Wrigley Memorial and Botanical Gardens

Not a bad price as I have been to many botanical gardens ranging up to $ 25, Wrigleys is only $ 7 but not that many plants for seeing although the trail to the garden once entering is nice, the monument at the end is beautiful! Walk up the staircase and you’ll have an amazing view of a piece of Catalina island !

Not the typical «gardens» you expect. It’s very California looking– meaning lots of succulents, cacti, and dirt. I guess that is a good thing they aren’t wasting a bunch of water during the drought, but if you aren’t into that sort of thing it’s not worth the whopping $ 8 of admission.
I will say though, we walked from downtown Avalon here. It’s a slight incline on the way up and took us about 1 hour round trip, a very nice walk past the golf course & campgrounds!

One of the most exciting things to do in Catalina is checking out the Botanical Garden! It’s about a 30 minute hike from the touristy beach front of Avalon and the hike up there can get confusing, so use your phone navigation system instead of a paper map! We ended up going around in circles using the paper map and my father refused to let technology win, but I finally convinced him to use his phone since we were pressed for time. You can also pay $ 2 to take the Trolley up to the garden, which is about a 10 minute ride from the beach front. I highly suggest you take the trolley if you’re pressed for time. There are several stops along the beach front. If you’re unsure, just ask one of the store employees near the beach front.
The garden itself has a collection of succulents and cacti, also native California plants. It’s so serene and calm. You can also hike up to the memorial which is pretty neat! We saw a family of deer on the Memorial as well, so you’re definitely close to nature. There is an admission fee, so bring your student ID’s or ask for a senior discount.
If you want to avoid the touristy crowds but are still looking for something toursity to do, then come here! Perfect place to escape the hustle and bustle and reconnect to nature.

Amazing hiking trails around this memorial to the chewing gum magnate that made Catalina what it is today. If you’re lucky you’ll see some endemic wildlife such as the island fox in addition to the plants. The trail to the right of the memorial will take you up the hills to the summit known as Garden to Sky. Bring plenty of water and sunscreen!

This memorial is pretty but I don’t think I would be coming back to visit it again. The fee is $ 7 for an adult but I was able to snag the student rate of $ 3. I think $ 7 is a little pricey because there weren’t many plants that were visually appealing– there was a lot of trees and cactuses.
The Wrigley Memorial was pretty and required a lot of climbing up stairs but the view was totally worth it at the top!
Stop by if you have time! We were able to stop by because it was a part of our golf cart rental guide map or else we wouldn’t have known it existed!

Great morning walk up to the Wrigley Memorial. Takes 30 to 45 minutes at a leisurely pace.
You can stop for breakfast at the SandTrap across from the golf course — decent food at a super deal and with outdoor seating. Great way to escape the Avalon crowds and get a feel for local life.
At the top you can enjoy the view and tour the cactus gardens then stop in at the Nature Conservatory Center. Don’t forget to ask for the 2-​fer deal. Super chill way to spend the morning.

The boyfriend and I walked from town to the Wrigley Memorial. It took us about 35 minutes to walk there. We wanted to just do the hike in that area and didn’t know we had to pay. I left my student ID at home, so it was $ 10 for the both of us. We checked out the memorial, which had a nice view.
We didn’t really check out the Botanical Gardens mainly because we weren’t interested in them. We went on the Garden to sky hike, which was AWESOME. It’s a 1.2 mile hike with options to continue on other routes (4 mi, 6 mi hikes). Definitely would recommend the hike up. It’s relatively moderate, but you can stop to rest and take in the views. We only saw 4 other hikers on a Saturday afternoon, so it wasn’t crowded at all.

Pretty views and lovely gardens
$ 3 entrance for students
$ 7 for about everyone else
About an hour walk through the gardens
Highly recommend the hike…
If you have time and are looking for something to do in Catalina that is reasonably priced I think this is a great option.

A beautiful area about 15 minutes away from the main drag of Avalon. This is a test finish to a morning of hiking or just as a sightseeing excursion if you don’t want to do anything strenuous. The memorial is really pretty with blue rock from the island as well as beautiful tile work and ornate windows. It’s a fun place to learn a little more about the history of the place. You might also see one of the resident mini foxes. So cute!
The gardens are a fun way to find out more about the plant life. Lots of different cacti and trees. This would be a great place for kids.

