Cannery Row, Monterey
The Monterey Bay Aquarium is the most popular, but by far not the only attraction of Cannery Row. In this full-day trip I recommend you wait until the afternoon to visit the aquarium, when it is less crowded. Prior to that, why not wear the kids out a bit with some outdoorsy exercise such as by bike or by kayak (or both!)
* Take in the views using pedal power At Bay Bikes (585 Cannery Row, 3 blocks from the aquarium) you can rent mountain bikes or get the whole family into a surrey. If you have young ones too little to pedal, they sit nicely in a seat (holds two passengers) at the very front of the bike. The large surreys can fit up to six adults. The path that the surreys are allowed to take is not all that long, but its quite scenic and takes about an hour.
* Take a kayak trip. Monterey is definately the place to experience the sea and all it has to offer. The sheltered nature of this area makes kayaking a calm and family friendly adventure. One place right on cannery row is Adventures by the Sea. (299 Cannery Row. They also rent bicycles and surreys.)
* After expending a fair amount of energy, time to refuel. A great restaurant on Cannery Row is Willy’s Smokehouse BBQ and Grill. (96 Prescott, on the corner of Wave and Prescott) They have balloons and cowboy themed kids menus with crayons on the table for kids to color. Its a large space with big windows.
* The afternoon is a good time to enter into the Monterey Bay Aquarium. The crowds are generally leaving by this point. The average visit is three hours. The cafe on the first floor is also a convenient place to grab food either at the beginning or end of the visit. It offers a buffet with quite a variety of foods to meet most finicky eater’s needs.
* To end your ocean experience, take in a 3D movie on sharks or sea creatures at the cannery row Imax Theatre (640 Wave Street). Shows are about 45 minutes each and there are generally several to choose from.
