Monterey Bay

If you happen to be in California, then your trip won’t be complete unless you stay at one of the wonderful Monterey Bay hotels. These hotels offer their guests all the amenities that you would normally expect in a luxurious hotel. From brand new furniture to fantastic pools, the hotels in Monterey County will guarantee you a great stay amidst comfort and relaxation.

However, what sets the Monterey Bay hotels apart from their counterparts is the view you can enjoy from some of the hotels overlooking the ocean. Many Victorian houses have been converted into charming bed and breakfast inns with spectacular views of the bay. High season in Monterey Bay is usually during the months of April to October. However, winter season rates may drop by as much as 50 percent, especially in some of the larger hotels.

If you are planning to stay at a Monterey Bay hotel, you should plan your trip early. Special events throughout the year will usually fill up lodging everywhere in Monterey Bay. Another thing to remember is that some accommodations are not suitable for kids. So, if you intend to bring your little ones, then you should confirm first if the accommodations are kid-friendly. There are plenty of hotels that welcome kids, so you will have no trouble finding one. Monterey Bay has plenty of attractions that your kids will enjoy, so be sure to check out our website for the many activities to do with kids!

Another asset of many hotels in Monterey County is their friendly staff and wonderful breakfast menus. Imagine having a fantastic view of the beach while eating your breakfast and being served by a friendly staff. Now, that is something you should look forward to.



As for parking and traffic, you never have to worry about these issues in Monterey. Parking is free in almost every hotel and getting around by car is very enjoyable. There are many scenic drives to enjoy in your car like historic Cannery Row, 17-mile Drive and the drive along the ocean on Sunset Drive in Pacific Grove.
If you are planning to stay at Monterey Bay for a moderate length of time, then you may opt to avail one the rooms that have a kitchen and a sitting room. This gives you the opportunity to cook meals and make you feel at home even when you are on vacation. Most hotels offer free wi-fi for your personal and business needs.
As a whole, Monterey Bay Hotels offer visitors an amazing experience in service, quality and comfort. Be sure to plan Monterey County into your vacation to California. It is a must-see destination.

The Monterey Bay Aquarium is one of the best and largest aquariums in the world. It provides a unique and educational form of entertainment for people of all ages. Monterey Bay Aquarium is located 125 miles south of San Francisco and 360 miles north of Los Angeles, California. It is an exciting place for everyone to learn about the marvels of the sea and its creatures. What makes your visit more exciting is that you can enjoy everything at the most affordable prices by availing Monterey Bay Aquarium discount tickets.

But what make the Monterey Bay Aquarium so popular? Here are a few of the aquarium's exhibits that are highly sought after by guests all over the world.
Kelp Forest Exhibit: Kelp is a brownish colored seaweed with thick broad fronds. By using hi-tech mechanisms the Monterey Bay Aquarium was the first in the world to grow live California Giants. The advanced wave-generating machine provides the life supporting conditions of Kelp so they can live and grow well. You can fully appreciate the beauty of marine life just by looking at the kelp forest. You can witness the colorful life of sea animals like stingrays, jellyfish, sea otters, leopard sharks, wolf-eels, and various native marine species swimming along the man-made sea floor.


Splash Zone Exhibit: This newly remodeled exhibit allows family members of all ages to explore and understand the ocean in a hands-on, interactive way.  This attraction allows you to touch and feel a few of the ocean creatures. It is a home to rare marine animals like the friendly bat rays, giant octopus and formerly the home to the first Great White Shark ever to be kept in captivity.  Adjacent to the Touch Pools is a shallower pool containing starfish, sea cucumbers and sea urchins. There are knowledgeable personnel manning the area who are ready to answer your queries about the amazing sea animals in the aquarium. You can also take a fun walk through a tunnel where big roaring waves surround you.

Secret Lives of Seahorses: One of the world’s largest exhibition of seahorses with over 15 species on display. Four multi-media exhibits allow visitors to see the lifestyle and uniqueness of this amazing creature of the sea.

Now that you have a brief overview of a few of the aquarium exhibits, it's time for you to do your homework on finding the Monterey Bay Aquarium discount tickets. The best places to find these discounts are on auction sites such as Ebay and Craigslist. Hotels in Monterey County often times offer free Monterey Bay Aquarium tickets as an incentive to have you reserve your hotel stay with them. Other hotels, include the Monterey Bay Aquarium tickets as a part of a discount package. Finally, you can win Monterey Bay Aquarium tickets through seasonal contests for travel websites.
 
