Travelers are drawn to Carmel for its old-world feel and its meandering streets of cafes, restaurants and antiques stores. A full morning or afternoon can be filled wandering the lanes lined with antiques stores, boutiques, and quaint cottages festooned with bougainvillea and other tumbling shrubs. Let serendipity be your guide.
Take time to stroll the shoreline—the full length of Carmel City River State Park will take a good hour at a brisk pace, but you'll want to linger. Mile-/kilometer-long Carmel Beach features steep sand dunes and wind-beaten Monterey pines.
No visit to Carmel is complete without completing 17-Mile Drive. There's a US$15 toll to enter, but the rewards are immense. Allow at least three hours with stops to photograph Seal Rock and the Lone Cypress. Lunch at the Inn at Spanish Bay will add at least another hour. The route winds through the Del Monte Forest and Pebble Beach, and along the wave-washed shoreline.
Carmel Valley is a separate entity, luring you east of Highway California 1. Be sure to visit the Carmel Mission, a highlight of any visit. Nearby, the scenic valley makes for a delightful two-hour drive and is a potpourri of wineries, art galleries and spa hotels.
Be warned, once-innocent Carmel is now a tourist mecca. On weekends, traffic can be a nightmare, and hotel rates are through the roof (you'll find cheaper lodging in nearby Monterrey). But it's a small price to pay for the unique delights of Carmel's eclectic dwellings, quaint art galleries, fine restaurants and its staggering physical setting.
