3 Best Sights in Orange County and Catalina Island, California

Head to the Green Pleasure Pier for a good vantage point of Avalon Harbor. On the pier you can find a visitor information office, fish-and-chip snack stands, a bait shop, a tour boat ticket stand and gathering spot, plus rental boat and water sport rentals.

This municipal pier stretches 1,856 feet out to sea, past the powerful waves that gave Huntington Beach the title of "Surf City U.S.A." Well above the waves, it's a prime vantage point to watch the dozens of surfers in the water below. On the pier you'll find a snack shop and a shop where you can buy fishing rod rentals, tackle, and bait to fish off the pier.

Marine science and history are the focus at the Ocean Institute, where you'll find indoor tanks with touchable sea creatures, an accessible man-made tide pool, and the complete skeleton of a gray whale. Take a two hour enlightening tide pool hike or a weekend sea cruise to explore the local marine environment with hopefully dolphins or whale-watching spotting year-round.