoon nailed sheets of plywood to storefront windows in the marina, and hotels and restaurants cleared away umbrellas, chairs and other outdoor furniture, the Associated Press reported. Jimena has been classified as a Category 4 hurricane.
Among the ships being rerouted:
Carnival Elation, which left San Diego on Aug. 29 for a five-day cruise, will call on California’s Santa Catalina Island and Ensenada, Mexico, rather than Cabo San Lucas.
Catalina Island: Mingle with singles on Sierra Club weekender
July 5, 2009 10:00am
Enjoy Catalina Island in the company of environmentally minded singles with “Fun in the Sun 2009,” put on by the 20s & 30s Singles Section of Sierra Club’s Angeles Chapter. The fall weekend, at Camp Emerald Bay in the island’s northern end, promises a fun itinerary that includes snorkeling, hiking, swimming, volleyball and even a little limbo.
Last year’s trip was a success, according to Ron Dumash, a Sierra Club volunteer trip organizer. “The group had a great time with all the water activities and team activities; the dance lessons were really great, and everyone participated.”
“We even had a strong karaoke contingent,” he added. Other highlights included afternoon kayak races and a limbo contest.
You don’t have to be a Sierra Club member to participate (members get a discount, however; see below). Read the rest of this entry »
4-day Mexico cruise for $154, and other Carnival deals
June 26, 2009 11:20am
Thinking about cruising this fall or winter? If you want to get your feet wet with a short excursion to Baja, now’s a good time to secure an advanced-bookers’ discount. Some of Carnival’s “Early Saver” rates for its three- to five-day Mexico excursions from Long Beach and San Diego are incredible deals.
Deals: Various itineraries are available, some midweek and others weekend, some from Long Beach on the Carnival Paradise and others from San Diego on the Carnival Elation. The starting rates listed below are for the cheapest of the bunch, the interiors, though if your tastes run fancier, or at least less claustrophobia-inducing, rest assured that discounts are offered across all types of staterooms. Prices are pre-tax, per person and based on double occupancy.
From Long Beach:
> Three-day cruises departing on Fridays hit Ensenada. Early Saver rates begin at $229 per person on the Dec. 4 and Dec. 11 sailings. Read the rest of this entry »
Dive for Earth Day events in SoCal and globally
April 9, 2009 10:00am
This month, as we head toward Earth Day on Apr. 22, you’ll get a jolly green earful of great festivals and events where you can celebrate our planet upon terra firma. But since over 70% of the Earth’s surface consists of water, it’d make sense to get a little wet for the occasion, don’t you think?
That’s where Dive for Earth Day comes in. Initiated by environmental nonprofit Project AWARE Foundation in 2000, the campaign has prompted thousands of divers in over 115 countries to volunteer and raise awareness about our fragile aquatic environments. Projects on and surrounding Earth Day largely consist of beach and underwater cleanups as well as educational events.
Last year, in Katowice, Poland, 280 volunteers collected 1,500 bags of trash from shores and sea. On the Isle of Wight in the UK, a “fancy dress beach cleanup” attracted the likes of a James Bond look-a-like and others festively collecting tar, cans, bottles and other rubbish. Read the rest of this entry »
Catalina Island: sweet packages for Valentine’s Day stays
January 17, 2009 7:18am
Valentine’s Day is just a month away, and this year, it falls on a Saturday. That could be good extra motivation, I’d say, to treat your loved one to a romantic weekend out of town … a short and sweet island vacation, perhaps?
Surprise him or her with a jaunt to Catalina, just across the pond from L.A. The following Avalon hotels are offering some tempting packages: Read the rest of this entry »
Roundup: Bush to designate marine national monuments; airlines vs. FAA on crew rest; SS Catalina to be scrapped
January 6, 2009 8:57am
How much rest should long-haul pilots be required to get, and what will that cost the already financially strapped airlines? These are questions you might ask when considering a lawsuit filed against the FAA by airlines. Keep reading for more. In other news, we say hello to new federal protections in the Pacific and bid adieu to a historic steamship.
Marine protection | Some 195,280 square miles of ecologically rich, biologically diverse Pacific Ocean waters will be designated as marine national monuments, the White House announced Monday. These areas will include waters surrounding Rose Atoll in American Samoa and the Northern Mariana Islands. The move, being cheered by conservationists, will give Bush the distinction of having “protected more square miles of ocean than any person in history,” reported the Washington Post. Read the L.A. Times story, “Bush to Create Three Marine Monuments.” Read the rest of this entry »
Roundup: Air-travel decline; Catalina scuba-diving cleanup; night on the house in Vegas
December 9, 2008 8:33am
Where are you with your holiday mailing and shipping? On this day in 1957, according to the BBC, the postmaster general advised the British public to “post early,” as well as “pack carefully with strong string.” Though most skip the string these days, the tip to get a jump on things is worth heeding, especially if you’ve got parcels set to travel overseas. I’ve just discovered the U.S. Post Office’s handy online holiday shipping calendar, with deadlines listed for mail that you’d like to reach an overseas or military destination by Dec. 25.
Airlines | United Airlines experienced a 17% decrease in travel in November, its worst monthly decline since December 2001, according to Tribune wire services. Other major airlines reported significant declines in travel as well, including American Airlines, which posted a 14.5% decrease in November. Read the rest of this entry »
