Christy Harp — Local, Leader, Adventurer
Catalina's Adventure HQ is owned and operated by Christy Harp, who has called Catalina Island home for more than two decades. She has explored this island above the waterline and below, through every season and condition it delivers. She knows the best place to watch the sunset on the backside of the island, where and when to find giant black seabass, and which trail rewards the early riser. That depth of local knowledge is baked into every experience Adventure HQ offers — and it's what separates a business built here from one that simply operates here.
Christy's commitment to Catalina extends well beyond business. She is an active member of the Avalon Rotary, a dedicated supporter of the Catalina Island Museum for Art & History, and a leader of the Avalon Harbor Underwater Cleanup — an effort that keeps Catalina's legendary waters as pristine as the marine life that depends on them. When you book with Catalina's Adventure HQ, you're supporting a business that is genuinely invested in this island — its community, its conservation, and its future.
A Building With a Story — Just Like the Island
The space that houses Catalina's Adventure HQ has been welcoming visitors and helping them connect with the island for longer than most people realize. Originally constructed by Los Angeles County as an interpretive center dedicated to the natural history, ecology, and culture of the island, the building was later operated by the Catalina Conservancy as a place where visitors could learn about the land, the wildlife, and the remarkable environment that makes this island so singular. That spirit of discovery and stewardship lives on today. Catalina's Adventure HQ carries the legacy of this space forward — still helping people understand and explore Catalina Island, still honoring what makes it worth protecting, and now sending visitors out into the island's canyons, kelp forests, and ridgelines with the gear, the knowledge, and the guides to experience it firsthand. The mission of this building has always been the same: help people fall in love with Catalina Island. We're just the next chapter in that story.
Catalina Divers Supply — Geared Up, Dialed In
Catalina Island's waters are among the most extraordinary diving and snorkeling environments on the West Coast — a protected Marine Protected Area teeming with garibaldi, leopard sharks, kelp forests, bat rays, and sea lions. Catalina Divers Supply exists to make sure every guest gets into that water fully equipped, properly prepared, and completely confident. We offer full scuba and snorkel gear rentals, PADI certification courses for all levels, guided dives, night dives, Discover Scuba experiences for first-timers, and air and nitrox fills for certified divers. Our retail shop carries a curated selection of dive and snorkel equipment, and our staff are working divers who know these sites intimately. Whether you're logging your first breath underwater or your thousandth, Catalina Divers Supply is your outfitter on the island.
Catalina Taxi & Tours — The Island, Unlocked
Most visitors to Catalina Island see Avalon. Our guests see everything. Catalina Taxi & Tours is the island's premier locally operated transportation and tour company, offering taxi service throughout Avalon, shuttle runs to campgrounds and trailheads across the interior, and guided small-group tours that take you deep into backcountry terrain the tram tours never reach. Our drivers and guides have spent years — many of them decades — navigating every road and ridgeline on this island. We'll get you to your campsite, drop you at your trailhead, and show you bison roaming free against a Pacific backdrop. Our Picnic Tour is a family favorite, combining the best of the island's scenic interior with a relaxed outdoor lunch stop that works for every age. For something more intimate, Toast Catalina pairs sweeping Pacific views with wine and charcuterie — an unforgettable setting for anniversaries and proposals. Spanish-speaking guides are available upon request.
Your Basecamp for Every Catalina Adventure
Catalina's Adventure HQ is located at 1202 Avalon Canyon Road in Avalon, California — the gateway to Catalina Island's wild interior and the starting point for the island's best on-water experiences. This isn't a ticket booth or a tourist kiosk. It's a fully equipped adventure hub where you can rent scuba and snorkel gear, book a guided backcountry tour, arrange taxi and shuttle service across the island, take a dive certification course, shop for unique souvenirs and locally curated goods, pick up supplies if you're headed to a campground, and plan every detail of your Catalina trip — all in one place, with one team. Whether you're stepping off the ferry for the first time or you've been coming to Catalina for decades, Adventure HQ is where your island experience begins.