Bring you student ID!
LOVED IT — beautiful!!! and then did the garden to the sky hike — good fun!!!
Recommended!!!

If you go to Avalon, Wrigley’s Botanical Gardens should be on your list, it’s a beautiful, unique place to visit.
Getting there– we went off season, so there were no trolleys, we didn’t rent a golf cart, but we hike (we’re just weekend hikers), so we decided to walk from downtown Avalon. It took us maybe 40 minutes to get up there? There are benches on the road and water fountains so you can take a break. We ran into other younger couples on the way there, everyone was very nice and said «Hi’.
This walk gave us the opportunity to see more of Catalina Island, the lifestyle here, see how the locals live. And enjoy the landscape, we felt like we were on a paradise island, it was quiet, you can hear the birds. When do you get that chance?
You can see the gardens up on the hill, before that, you’ll see some modern, metal, colorful sculptures.
Admission– $ 7, if it’s your b-​day, you get in for free ($ 5 seniors, $ 3 kids). Nice lady working behind the counter. The gardens aren’t huge, mostly they have a large cactus collection. They are nice to stroll around, sit on a bench, relax. The whole time we were there, we were the only people around.
There are restrooms and water fountains at the entrance and some info about the place (and parking). The staff is nice, they live you alone, so enjoy the gardens and the views.
The memorial is beautiful, we loved the tiles made on the island and the ocean views from on top. They have some olive trees around and you do feel like you’re on a Greek island. Great place for an outdoor party!
You can hike on some trails as well, you do need a permit for it. If you stay longer on the island, I’m sure that could be nice and see more breathtaking views of the area, but since we were there for one day, getting there on foot and back in downtown was plenty of hiking for us.
Wonderful place to visit, don’t miss it!

Did the walk up yesterday & enjoyed the garden to sky hike ~ if it was cooler I would suggest the 6 mile loop back to Avalon…
The structure & gardens were nice with plants/​trees endemic to the area along with imported succulents/​cactus…
The walk up was okay with most folks using rented electric bikes or golf carts…
We got a hitch back down making the girlfriend happy!

We walked from the boardwalk and it took about 45 minutes. And it wasn’t the easiest, considering it was all uphill. Downhill was a breeze. And we got to stop at the Sand Trap (see my review on this fun local spot) on the way back. The garden is great if you are into arid climate horticulture. In January when we went, there wasn’t much blooming. The memorial itself was nice. The marble and stone work is impressive and sits high enough to give you a nice view. We could see the mainland the day we went it was so clear. Overall, the memorial/​garden is a nice way to spend about 30 – 45 minutes. The walk took us much longer than the actually garden, but we were still happy. Especially considering we got in free as part of a hotel deal we got. I don’t think we will go out of our way to see it again though.

Biking up to this place is a trek. A lot of fun going down the hill but going to the top is a trek.
You may also opt for going up here by golf cart. It’s a nice big open outdoor garden.
Bring student ID for discount.
Lots of cacti desert plants and trees.
Some interesting plants.
Memorial itself is up a flight of stairs in the big white stone building. Colorful pretty mosaic tiles. It’s peaceful up here and there is a nice view. Nice to get a little history about the island during your visit to Catalina. We only spent about an hour and a half here.

This is a good walk from town, uphill and a slow gradation. Right now it’s $ 7pp to get into the gardens, unless you have a student ID, it’s your birthday, or you are senior citizen. The garden ground is smaller than the size of Costco. The garden basically only consists of Cacti, and a couple benches to sit down.
There is no real green in the garden (someone posted earlier it was).
Wrigley Memorial is in the back – which is a structure that has many stairs leading up to a platform, that looks up to another level of the structure, which is an open vaulted window that looks out to Catalina.
It’s a nice view, but you can get that view on a hike. They have a garden to sky hike that has a trail head IN the garden, which I’m pretty sure isn’t legal if the trail is public, which I imagine all are. You can get around that by taking the Hermit Gulch Trail that is just before the entrance of the garden after the camping grounds. This is about a 4 or 6 mi hike though (you can google for more specific details).
FYI: If you’re wanting to take the trolley up to the gardens, it only runs sat, and Sun

