Looking for fun things to do in Monterey? Make sure to explore, stay, and dine at the Historic Cannery Row! With waterfront hotels, restaurants, attractions, shopping boutiques and lots of history – Cannery Row can serve as your base when you do a Monterey Getaway. And that’s exactly what we did!
Cannery Row is a waterfront street that houses a number of now defunct sardine canning factories. It was once the “Sardine Capital of the World” until the last one close in 1973 due to the collapse of the fishing industry back in the mid 1950s. Unfavorable oceanic conditions, over-fishing, and competition from other species was said to have resulted to its demise. But you can still see this historic factories as they now housed new retail establishments like Starbucks and the like.
You could spend 2 days here with 1 day at Monterey Bay Aquarium at the very end of Cannery Row. Watch the waves from the waterfront, grab some seafood lunch, ride the free trolley, check out various attractions like the Mirror Maze and the Wax Museum besides the aquarium, and then pick a sweet of choice. It can be a sundae from Ghirardelli Ice Cream & Chocolate Shop, a pound or 2 of candies from the Candy Factory, or some brownie from the Nestle Toll House. To burn it all off, rent a surrey bike and pedal your way through the Monterey Bay Recreational Trail which is parallel to Cannery Row but it can take you all the way Fisherman’s Monterey Wharf.

Check out all the photos from Cannery Row to have a little glimpse of this quaint yet happening street in the Monterey Bay. It has a European feel to it and I don’t mind visiting it again.



PLANNING A TRIP TO MONTEREY COUNTY? CHECK THESE OTHER POSTS:
- 17 Mile Drive in Pebble Beach: Tips & Must See Attractions
- Carmel River State Beach: Part Beach, Part Lagoon