I would like to save a little money and take BART (or another form of public transportation) to visit Monterey from SF. I am having trouble deciphiring whether I can do this and will we (my 12 year old son) be able to walk to attractions?
Any help is greatly

Bart won't go that far.

You can do Amtrak, but you'll have to take the Amtrak bus from SF to Oakland and I believe Salinas to Monterey.

Greyhound will get you from SF to Salinas, but you'd have to then get from Salinas to Monterey.

Unfortunately, California isn't really good for public transportation. The easiest solution is to do a car rental. If you don't want to drive along the coast (it can be scary for nervous drivers), there are alternative routes - not as pretty and they may take longer, but they are available.

Also, if you want to go to the Santa Cruz Boardwalk, then you're better off having a car anyway (that's on the other side of the bay from Monterey).

There are a few companies that do guided day trips from SF to Monterey. They are not cheap - renting a car would definitely be cheaper. But they are an option.

here are a couple of companies w/ several tours:

http://www.sanfranciscotours.us/tour...FRcaagodQxL2oA

or

http://www.extranomical.com/index.htm

Dollar rental car generally has very good rates from SF (either the airport or downtown location).

For me, half the fun of a day trip to Monterey is stopping along the way.

beach/watching hang gliders
strawberry farm stand
artichoke farm stand
Santa Cruz

I'd definitely rent a car. Driving will take a couple hours. Public transportation will take the better part of the day.

Check out Caltrain, runs from San Francisco to San Jose. There will be a connecting bus to Monterey with several stops in the city. Don't remember if you buy a bus ticket at the station, or on the bus.

http://www.caltrain.com/

To get to Caltrain you can only take a bus. I can help you with the bus number if needed, if you tell me where you're starting from: street and cross street.

http://www.sfmta.com/cms/mhome/home50.htm

You can also do a bus-train-bus combo on Amtrak, today it's $22 per adult one way.

http://www.amtrak.com/servlet/Conten...mtrak/HomePage

Depending on where you are, Caltrain or Amtrak may be a little more convenient starting the trip from San Francisco.

If you are thinking about making the same day trip, sorry, doesn't seem do-able.

Thanks for all the information! I think I might just rent a car for the day and we can take it at our own leisure. Do appreciate the helpful tips