Leave your rigid work schedules behind. Relax and amuse yourself, together with your love ones, in the delightful sights in one of the world’s most welcoming destination. Make sure to get Monterey Bay Aquarium discount tickets to save on your leisure holiday travel.

Long known for its rugged beauty and isolation, Big Sur is a region often missed by travelers in the Golden State. Comprising windswept mountains, wildflower filled meadows, redwood forests and tumbling streams, this region stretches approximately ninety miles from Monterey to San Simeon.

The Big Sur area was first discovered by Europeans in 1542, when Juan Cabrillo sailed the California coast. Cabrillo bypassed the region, daunted by impenetrable cliffs and difficult seas. The area received little attention until 1770 when Gaspar de Portola landed in Monterey Bay and established the capital of the Spanish colony of Alta California. This large area, south of Monterey, was known by the Spaniards as El Pais Grande del Sur, or The Big Land to the South. It remained essentially unexplored.

Between 1770 and the turn of the twentieth century, Big Sur stood largely wild and isolated. Difficult terrain and a lack of roads prevented thorough exploration. During this period, timber harvesting, gold mining, and limestone processing were the main catalysts to population growth. At Alder Creek, near the southern end of the region a gold mining boom occurred during the 1880s. The town of Manchester rose almost overnight with 200 residents, several stores, a hotel, restaurant, and five saloons. All were doomed to abandonment near the turn of the century. Little remains of Manchester, as it burned in a wildfire in 1909.

Today, California's scenic Highway 1 is the sole paved road through the region. In 1932 engineers pushed Highway 1 across Bixby creek, thus opening up one of the last and largest roadless coastal regions in the continental United States. The often photographed Bixby bridge, at the northernmost end of the Big Sur region, is 714 feet long and rises 260 feet above Bixby Creek, making it one of the highest single span arch bridges in the world. With the arrival of Highway 1, a new industry became available to the few residents of the Big Sur area, tourism.

Tourists, today, come to enjoy the dramatic views where the Pacific meet the Santa Lucia mountains, rising to nearly 6000 feet at the summit of Cone peak, just a few miles from the shore. The highway clings precipitously to the western edge of the Santa Lucia range varying in elevation from near sea level up to nearly 1000 feet above the ocean. Since the views are difficult to appreciate while driving, several vista points are available to stop and appreciate this spectacular scenery. The stretch of Highway 1 through the Big Sur area was ranked by TripAdvisor 2008 as the second most scenic driving destination in the United States.

Besides the joys of driving highway 1 through Big Sur, many other tourist activities are available in the area. Visitors can enjoy hiking, mountain biking, scuba diving and other outdoor activities. Many small, scenic beaches exist along the route that offer an opportunity for photography, picnicking, and beachcombing. These beaches are not usually suitable for swimming due to dangerous surf, unpredictable currents, and frigid waters. The Big Sur area offers nine state parks that have many areas of interest, including one of only a few waterfalls that fall directly into the Pacific Ocean at Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park. The Big Sur area also offers the only intact 19th century lighthouse open to the public in the state.

Due to the greatly varied topography of the Big Sur region, wildly diverse micro-climates exist. Big Sur typically boasts a mild, mediterranean climate, with sunny and dry summers and cool wet winters. Summertime high temperatures are typically in the 70s with Wintertime highs in the 60s. Coastal fog predominates the areas near the shore, nurturing the southernmost growths of redwoods along the California coast. Inland, as the dramatic mountains rapidly ascend, the temperatures range more broadly without the ocean's ready influence. Here, the redwood forests give way to chaparral covered hilltops and oak woodlands. Along the many streams that tumble from the higher elevations are unspoiled riparian woodlands.

In order to preserve the natural beauty of this place, the people of Big Sur and Monterey County have fought to limit the impact of growth. In 1962, Monterey County won a major court victory, giving it the right to ban billboards and other garish visual distractions along the highway. The County has also adopted a very limited land use plan that prohibits any new construction within sight of the highway.

The same restrictions that keep unnecessary development from destroying the natural beauty of the Big Sur coast also limits tourist accommodations. Lodging opportunities fill up quickly during the summertime travel season. There are fewer than 300 hotel rooms available throughout the entire 90 mile region, and only a few gas stations. Options for lodging range from rustic camping in state park campgrounds to exclusive five star resorts. More lodging choices are available in Monterey and Carmel at the northernmost end of the region or in San Simeon, Cambria, Morro Bay and San Luis Obispo to the south.

The Big Sur region and highway 1 are an opportunity for the traveler to experience California in it's most pristine and unspoiled setting. Little has changed in this area since the first European travelers laid eyes upon it. It remains wild, remote and largely untouched.