CARMEL VALLEY
Carmel Valley TomatoFest Just inland from Carmel-by-the-Sea, nestled along the Santa Lucia Mountains, lies bucolic Carmel Valley, home to hidden resorts, restaurants, shops and wine-tasting rooms. This is country enhanced by golf courses and tennis courts, a 4,000-acre regional park, a Zen center and world-famous Bernardus Lodge. Unlike its foggier coastal neighbors, Carmel Valley is known for year-round sunny days and warm temperatures.

2010 Population (Carmel Valley Village): 4,407
(Population estimated at 12,000 in the Carmel Valley Master Plan area)
2010 median home price: $706,000

Top Carmel Valley Attractions
1. Wine Tasting
Taking friends visiting from out of town wine tasting. With nine tasting rooms, we have a hard time deciding where to go, but we manage. They are always impressed with the quality, and I enjoy exposing our local wineries. Kathleen Hendricks, Carmel Valley Chamber President 2007

2. The View
Sitting in my chair every single morning, cup of java in my hand, looking out my huge window to the valley beyond. Watching the Canada geese, red-tailed hawk, quail, band-tailed pigeon, American robin, and many more birds who grace me with their presence. I know that I am living in my own little slice of paradise! Kathleen Hendricks, Carmel Valley Chamber President 2007

3. Santa Fly-In
Santa Fly-In! Hosting my annual Santa Fly-In breakfast and walk up to the former Carmel Valley Vintage Airport runway. We have plenty to eat and then walk the children up to the airfield, where Santa and Mrs. Claus helicopter in, followed by a very short parade in their honor. I am so grateful to Kiwanis for this event.

4. A Leisurely Sunday Drive
A leisurely Sunday drive up Robinson Canyon or enjoying the meadows and oaks along Carmel Valley Road all the way to Arroyo Seco.

5. Wildflower Hike
Taking a wildflower hike with a knowledgeable docent to survey the variety of blossoms on the trails at Garland Park in April.

 
Dining in Carmel Valley

Will's Fargo Restaurant
19 E Carmel Valley Rd # 19
Carmel Valley, CA 93924
831-659-2774

Cafe Rustica
10 Del Fino Pl
Carmel Valley, CA 93924
831-659-4444

Running Iron Restaurant
24 E Carmel Valley Rd
Carmel, CA 93923
831-659-4633

 
Carmel Valley
DAVID ROYAL/The Herald
A person needs passion, imagination and maybe a few loose screws to look at a big, greasy pile of motorcycle parts and envision the magnificent piece of motorized artwork that Stewart and Renee Garrison displayed Saturday at the fifth annual Quail Motorcycle Gathering in Carmel Valley.   READ MORE
 
BUCKY JACKSON/Magic Circle Theatre
"A few miles south of Soledad, the Salinas River drops in close to the hillside bank and runs deep and green." So opens John Steinbeck's novella "Of Mice and Men." Eventually two men arrive on the scene amongst the sycamore leaves and approach a green pool.   READ MORE
 
YOU CANNOT approach the grandeur that is Stonepine Estate in Carmel Valley without hearing the distinct roar of the 1920s, a sound almost amplified by the startling absence of modern cacophony. It's here where the Crocker family — California royalty with an empire built on railroad ties and bank notes — lived a Gatsby-esque existence, replete with the Fitzgerald novel's themes of love, money, social classes and the American dream.   READ MORE
 
Herald Archive/Vern Fisher
LITTLE MORE than 10 miles inland from the craggy coast of Carmel-bythe- Sea, the sun is shining. The sky is the kind of blue that makes you want to paint. The foliage textures the landscape in about a hundred shades of green and the mountains layer in the distance like an early California watercolor. Carmel Valley is becoming an ill-kept secret among those in search of sun.   READ MORE
 
Herald Archive/Vern Fisher
A magnificent musical venue, the starting point of European history in California, a tourist destination, an elementary school and a very active parish church. That is but a quick summary of San Carlos Borromeo del Rio Carmel, arguably the most splendid of outposts founded by the Rev. Junipero Serra. So splendid, in fact, that the founding father of the entire California mission system is interred beneath the church altar.   READ MORE
 
 
 
 
Lodging in Carmel Valley

Carmel Valley Ranch
One Old Ranch Road
Carmel, CA 93923
1-800-780-5733
Check Rates & Availability

Comfort Inn Monterey
1200 Olmsted Road
Monterey, CA 93940
1-800-780-5733
Check Rates & Availability

Blue Lagoon Inn
2362 North Fremont St
Monterey, CA 93940
1-800-780-5733
Check Rates & Availability

 
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