1-866-231-3752 (5am-10pm PST)
Monterey Explorer Tour
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Monterey Explorer Tour Highlights
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Monterey Explorer Tour Price List |
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Tour Prices
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Adults (12+)
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Children (<11)
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Regular Price:
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$149
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$129
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Internet Special:
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$139
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$119
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SAVE BY BOOKING ONLINE
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$10
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$10
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Monterey Explorer Tour Available Daily (All Year)
Monterey Explorer Tour Description |
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Our Monterey Explorer tour will take you along California's Pacific Coast on your way to historic Monterey & picturesque Carmel by the Sea, and a drive through Pacific Grove in between. Monterey Bay has great geologic and biological significance, with an incredible abundance of sea life just off shore in the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary, which borders 276 miles of California’s spectacular coastline. Monterey Bay was the site of the first Europeans to visit the land that became California. Several waves of industrial scale whaling and fishing exploited the bounty of the huge undersea trench offshore. John Steinbeck (Grapes of Wrath) grew up in Salinas and spent much of his creative effort writing about the Monterey area his books Tortilla Flat and Cannery Row.
You’ll start the day traveling south on the famous Pacific Coast Highway, California Highway 1 (fog permitting). After at least one stop in Santa Cruz, a rest break, and optional photo stops along the way, you will set foot on Monterey’s famous Cannery Row for a chance to stroll among the shops and grab a fresh seafood lunch. If you bring your own lunch, you might be able to squeeze in a short trip to the world famous Monterey Aquarium (admission not included). After lunch, you will follow the coast through the beautiful little town of Pacific Grove on the way to the 17 Mile Drive. This famous road winds its way between magnificent homes and the spectacular coastline, between the greens and tees of world famous golf courses like Spyglass Hill, and among the last remaining forest of a rare species of tree, the Monterey Cypress, which is sculpted by relentless pacific breezes into fanciful shapes. The Lone Cypress is a very poignant example of one of these hardy trees hanging on to life (with the help human engineering, of late) in a seemingly impossible location. The drive finishes up at the Pebble Beach Village, where you can visit the Pro Shop and see the famous 18th Green, which has lights for putting at night. (When you’ve paid that much for green fees, you don’t quit at sundown on the 16th hole!). Upon arrival in the enchanted town of Carmel-by-the-Sea, you can explore the boutique shops on Ocean Avenue or be dazzled by the white sandy beach. If there is time and interest, we can visit the historic Carmel Mission. Our Monterey Explorer tour has optional short stops in Half Moon Bay or Santa Cruz. This tour is customizable to your own interests.
Monterey Explorer Tour Itinerary |
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Monterey Explorer Tour - Times Approximate
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8:00 - 8:30 AM
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Pick-up for the Monterey & Carmel tour at your San Francisco Hotel in downtown or Fisherman's Wharf area.
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9:00-12:00 AM
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Begin the tour to Monterey, driving along Highway 1 viewing California's rugged coastline with a rest-stop in Davenport.
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12:30 - 2:00 PM
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Arrive in Monterey where you can promenade the shops and have a meal in one of the many restaurants of the historic Cannery Row. Also, this is your chance to visit the Monterey Bay Aquarium (admission not included).
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2:00 - 4:00 PM
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Drive through Pacific Grove, known for its Monarch butterflies and turn-of-the century Victorian homes. Then follow the scenic 17-Mile Drive through Del Monte Forest, seeing the legendary Pebble Beach Golf Course and the Lone Cypress Tree.
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4:00 - 5:30 PM
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The last portion of this tour will be held at the beautiful Carmel-by-the-Sea, where you can shop in small boutiques and visit quaint art and photography galleries.
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5:30 - 6:30 PM
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Finish the Monterey and Carmel tour and head to San Francisco.
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6:30 - 7:00 PM
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Drop off at San Francisco Hotels.
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Monterey Explorer Tour is subject to weather and traffic.
Why Choose Us?
- Buy Direct
- We directly operate the majority of our tours this means we have vehicles and tour guides who are our employees. Being the direct source enables us to provide the highest quality control possible. We conduct customer satisfaction surveys daily and our guides are financially compensated based on your feedback after the tour. On average our tours have over a 90% customer satisfaction rating! The few tours that we subcontract, we only use partners with whom we have established relationships for many years and trust the safety and quality of their service.
