Fodor's Travel Talk Forums - Honeymoon in Northern Ca.

Fodor's Travel Talk Forums (https://www.fodors.com/community/)

- United States (https://www.fodors.com/community/united-states/)

- - Honeymoon in Northern Ca. (https://www.fodors.com/community/united-states/honeymoon-in-northern-ca-56881/)

Honeymoon in Northern Ca.

My fiancee and I are considering a week long honeymoon in Northern Ca. next June. We are planning on spending 2 days in Yosemite, approx 2 days in the Monterey/Carmel/Big Sur area and the last three in San Francisco. We are looking for advice on places to stay. Mostly we are interested in B&B type places with an upper limit of around $200 per night. Has anyone stayed at or heard anything about the following places in Yosemite? -Yosemite Falls Bed and Breakfast -Yosemite Peregrine -Yosemite West High Sierra We appreciate any suggestions. Thanks :)

Kate, We went to these three areas of Calif. in August. I don't think the places you mentioned are IN Yosemite, which means they are probably a distance away. Suggest you try to stay in the park for the best experience. Check www.nps.gov/yose for more info. Also, the Monterey area was the only part of our trip that we found disapointing, it seemed very over-developed. We did enjoy Point Lobos State Reserve though.

The Wawona Hotel is in Yosemite Park and while it's not a B&B it is historic and interesting. It would fit into your budget. The Ahwanee Hotel, more centrally located, is more expensive and is usually full a year in advance. In Monterey, suggest you stay in Pacific Grove or Camel and avoid staying in the city of Monterey. Lots of very romantic Victorian B&Bs in Pacific Grove. Lots of SF options although the budget might be a bit tight. Look into the Archbishop's Mansion, White Swan and other small SF hotels.

Kate, One of the best sources for history, interest, etc. for the Monterey, Pacific Grove, Carmel & Big Sur areas is http://www.pelicannetwork.net/index.htm You might find some interest at http://www.monterey-carmel.com And for a very detailed travel info site try http://www.jrabold.net/ and follow his infomation about Big Sur. http://www.pointlobos.org/ will give you a great overview of Pt. Lobos State Reserve. http://www.mbayaq.org will give you some info on the Monterey Bay Aquarium. Also since schools will be out by June you may hit some congestion at many sights of interest. But don't let that stop you. There are several wonderful B & B's in Pacific Grove and if you look through some of the posts here in the CA forum there are a number of references. I'm sure others will post details on them also. The beauty of this area is not so much in what you do but in what you see. Remember that from Carmel to Cambria it's about 95 miles or so of the most beautiful scenery you will ever see. You will probably want to stop every time you round a corner so relax and enjoy the trip. Oh yes, congratulations on your upcoming wedding. Also, this is from a pair of easterners in love with the Monterey area. There's a lot of other stuff I have at home so if there is something specific I can help with just drop a line. Ron

You will have a great time. But I, like one of the above posters, found the Monterrey Peninsula to be overrated. I don't really see the great allure of Monterrey and Carmel -- we found them overcrowded and way too touristy and commercial -- although the Monterrey Aquarium is very nice and worth a visit. If you must stay on the Monterrey Peninsula I would recommend staying in the town of Pacific Grove which is right next door to Monterrey but not as touristy, and it does have some excellent B&B options in your price range. Big Sur is another story -- absolutely glorious and worth as much time as you can give it! Definitely spend an hour or two in Point Lobos State Park -- very dramatic with the surf hitting the rocks and lots of wildlife and beautiful wildflowers. The only problem in Big Sur is that there aren't a huge number of places to stay (which, while inconvenient, is actually really nice, as it's not all built up and spoiled), and accommodations tend to be either the VERY high-end or more on the budget side. We managed to get a discounted rate of $275 at Ventana -- the one splurge on our trip (everyplace else we stayed was under $100 a night). We thought Ventana was worth it, and only stayed one night there (wish it could have been two though). Their restaurant, Cielo, is fabulous. Check out the website at www.ventana-inn.com if you're interested. The other high-end place there is the Post Ranch Inn, but that was way out of our price range, although it's supposed to be amazing. (www.postranchinn.com). Also, keep in mind that it takes a lot longer to drive the Big Sur coast than you would expect, because Rt. 1 is only 2-lanes and the roads are steep and have sharp curves in places (and also lack guard rails in places). Plus sometimes there is a lot of traffic so it's just slow going since you can't pass with only 2 lanes. If there's fog it's even worse. Just take your time and hope it's clear weather so you can enjoy the breathtaking scenery.

Another thought, Kate. If you wanted to stay on the coast and not spend a fortune, look into the Ragged Point Inn. It's at the southernmost point of Big Sur before you reach Cambria. Some beautiful views from some of the rooms as well as from the "backyard" of the restaurant. Cambria has nice little B&Bs (J. Patrick House is one) as well as rather inexpensive motels on Moonstone Beach. All are quite nice and reasonably priced. Right across the road is the ocean and a nice place to watch the sun go down. The Sow's Ear is a nice little restaurant, but reserve ahead! Monterey is commercial, but the aquarium is worth it and it's fun to go kayaking with the sea otters in the bay!Just down from the aquarium on Cannery Row (upstairs in the building, not the one on the first floor) is a Monterey wine tasting room with good views and good otter spotting. Fisherman's Wharf is very touristy, but still has some fun little restaurants--not on the weekend, however because then it's jammed. Lots of John Steinbeck history in Monterey. Please note that you need to start to make reservations now, especially in Yosemite or for the lovely little B&Bs. Congratulations and let me know if I can be of more help. We take a lot of houseguests to all the places you mention as well as more.

I grew up in Beverly Hills, honeymooned in Northern Ca and now live near Yosemite....so here'e some advice for whatever its worth. I'd book the Ahwahnee in Yosemite (1920s style woodsy and totally unique), and stay at the Monterrey Bay Inn in Monterrey/Carmel Area. Its new, grand, and they will papper you when you inform them its honeymoon time. I stay there often. You can walk everywhere like the Aquarium, Cannery Row, take the path to Pacific Grove Restaurants, moonlight strolls. Get a room that has a bay view. The concierge there can make you reservations at local eateries or better yet....dine candlelight in your room.....

I second at least one night at Ventana Inn in Big Sur. It's a wonderful place. We were in all the places you wish to visit on your honeymoon just a month ago. We stayed at Grand View Inn in Pacific Grove across from the Monterey Bay. It was truly wonderful. It's sister inn is Seven Gables which is next door and is also a beautiful inn. I have heard that Green Gables Inn is another fine B&B and is just down the street from the other two inns. Any of these three B&B's would fit into your budget. We stayed at Apple Tree Inn in Fish Camp which is about 4 miles south of Yosemite's South entrance. They have suites which are very nice and would also fit your budget. This was a very nice place to stay. Of course, my first choice would be The Ahwahnee. It probably is over what you want to spend but would be worth at least one night if you could get a room. Even though they may book months in advance, there are always cancellations so it's worth a phone call. Have a wonderful time. You'll see some amazing sights.

Thanks everyone for your great advice. We checked out the Ahwanee right away but its already booked. We are going to try out the Yosemite Falls B&B instead. It is in the park on 41 about 20 min south of the valley. We are still looking into places for the Monterry/Pacific Grove/Carmel/Big Sur area and for San Francisco. The Ventanna looked really nice but I am not sure if we want to splurge that far. Also if anyone has favorite restaurants I am up for suggestions. I haven't checked out all the postings on this page yet though, I am sure there are some suggestions there as well. Anyway thanks again.