Monterey and Carmel

Monterey and Carmel sit at the south end of Monterey Bay, about 85 to 90 miles from Palo Alto. That makes this the longest classic day trip on our list and the one that most rewards an early start or an overnight stay. In return you get one of the world's great aquariums, a famous coastal drive, a storybook village of cottages and gardens and Point Lobos, a reserve of granite coves and windswept cypress that many Californians rank as the most beautiful spot on the coast.

This guide covers the drive, the Monterey Bay Aquarium and Cannery Row, 17-Mile Drive through Pebble Beach, Carmel-by-the-Sea and Point Lobos, with a sample plan that fits it all into one long day.

Getting there and drive time

The fastest route is Highway 101 south past San Jose and Gilroy, then Highway 156 west toward the coast and Highway 1 south into Monterey. Expect 1.5 to 2 hours each way with light traffic. Weekday rush hour around San Jose and Friday afternoons can add a lot, so leave Palo Alto by 7:30 a.m. if you can.

The scenic alternative is to drive over Highway 17 to Santa Cruz and then follow Highway 1 around the bay past farm fields and dunes. It takes a little longer and makes sense if you want to stop in Santa Cruz on the way home. Do not try to do both towns in full on the same day, though.

There is no direct train from Palo Alto and public transit is slow, so drive or join a tour. Many guided day tours to Monterey and Carmel leave from San Francisco, which is an easy Caltrain ride north. You can compare Monterey and Carmel day tours if you would rather not drive four hours in a day.

Monterey Bay Aquarium

The Monterey Bay Aquarium opened in 1984 on Cannery Row, in a building that incorporates the old Hovden sardine cannery. It focuses on the life of Monterey Bay itself, one of the richest marine environments in the world. It does that brilliantly. The living kelp forest exhibit rises through two floors. The sea otters, rescued and unable to return to the wild, are the stars for most visitors. Jellyfish galleries, a huge open sea tank and touch pools fill out a visit. Its large exhibition Into the Deep brings deep sea animals from the bay's offshore canyon to the surface.

Plan on three hours at least. Feedings for the sea otters and the kelp forest run at set times, so check the aquarium's schedule on the morning you go and build your route around them. Hours vary by day and season. The aquarium recommends buying tickets in advance and weekends and school holidays are very busy. You can book aquarium tickets ahead so you can walk straight in.

Cannery Row and the Monterey waterfront

In the first half of the 20th century, Monterey was a sardine town. Canneries lined the shore along what was then Ocean View Avenue. John Steinbeck made the street famous in his 1945 novel Cannery Row and the city later renamed it after the book. The sardines vanished in the late 1940s and the canneries closed, one after another. Today the old buildings hold hotels, restaurants and shops. Our Cannery Row guide has more on the street and its history.

From Cannery Row, a paved recreation trail runs along the shore to Old Fisherman's Wharf, about a mile away, where whale watching boats depart. Whales feed in Monterey Bay much of the year, with gray whales passing in winter and spring and humpbacks often present from spring into fall. The same trail continues west into Pacific Grove, a quiet Victorian town with rocky shores and tide pools.

Downtown Monterey also has Monterey State Historic Park, a collection of adobe buildings from the years when Monterey was the capital of Spanish and Mexican California.

17-Mile Drive

17-Mile Drive loops through Pebble Beach between Pacific Grove and Carmel. It is a private road, so cars pay a gate fee at the entrance stations and you receive a map of the stops. Motorcycles are not permitted. The fee is about $12.25 to $12.50 per vehicle in late 2026. Pebble Beach refunds it when you spend $35 or more at one of its resort restaurants, so keep your gate receipt if you plan lunch there. Check pebblebeach.com for the current fee. Our 17-Mile Drive guide lists every stop and gate.

The drive passes famous golf courses, large estates and a series of coastal pullouts. The highlights include:

• Spanish Bay, a sandy shore with a boardwalk through the dunes.
• Point Joe, where early sailors wrecked after mistaking it for the entrance to Monterey Bay.
• Bird Rock, covered in seabirds, harbor seals and sea lions.
• Fanshell Overlook, closed from April 1 to June 1 each year for harbor seal pupping.
• The Lone Cypress, a lone Monterey cypress on a granite outcrop that has become a symbol of the whole peninsula.

Allow 1.5 to 2 hours with stops. Enter from the Pacific Grove side and leave through the Carmel gate to flow naturally into the next part of the day.

Carmel-by-the-Sea

Carmel is a small village of cottages, galleries, courtyards and cypress trees on a slope above a white sand beach. Houses here famously have names rather than street numbers and residents collect mail at the post office. Ocean Avenue runs down through the shopping district to Carmel Beach, a wide crescent of pale sand that is especially beautiful at sunset and popular with dog owners.

Wander the side streets to see the storybook cottages, many of them built in the 1920s. At the south end of town, Mission San Carlos Borromeo del Río Carmelo, usually called the Carmel Mission, was founded in 1771 at this site by Father Junípero Serra. Serra is buried there and the restored church and gardens are open to visitors. Check the mission's own website for visiting hours. For a longer stay in the village, see our Carmel-by-the-Sea guide.

Point Lobos

Point Lobos State Natural Reserve lies about three miles south of Carmel on Highway 1. Its short trails lead past coves of green water, granite headlands and one of only two natural groves of Monterey cypress in the world. Harbor seals haul out on the beaches, sea otters float in the kelp and in season you may spot whales offshore.

Good short walks include the Cypress Grove Trail, the Sea Lion Point Trail and the Bird Island Trail, which overlooks China Cove. Parking inside is limited and fills early on weekends. Many visitors park on the Highway 1 shoulder and walk in, which is allowed where signs permit. Dogs are not allowed anywhere in the reserve. Vehicles over 21 feet long cannot enter. There is a per-car fee and the reserve stops admitting visitors before closing time, so check the hours on the Point Lobos page.

A sample day

1. Leave Palo Alto at 7:30 a.m. and arrive in Monterey by about 9:30.
2. Spend the morning at the aquarium, timed around a sea otter feeding.
3. Have lunch on Cannery Row or at the wharf.
4. Drive 17-Mile Drive in the early afternoon.
5. Exit at the Carmel gate and walk Ocean Avenue to the beach.
6. Finish at Point Lobos in the late afternoon light, then drive home.

That is a big day with three to four hours of driving. If you can, stay the night and split it in two. You can compare hotels in Monterey and Carmel and wake up close to the aquarium or the beach.

Tours and activities

Hotels on a map

Frequently asked questions