booked a hamilton cove condo through catalina island vacation rentals and loved the location. While it's not walking distance to all the town sights it's still very close (4 minute ride in golf cart)....and the view makes up for it - AMAZING. So peaceful...and there seems to be plenty of great options for a condo.

the rental company provides a golf cart and the condo had everything we need for cooking. I would def. go back and stay in HC again.

My boyfriend rented 3 condos in Hamilton Cove through Hamilton Cove Real Estate, the properties were beautiful and we have no complaints about them. But if you go through Hamilton Cove Real Estate please expect the following....

You will pay a $100 cleaning fee, to me this means they plan on cleaning the property. Upon check out you are instructed to load and start the dishwasher, which was fine, but we had about 8 people over the night before and so I loaded as much as I could fit in the dishwasher and stacked the rest in the sink, then I realized there was no dishwasher detergent. We also had tons of garbage so we were trying to pick it all up but there we no garbage bags, so we stacked it all in a corner.

We checked out on May 22nd, my boyfriend called on June 17th and talked to the owner, Bart Glass, to find out about our deposit. Bart told us that the carpets needed to be cleaned in our unit and that it was a big mess (isn't that why we paid a cleaning fee). We were fine with the carpets being cleaned, Bart said that we would have the deposit back by the beginning of July and that it takes about 6 weeks to find out if there have been any tickets on the golf carts.

On July 16th I called and spoke with Bart, he said that he was waiting for the carpet cleaning invoice and he would be receiving that by Monday July 18th. I asked why he didn't have the carpet cleaning invoice if it was done right after we vacated in May. I asked him to send the deposits back for the other two units in the mean time. He agreed to do so. On July 21st we still hadn't received anything, I called and left a message, with no return call and also emailed wtih the same. So finally I had to send him an email telling him that we were going to be taking him to small claims court and turn him into the department of Real Estate. Being a Real Estate agent, I know you actually only have 21 days to return the deposit in the State of CA. There is no deposit policy on their rental contract and this is what their website states: "We will mail your security deposit back to the address listed on your check after you depart, again barring any unfortunate circumstances which might occur with your villa or golf cart.". After this threat we did get a response email the next day and our deposit back two days later, along with the carpet cleaning invoice dated May 26th.

I have read other reviews on this website and some other renters had the same problem with Hamilton Cove Real Estate. There are several other rental agencies on the island and I would suggest going with those companies.

Hamilton Cove is the largest condo complex on Catalina Island and the city of Avalon. It is located about a half mile from the center of Avalon in Hamilton Cove. The complex is much improved over the last few years but lacks a central reservation system so you mush book your accomidation through Catalina Island Vacation Rentals or Hamilton Cove Real Estate. Of the two, CIVR is the better and accepts credit cards. All rentals in Hamilton Cove come with a golf cart to make the half mile trip into down and are great for local sight seeing. Recent additions to Avalon have really spiked up tourist traffic so if you plan on using the Zip line or Undersea walk, make your reservations on line well be fore you leave to insure a spot. The downside to Hamilton Cove is that there is no standard for interior furnishings. Some units are great, others terrible. Review the pictures on the web site carefully before you book so you won't be dissapointed. Almost all rentals on Catalina island require a two night minimum and so does Hamilton Cove. Having an condo rather then a hotel room gives you many options. Also, the resort setting, pool, beach, tennis courts and having your own golf cart will really make for a fun vacation.

We love Catalina and typically go there once a year. We usually rent a home in Avalon but this time, I decided to rent something in Hampton Cove for Spring break. We rented Unit 17-85 and were very pleased with this unit. The views from the wrap-around balcony were spectacular . . . lots of windows in the living and dining room which allowed the sunlight to filter into the condo. The golf cart was in excellent condition with zippered sides for evening drives when it was cooler. Since the condo is close to the road, we didn't have to deal with a lot of steps. The best part of this condo was the amenities for the kids. Every day the kids swam in the pool . . . we played on the putting course which was in excellent condition and beautifully maintained.