Thanks for all the help. Great suggestions. Wish we had more time to spend around this area but I know I'll be back. In a few years when the kids are off to college I'll probably do the same trip with only the husband but it will be able to be completely different because of the varity this area has to offer.

Asilomar is a great, and different, place to stay...the grounds are very nice,and the beach is one of the best in the area.

Make time to go north of Carmel a bit to the Point Lobos State Park and do the walk out to the cliffs. I defy even teenagers to be bored by the antics of the otters.

As I mentioned before, hiking the Pt. Lobos area is really a great idea for families. It is south of Carmel, by the way: http://pt-lobos.parks.state.ca.us/

You can kayak in the Monterey Bay, where you're sure to see sea otters. You moret than likely won't see them at Stillwater. The water is calmer in the bay, too. Stillwater gives you beautiful views of Pebble Beach's golf course and some homes nearby.

Make sure you drive along 17 Mile Drive, it's spectacular.

You have the drive time about right for SLO. Hearst Castle is a nice place to visit. Madonna Inn is really tacky, though, really, really tacky. It's a good place to stop for a potty break. If your daughters are interested in SLO for school, I suggest staying in SLO and not Madonna Inn.

As for spending the night, if you stay in a Carmel inn, you can leave your car there and walk the town with ease without having to worry about parking.

The Normandy Inn http://www.normandyinncarmel.com/ is on our main street, Ocean Ave. It's a good location for shopping, dining and beach going.

We also enjoyed kayaking with Adventures by the Sea this past May, lots of fun to be out on the water! If you want a real adventure, consider sky-diving. There is Sky Dive Monterey in the area where my two sons and their 80 year old grandpa enjoyed doing this last March. ***kim***

Carmel.

My favorite:

www.loboslodge.com

Great location!

bookmarking

Lissa: Instead of 'bookmarking' these older threads -- an often better option is to save it. See the gold star just beneath the abuse triangle at the top of the page? Clicking that is how you can save a thread to your favorites/bookmarks.

Carmel is very cute, but upscale and can be pricy. Monterey has a lot of water activities you can do like whale watching or kayaking. Cannery Row in Monterey is a fun place to go for shopping, water activities, and aquarium.

If you want to look at more photos to decide, I took some photos around Cannery Row:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/foottra...7627590194741/