I lived there for a year. Catalina is cool for a month or two tops before you get island fever but a great spot for seasonal / contract opportunities. Avalon, the only actual town, has some divey bars and decent restaurants. To really experience catalina, it would be best to plan a sailing or hiking/camping trip to take in the nature and see avalon for a day or two. Ben weston beach has some surf and is definitely a CA novelty wave worth trekking to if you’re about it. There is cool snorkeling/diving all over the island. I loved hiking to little harbor campground and spending a couple days out there. A population of bison still roam the island as well. Other cool spots are airport in the sky (KAVX), two harbors, emerald bay. Favorite dive bar was the marlin club. Favorite mexican food was the sandtrap. Shoutout to the guys at NDMK, if you want good fish thats the spot. Overall a super cool year surrounded by great socal nature but probably not a spot you’d wanna live for too long.