Jetski2Catalina — Local services in Long Beach

I never leave reviews unless it’s for free stuff but this experience was truly special!!!

Planned to do this with a friend and was already second guessing their credibility from the start given that 1. Their website is poorly designed and looks like something I would’ve built for a computer class project when I was in middle school 2. They did not send him a confirmation email after he placed the booking and we had zero information about when and where to meet 3. We tried to reschedule the first time around because of tsunami warnings and the person on the phone claimed that that wasn’t a safety concern at all (they ended up letting us reschedule, but still, should’ve been a dead giveaway that they don’t take guest safety seriously, and reading all the reviews about others getting severely injured merely cemented this).

As mentioned, we never received a confirmation email and their website provided no clear information; no meetup spot, no late policy, no list of what to bring. All we had was the vague 7am check-in time on the booking receipt and the general address. My friend and I woke up at 5am to drive from our place in LA and arrived there at 7.15 due to traffic. We had wanted to call ahead about being late, but their phone lines don’t open until 9am. Instead, a company employee called us a few minutes after 7am to ask for our ETA, and we gave an honest answer - that we would be about 15 minutes late. At no point during the brief call were we informed about a cutoff policy for late arrivals, nor were we given directions. Their listed address led us to a nearby hotel with no signage. We wandered around for about 10 minutes, tried calling back for help but no one answered, and only found the spot after a hotel employee pointed us in the right direction.

When we finally arrived, the staff immediately rushed us into putting on wetsuits in front of everyone and refused to let us use the bathroom because we were late. Since we weren’t wearing swimsuits underneath our clothes, changing in public wasn’t an option. We chose to reschedule instead. We were already extremely stressed and disappointed at this point. If we had received proper help with directions over the phone, or a confirmation email with clear details, we would not have been so late in the first place. And if a late-arrival policy had been communicated anywhere, we would have cancelled and rescheduled immediately once we realized we couldn’t arrive on time.

On top of everything, one of their employees came up to us after we stepped away from the group to accuse us of lying about our arrival time and berate us like children for supposedly holding up the group. At that moment, we decided not to return and reschedule at all. There was no way we were going to put our safety in the hands of such hostile, unprofessional people.

We later called customer service once phone lines opened and demanded a refund. They eventually issued a partial refund but withheld $100, claiming we were “no-shows” and had taken up spots that could have gone to others (clearly untrue, given the large number of empty jet skis that morning). We do want to express our gratitude to the nice customer service lady who facilitated the refund process.

Do with all this information what you will, but what I gathered from my brief experience with this company is that they are unprofessional,...

Review for the Avalon Trip:

We went August 23 and saw no dolphins or whales. This was an EXTREME experience and I would say it was not beginner friendly and not friendly for anyone who isn’t fit, prepared to deal with harsh elements, and adequately dressed (jet ski gloves, eye protection, and a full body rashguard with shorts—at the minimum). Upon our return many people (myself included) had bloodshot and sunburned eyes (despite wearing sunglasses the entire time), shivering / chattering teeth from cold, and blisters on hands. Be prepared!!!

My whole body hurts after this tour and my husband’s too, and we both are very fit and have jet skied for years. This tour was a punishing experience at sea. The jet ski ride over is tiring and fast paced, the water is choppy and our inner thighs and lower back got sore from the pounding of the jet ski. You really have to hold on. Several people fell off their jet skis, but got back on and made it. We took a lovely break at Avalon for lunch and walking, then returned to the jet skis.

The pace on the return trip was too fast and at the first rest stop, the guides realized one jet ski got lost. This was not the fault of the guides—they were all doing their best—but it’s ridiculous that the skis had no gps trackers. Why would the company not put some kind of location device (an air tag and radio at a bare minimum) on each jet ski? We waited on the ocean for an HOUR, far from any land with nothing to see or do, while the guides searched for the missing couple on a ski. We were cold, the wind was intense, and the waves picked up to 5 foot+ swells.

Everyone in the group was some level of hungry, burning in the sun, freezing from the wind and waves crashing into our faces, tired and soaked. Coast guard sent 4 helicopters and eventually located the lost party. We continued an extremely punishing jet ski ride back home—the waves by this point were beyond anything my husband (who has jet skied for decades) and I had ever experienced. Weather was simply not suitable for a jet ski but we had no choice but to go.

Imagine a cold salt water fire hose spraying at your face, while you’re crashing over 5 foot waves on a jet ski, for over an hour. I dissociated and lost track of time. It sucked. It hurt. I was cold and miserable. I cannot tell you how relieved I was to be home after a brutal 4 HOURS for just the return trip. We left Avalon at 2pm and arrived at 6pm.

Again, the guides were doing their best and not at fault. But at this price point—about $500 per jet ski-it was a really rough experience. The company 1) should have emergency trackers/GPS and radio on each ski 2) should have had the remainder of the group (over 10 jet skis, with several couples) escorted home instead of making us wait for 1 hour while the weather deteriorated considerably and put us at risk for injury.

Overall, I wouldn’t sign up for this experience again, and I’m a very adventurous person. I’ve jet skied and scuba dived all over the world and had many intense experiences, but this wasn’t worth the money or time in my opinion. Maybe we just had bad luck—I think we did— but I want to be...

We had the fun opportunity to jetski to Catalina a few days ago. It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience and I am so glad we did it. This is truly an adventure so the adventure spirit is needed. The guides were informative, took photos and videos for us and found dolphins pods. We were able to actually jetski WITH DOLPHINS swimming along with us- such an incredible sight to see these majestic creatures in the open ocean less than a yard away.

Conditions definitely matter- we had pretty rough chop with a significant overcast marine layer on the way out and it was physically hard to hold on due to the waves. It felt like jackhammering the ground while riding a bull while someone intermittently throws buckets of salt water in your face....If you have ANY joint problems like shoulders or knees or active back problems- you're going to feel it if you have a similar ocean conditions. I had to use my whole body to hold on and I am not a beginner jetskier. The stops were frequent, but the slowest of our group didn't get much of a break because once we re-grouped, we started back out again.

On the way back our conditions were nothing short of amazing- sunny, calm water, dolphin pods, FUN high speeds. This was what we wanted and we got it- SO COOL and definitely worth the memories. If the ocean was like this both ways, it would have been the most epic day- ocean conditions definitely matter. The guides take photos and videos and we have great documentation of our adventure.

Gloves, water shoes, sunscreen, sunglasses with a strap holder are all mandatory and aren't provided. I'd also recommend a small towel for the top compartment so you can quickly wash the salt water off your face. They supply the jetskis, wetsuits that go to mid-thigh/long sleeve and life jackets. We had 3 great guides with great attitudes. Our jetskis were generally in pretty good condition-they get ridden hard so wear and tear is expected.

I brought bandaids and motrin and I am so glad I did.

The storage compartment is huge, but not water tight. There is a small phone compartment as well that is water proof, but I was glad to have a water proof phone case as well.

I am 40, so I was and still am sore as hell two days later. I feel like I did an Iron Man. I would recommend giving yourself a few light days after to 'recover'

All in all-...