Find all the wonderful things to do in the Monterey Bay area for a day, a weekend or a week – it’s endless!  Monterey’s big draw, the Monterey Bay Aquarium, was recently voted "Best Aquarium" by Zagat.  The new great white shark swimming in her tank along side many established Monterey Aquarium finned creatures is an achievement for marine staff.  

 

The Monterey Bay Aquarium has over 200 exhibits and galleries, including tanks of jellyfish, octopuses, sea otters kelp forests, a million-gallon tank of open ocean fish (these are the big ones!), an aviary with shorebirds, a "touch" pool and many others.  Huge windows provide stunning views of Monterey Bay from the Aquarium.

Once you have spent some time with Monterey Bay’s sea life, visitors can look forward to many other local attractions, including The Monterey State Historic Park and the Maritime Museum of Monterey.  Families should stop at the Dennis the Menace Playground and the coastside Recreational Trail for a walk or a surrey ride.  Go whale watching (the best time is winter, during migration, but they can be seen any time) or rent a kayak to explore Monterey Bay.  Surrounding towns of Pacific Grove, Carmel, Carmel Valley, Pebble Beach and the Big Sur coast to the south each offer additional sightseeing, shopping, dinning and recreation.  Monterey attractions are listed below.