Before we had made our way down to Santa Monica, my West Coast True Love, Mike and I had both decided we would prefer to live in Monterey out of all the cities we had visited. For me, it would take a little getting used to the chilly weather, but the location on the water, the quant shops, proximity to all the parks, hiking and beaches AND the cutest of cutest houses I may have ever seen stole my heart.
We stayed at a small hotel in Pacific Grove, called Lover's Point Inn. Spacious rooms and views of The Point made it a great stopping point for a few days. We were in Big Sur within an hour, and (a surprise to Mike) at Pebble Beach Golf Course within 20 minutes. We stumbled upon the 17-mile drive, a gorgeous - and pretty - drive through Del Monte Forest.
For eats we hit up Hula's in Monterey, which I was convinced was too gimmicky for my taste. However, it ended up Happy Hour all night and we scored big with strong drinks and lots of appetizers to share.
Even though it was just by chance I picked this charming sea town to stop at, I will definitely be putting it back on the must-stop places in the future.