Need help planning a 2 day trip along the coastline.
 

My husband and I are flying into Fresno on Sat, Sep 17 from the Midwest. First time in CA. Flight should land around 3:45 PM. Plan on renting a car and heading toward the coast for 2 days. Having a hard time finding a place to rent for one day near Monterey but found a place in Marina or Watsonville. We could start out from there the next day and head in either direction. I would appreciate any ideas or suggestions. We would like to see the coastline and redwoods. On the second night we would like to stay at a different hotel, so we don't have to backtrack. We need to be back in Fresno for business late Monday evening. We will be taking a tour of Yosemite on Wednesday. Any ideas?

My wife and I like the HI Hostel at Pigeon Point. There is also a HI Hostel in Monterey. They have no problem with 1 night stays. They are also cheaper than nearly all the hotels.
http://www.norcalhostels.org/pigeon/

Not that Monterey doesn't have dumpy places, but Watsonville and Marina are NOT picturesque or charming.

The first night you could stay somewhere near Big Basin Redwood State Park: http://www.bigbasin.org/

In the morning visit the redwoods and then drive south to pick up Highway 1 as far as Cambria (where you could visit the Hearst Castle if you wish): http://www.hearstcastle.org

The second night stay in Cambria, Paso Robles, or Pismo Beach (which is my personal favorite). In Pismo Beach we like a room with a balcony overlooking the ocean at Kon Tiki. It's a good place with breakfast included: http://www.kontikiinn.com

HTTY

"<i>Having a hard time finding a place to rent for one day near Monterey but found a place in Marina or Watsonville.</i>"

What I'd do instead is stay in Monterey or Carmel or Pacific Grove for both of your nights. Use it as a base for Carme/Monterey one day and a drive down the coast to through Big Sur etc. the next day.

MUCH nicer IMO to stay two nights in a lovely place than "make do" where they will let you stay one night.

I'd stay both nights in the Monterey area too rather than moving. There is plenty to see in that area and since you won't be arriving until later on the first day, you wouldn't have much time in that area if you changed hotels the next night.

I am actually from Watsonville, and while I love that town, it doesn't offer anything for tourists. You're coming to see the beautiful coast and you only have a couple nights - stay on the coast.

Booked a two night stay in Monterey. Thanks for the help everyone. We will use this as a base. Next question, what will the traffic be like driving around Monterey?

I've never encountered any traffic issues in Monterey or on the Monterey Penninsula, with two exceptions--heading out towards SF on 156/101 on a Sunday afternoon/evening and driving on I through Carmel on a sunny, Saturday afternoon. Both involve back ups.