- San Francisco based
- Only locals know the best San Francisco tour possible. Our office is located in Fisherman’s Wharf at 501 Bay Street, San Francisco, CA 94133. Our local phone number is 1-415-357-0700 and our toll free number is 1-866-231-3752. When you call any of these numbers you will be talking with someone that is located in San Francisco, who can tell you if the weather is sunny or foggy or if there is a special event in San Francisco that may be of interest to you. There is no comparison we are always there for you.
- Convenient Opening Hours
- We are available from 6:00 AM - 10:00 PM every day of the week, 365 days a year (sometimes even 366 days!) and we don't have a phone tree so there are no phone transfer marathons when you call us you speak to our agents directly every time. Our offices have reservation agents available even on New Year's Eve because we know that you are on vacation and have worked hard to enjoy your time here. We want to make it as easy and as convenient as possible to help you arrange a tour even if you call late night the day before you'd like to participate. The additional benefit of our extended hours of operation is that we can assist you to the best of our ability if there is ever a snag in your travel plans.
- Strict Quality Control
- Our quality control supervises three sources that you interact with during your tour: 1) Our reservations staff is diverse and we count in any given day with people who speak 5-6 different languages; they have all been on our tours to experience them first hand and we always have a manager on duty 7 days a week. 2) Our tour guides are extensively trained on both safety driving techniques and are evaluated and financially compensated based on the customer tour reviews. 3) Our vehicles are frequently inspected by our drivers, mechanics and the California Highway Patrol to ensure they are in top mechanical shape.
- Vehicle Safety Inspection
- Safety is paramount in our industry and one of the biggest safety components in the tours we provide are our vehicles. Extranomical's fleet includes vans and mini-buses. Our vehicles are inspected constantly; first in the morning when the tour guide begins his/her day; second throughout the day the tour guide is verifying fluid levels, tire pressure and the general operation of the vehicle is monitored throughout the day. The vehicles are also inspected regularly (at least every 10,000) miles by our vehicle maintenance staff and also by independent certified mechanics during their routine maintenance. If that were not all, we also go through a thorough inspection performed by the California Highway Patrol once a year.
- Tour Guide Training & Substance Abuse Testing
- Our tour guides are extensively trained on both safety driving techniques and on providing an informative and interesting tour. Before being hired, we test our guides on safety driving in realistic situations around San Francisco they are also tested through an oral presentation of the material they will present to make sure that they provide a safe, knowledgeable and interesting tour. They are regularly evaluated by customer satisfaction reviews, secret shoppers and rewarded through customer satisfaction based bonuses.
- Experienced Company
- Extranomical was founded in 2002 and is one of the fastest growing tour companies in San Francisco currently performing more tours than any other company to Yosemite National Park and Muir Woods & Wine Country combination tour. We are also pioneers in offering tours to San Francisco's Best Restaurants with our "Best San Francisco Taco Tour, Sushi Tour and Pizza Tour". To date we have served over 10,000 happy customers. Guests have chosen our tours to get engaged, begin or end round-the-world adventures, celebrate their anniversaries, welcome new employees and more! We look forward to serving you soon!
- Fully Licensed and Insured
- Extranomical Adventures, Inc. is a California corporation that is fully licensed by the Public Utilities Commission to perform sightseeing tours permit TCP-18350. We also have permits to operate tours in Yosemite National Park and the Golden Gate National Recreation Area (GGNRA).
- Complimentary San Francisco Locals Travel Guide
- Not available anywhere else. Our office staff, friends and family have contributed to a guide book that we hope you will enjoy. It contains not only the usual tourist attractions that every visitor must see in San Francisco but also some of the local spots that we San Franciscans enjoy. All people who make a booking receive an electronic copy that is constantly updated with the most recent information on San Francisco that should prove to be useful and entertaining.
- Smaller Groups
- Our clientele is very independent and likes to venture to places where most tour companies do not go. Due to the small size of our groups, our tours offer a distinct "traveling with friends" feel where the majority of people interact with each other and we are also able to visit locations larger vehicles do not explore. We can accommodate small or large groups and we keep our distinct more personalized service. All our unique tours can be customized to fit the needs of your group and leisure travelers.
