Though it lies just 22 miles off the southern California coast, Santa Catalina Island is the second largest of the Channel Islands after Santa Cruz.

Available tours include undersea and glass-bottom boat excursions, as well as flying-fish trips. The island’s crystal-clear seas are ideal for swimming, kayaking, snorkelling, fishing, and diving. Tours and equipment rentals are easy to arrange.

Not to be missed is a trek into the unspoiled interior. With its rugged mountains and canyons, remote beaches and coves, and myriad native plants and wildlife, including wild buffalo left behind form the 1920s filming of The Vanishing American; Catalina can be a backcountry delight.