Private Tour

Avalon City: A Self-Guided Audio Tour

Overview

Available languages

English

50 minutes

Mobile ticket

Take a self-guided GPS audio tour through the streets of Avalon with me. My name is Matthew and I am one of the 4000 residents of Avalon. Being a local I get asked a lot of questions. Do you live here full time? How expensive is it? What is that large house up on the hill? Why does everyone drive around in golf carts? How can you have a casino that doesn't allow gambling?

Along with historians, authors, and other passionate locals, we will walk the streets of Avalon to answer these questions and more. You'll learn the stories behind our town and its famous landmarks from the people who live here.

The tour is ready whenever you are and the audio plays automatically at exactly the right time and place using your smartphone's GPS and the VoiceMap mobile app, which also works offline.

Additional Info

Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller

Service animals allowed

Public transportation options are available nearby

Infants are required to sit on an adult’s lap

Suitable for all physical fitness levels

Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

What‘s Included

Lifetime access to Avalon City tour

VoiceMap Application

Offline access to audio, maps, and geodata

Smartphone

Transportation

Food/Drink

Tickets or entrance fees to any museums or other attractions en route

What To Expect

Green Pleasure Pier

Green Pleasure Pier is the geographical center of town and a main stop for many activities. Wanna jump on a glass bottom boat, see some flying fish, grab some bait, or even rent your own skiff? Then this is the place to begin.

Admission Not Applicable

Catalina Express

The Catalina Express is ferry service between Santa Catalina Island and mainland California. Their fleet includes eight high speed vessels than can make the journey in under an hour. They offer up to 30 departures a day with boats leaving from ports in San Pedro, Long Beach and Dana Point.

Admission Not Applicable

Options

Avalon City: A Self-Guided Audio Tour

Reviews

4.17

36 reviews

Total reviews and rating from Viator & Tripadvisor

Did not work well. Not user friendly
jimmyrD339MA,
Nov 11, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
2.00
Did not work very well for the four of us. It is not user friendly. A waste of $28. Probably would not purchase in the future.
Good for a leisurely stroll around the shore.
Hagenn,
Nov 7, 2025
- Review from Viator
4.00
The app made for a good self-guided stroll around the bay shore. Purchase was a bit more complex than we initially expected -- you need to download the Voicemap guide app from your App Store, then use a code that's emailed to you -- but the setup was easy once I got my email connected. This is all easy if you set it up before your trip, but it's still quite workable if you do it on-the-spot while you're standing in Avalon! There are a few instances where the auto-play would trigger on the wrong point -- an artifact of overlapping paths -- but these are pretty easy to work around. All together a better experience than some other guide apps.
A terrible product - I do not recommend it.
josephjd2024,
Oct 22, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
1.00
I do not recommend this product. It was a self guided tour using my mobile phone. I paid for the tour but when I got to Avalon and tried to access the guide, it gave me a message that it was downloading and I should not leave the page. After watching the circle spin for 30 minutes without ever connecting me to the tour, I turned it off. Even if this was user error, the instruction to stay on the page during the download was either completely incorrect or so misleading I could not access the tour. A total waste of money and time.
Great tour.
Lynn S,
Oct 4, 2025
- Review from Viator
5.00
Very informative. Very easy to follow. Highly recommended. Can stop along the way to explore the Sights.
Very interesting and informative
Nabil H,
Jul 20, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00
We enjoyed very much the way the narration guide told us where to go and knew when we arrived, so it could automatically start speaking. The content was just right, informative and light-hearted.
Easy to follow self-paced tour
amyaG5054TT,
Jun 16, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00
This was a great tour that was easy to follow and allowed for personal side trips as you took it. No pressure to keep up. I learned so much about Catalina Island I wouldn’t have known without its excellent narrative. I will undoubtedly take more VoiceMap audio tours. Perfect format for a solo traveler.
Catalina highlights at your own pace!
Stephanie W,
Jun 12, 2025
- Review from Viator
5.00
This was a great way to learn about the island, while taking a leisurely stroll! There was lots of interesting and entertaining information. We felt like we got to see and learn about the highlights of Catalina, while exploring at our own pace. Fantastic!
Nice self tour. Took a...
Karyn P,
Apr 12, 2025
- Review from Viator
5.00
Nice self tour. Took a minute to figure the app out. But, eventually I figured it out. Plus you will always have the app on your phone for future city tours
Walking tour of Catalina
Michael L,
Mar 1, 2025
- Review from Viator
5.00
If you want to quickly and easily learn about Santa Catalina this is a very easy way to do it. Simple, in-expensive and very professional. Headphones recommended but we got by without them. All you need is your phone..
Very nice walking tour!
bkqbskts,
Feb 20, 2025
- Review from Viator
5.00
Very informative and easy to use. All four of our group was able to easily hear the narrative with just one of us downloading the necessary app. We visited during off season, so may be different during high season.