Advice for the Monterey/Carmel Area

I have a friend who just booked thier stay down there...the cheapest would be staying in a cabin at the KOA at La Selva Beach....she booked two nights and wiht tickets to the aquarium was only $300. The KOA is very nice and has a great park, with a train ride and jumpy thing.

We go there every year for a Halloween Festival which books up a year in advance...each month they have some sort of family friendly celebration..so those weekends at the KOA might be a little more expensive....they usually have free smores by the campfire....they have a coffee/espresso wagon, etc...

What is near.....the aquarium is 30 minutes away south....santa cruz is 10 minutes away north.....la selva beach about 2 minutes.....you can also drive to Capitola..fun little town with shops but a beach too that you don't have to hike down rocks to get at.....there are forrests to explore and there is also the 17 mile drive of just oceanside.....there are some places you can park and go down to rocks and let the kids explore the little pools left by the tide to see the life/fish in them.

Monterrey has a board walk..but we have yet to get to that, since we spend so much time at the aquarium...4 plus hours...that we are so tired and ready to go back to KOA...the food at the aquarium is good too. The aquarium has lots of kid interactive stuff and they recently built one area, that is just for kids to play on.

We have yet to go ot Carmel, but I hear it is beautiful....we are extending our stay and going next year!

Have a great time!

G., I have spent quite a bit of time in that area b/c I have friends who live around there. I'll ask around and get back to you with what I find out...I am actually looking for the same thing right now so that I don't have to stay with friends. good luck!

Hi G.,
We LOVE that area, have gone almost every year for the past 6 years or so. We have 17 & 9 year old girls and a 4 year old boy, so finding things to make everyone happy is a challenge.
Dennis the Menace Park - FREE and So much fun for all ages.
Best Breakfast - First Awakenings in Pacific Grove, neat place with great food and by a little mall
The Barnyard shopping Village - Carmel
If you want to do the Monterey Aquarium, look for a room package that might give you discounts. It's neat, but probably only 3 or 4 hours to see it all with your age kids. We splurged and stayed right on the beach one time, and didn't find it worth it. The beaches are public access and easy to get to anyway. We found staying at clean hotels in Sand City (Seaside) (just as you come into the area) were alot cheaper and minutes from where we wanted to go. LaQuinta is clean, AAA approved. If you want a beach view room for a "decent" price, i'd recommend the Best Western. As you get into Pacific Grove and Carmel the prices go up substantially, and we just like to take day trips there. Carmel is fun to drive thru and see all the neat houses (if the kids are napping) and there are some great walking shopping areas there too. we just love walking on the beach in Carmel with a picnic for an inexpensive half day. The 17 mile drive is relaxing if you just like to look at the beach and houses on the golf course and stop on a beach, not much else to do there.
Have fun! Hopes this helps a little!

Monterey Beach Resort! Right on the beach, they have a gym, hot tub, heated pool, descent rooms! We went about a month ago and loved it! We paid $100 a night for 2 queen beds. It was very clean! There is also a great place in Capitola called the Venitian Inn,they have rooms with little living area, sleeping area and kitchenette, very reasonable prices also! Pre children, my husband and I went every year! Good Luck and have fun!

Be certain to see the aquarium on cannery row. It's a must see and worth EVERY penney!

My advice is spend the least money on your lodging and have more for the sightseeing. The one resort mentioned seems quite reasonable. When my husband and I went years ago, we stayed at a Best Western in downtown Monterey. Not near the beach, but a place to sleep was all we were looking for and spent the rest of the time sightseeing. But if you can get the beachfront lodging for as little as $100 a night, that's better than $80 or so for a downtown motel.

As for sights.. there are plenty, and you'll leave after the weekend wanting to return. I would advise some research, which it sounds like you are doing, to find out what's there that is in line with your interests. Some that I recommend are definitely stroll the streets of Carmel, and go through the quaint shops there. Eat clam chowder in a bread bowl on the Monterey boardwalk. In my opinion, that is the best clam chowder you can get, and it doesn't seem to matter which shop you get it from. As you look around, though, you'll notice that some have nicer dining areas with better views of the bay. Take the glass bottom boat tour. Just sit on the pier and watch the sea lions, and other ocean life. Go to the aquarium. Monterey also has some historical things regarding the author Steinbeck if that's something that interests you. We never found time for that, so I can't tell you much about it. There is a 17 mile drive from Monterey to Carmel that takes you along the ocean front and gives you breathtaking views. I takes you right past Pebble Beach. I consider that a 'must do'. There is a fee to get on the route. I believe it was $8 when we went ten or more years ago, so you'll want to check on that price. Also check to see what restrictions they may have, as we tried to take a tour with a large van (15 passenger) full of exchange students, and found that large a vehicle was prohibited. I believe you can find that information online.
A lot of what you can do in Monterey/Carmel will involve walking so be sure you have your comfortable shoes on. Also, be sure you have parking money, as parking is rather tight in both towns and it costs to park most places. We found parking lots with all day fees, that were as central as possible to what we were doing, and just left our vehicle and walked most of the time.
I will say that I found that area to be about the most relaxing place to vacation that I've ever been. Don't let the abundance of things to do overwhelm you. Choose those things that you think are most interesting, and just take your time doing them. The rest will still be there for you to go back and see another time.