The memorial itself is quite impressive. I’m not an architecture specialist but the over look of the decorative work resembled Ancient Greek architecture. The tile and stonework is interesting and rather well maintained, considering the number of tourists who flow through this place every day. The garden component of the park is not impressive, in part because the vegetation is dry and wilted. It was a bit sad actually and reminded me of the horrible water shortage we face in California. Most of the vegetation on display is drought tolerant plant life which, to me, is not very beautiful. The memorial, however, was worth seeing and the view of the ocean from up there is splendid.

Walked from the town center all the way up and down this place in sandals! I was EXHAUSTED. Doable, but not for everyone. Saw a lady faint because she didn’t stay hydrated, so beware. Trolley is $ 2 one way!
As much as I enjoyed the little area, it was not worth it especially since you have to pay to get in. Thank goodness for old student ID cards that I can still use for discounts. Lol regular price $ 7, students $ 3. The memorial and botanical garden is a very small place, all the pictures hold true, but keep in mind the small scale. Nothing crazy beautiful or amazing.
Didn’t get to do the sky garden hike, so it might be worth it for the nature-​obsessive people. I wouldn’t come up here again. Definitely wasn’t worth it, but it was something to do nonetheless.

Great little gem, and a nice walk from Avalon. There are a number of plants that are indigenous to the island and interesting. There are also information displays that talk about history and flora of the island.
The show stopper is the Wrigley Memorial though. The tiles on the memorial come from the island and are (As of this writing) 80 years old. That is saying a lot about the quality of the work that was done back then. For an outdoor memorial the tiles are pristine and beautiful with rich deep color. (I’ll try to remember to post a picture when my friend gets the pictures to me).
Before the gardens you should stop into the conservancy and see the live web cam of Bald Eagles. The DDT initiative is such a great program and a real win for the environment and us.
If you are going on the hike the entrance is through a gate to the right of the memorial. If you’re wondering whether you have to go through the gardens to get to the trail head, you don’t have to. The trail is a loop and the other end is just past the green tent structures (can’t remember the name of that camp) that you pass down the road on the way to the Botanical Gardens.

So we were here in winter for new years, so you should take this review written for people visiting at that time of year. For the cost of admission, we felt this wasn’t exactly «gardens» since there weren’t really any flowers, just some plants and lots of cactus. Don’t get me wrong, I like cactus and that was nice to see, but there wasn’t much else to see in these gardens. There is the giant memorial which is made from all of the local pieces found on the island which is cool to see. Plus there is a nice view from up there that looks out to the edge of the island, but really, you aren’t going to spend a ton of time here.
People told us that you had to start the trail from inside the gardens which is why we paid the admission fee (at least we did support the park though!) but that isn’t true. The same trail we took ends outside of the park, so no need to really do that if the trails are your goal. The trails that do start from/​end near the park are definitely worth it though since at the top you can actually look out in both directions to see both sides of the island. Pretty awesome up there for sure. The gardens, were just something to kill a few minutes in we felt, but it would probably be better in spring or summer I am guessing.

Cactus, cactus, and more cactus. I wasn’t much of a fan of this garden which consisted mostly of cactus’. What I was a fan of however, was the views you can get by visiting this landmark.
It’s a pretty high spot on Catalina Island. With that said, if you want to pay a visit to this location, take a trolley or golf cart. Walking here isn’t exactly a good idea unless you want a good workout.
Once you get here, you have to pay a few bucks for admission. Inside you’ll walk through a giant cactus garden toward the Wrigley Memorial. The Memorial is definitely the coolest part about this place. Going up what seem like hundreds of steps, you’ll reach the highest point on Avalon and have plenty of picture opportunities. The view up here is simply stunning. On a clear day you can even see LA.
Apparently behind the monument (near the base) there are paths that lead to a very scenic hike around the hills behind it. Like a few others there at the time, I spent a bit looking for the entry path to that hike but was unable to find it. I ended up leaving a bit disappointed, but nonetheless this landmark was worth visiting especially being the least tourist-​like thing on Avalon.