After climbing mountains in Sedona last year, our annual girls trip somehow transformed into sort of an Amazing Race meets Bravo Housewives. There are two requirements in order to qualify as a venue for our annual girls getaway: amazing outdoor adventures and a beautiful (and somewhat unique) spa. This year the Spa Warriors (that’s us) chose Monterey and Carmel-By-The Sea (with a two day trip extension to San Francisco) and we were not disappointed.
There is no way I can describe Monterey and do it justice. It’s just plain beautiful. If you want to lay on a beach and soak up the sun all week, Monterey is probably not for you. The temperature is an even 70s, a little cool for beach weather, and the beaches aren’t sandy - they’re rocky. But if you are active and enjoy bike riding and hiking while admiring sea life and a beautiful
shoreline, this is the place you need to be. We fell in love with it Day 1. 
A Monterey must is the 17 Mile. The 17 Mile Scenic Drive can be driven or biked. My advice - bike it if you can. We did and what a great experience! Believe me, it’s a lot longer than 17 miles (you have to bike to the starting point, then of course you have to get back - do the math) but it’s definitely doable. We are not even close to being Lance Armstrongs and we survived it. There are 21 stops along the 17 Mile and you are going to want to stop at most or all of them, take photos and read the info-signs. If you decide to bike it, it will take most of the day. A great place to stop for lunch is Pebble Beach Golf Course. You can even shop the little pro shops there. On the 17 Mile you will see lots of wildlife - seals, otters, deer, birds, maybe even a whale. The scenery and shoreline are breathtaking. 
After biking 30+ miles, we were ready for a relaxing dinner. We drove out to Carmel to Mission Ranch (owned by Clint Eastwood). The view is gorgeous. Not only will you see the Santa Lucia Mountains, Point Lobos and the Pacific Ocean, but you will also see sheep grazing in the meadow right next to the restaurant. The food? Yummy!
For our hiking day, we chose Point Lobos State Natural Reserve located in Carmel-By-The-Sea between the coasts of Big Sur and Carmel. It’s an easy hike up the rock with the ocean and beautiful shoreline always in view and lush canopies sometimes over head. To avoid sitting in a line to park your car, get there at 8 AM when the park opens. You can easily get in a lot of hiking by noon and spend the rest of the day shopping in adorable Carmel-By-The-Sea (which was exactly what we did). After leaving Point Lobos, go south on 1 to the Bixby Creek Bridge (the famous bridge shown in the beginning of every episode of Big Little Lies) for a great photo op. To get the best photo, pull over to the left (east side) of the bridge onto a dirt road. You can get the best photos from there with the ocean in the background. 
The ultimate girls getaway is never complete without a little retail therapy. Carmel-By-The-Sea is peppered with adorable little homes that give it the look of a storybook village. Carmel Plaza is a one-of-a-kind shopping experience with fairytale cottages, cobblestone sidewalks, and hidden pathways. For lunch or dinner, check out The Treehouse Cafe. We sat outside on the upper level and it felt like we were eating in the treetops (the food is great too!).
Every girls trip has to include at least one activity outside our comfort zone. This year it was a starlight bioluminescence kayak tour. We started out at sunset, and throughout the tour had an up close and personal experience with seals, otters, sea stars, and of course the stars of the show - bioluminescent plankton. We used Kayak Connections at Elkhorn Slough and love them! (We even took a hot chocolate break.)
After a week of biking, hiking and kayaking, we were in desperate need of a spa day to pamper our muscles. The spa at the Monterey Plaza Hotel and Spa is rooftop with a beautiful view of the Pacific and a full menu of massages, body treatments, and facials.
Put Monterey and Carmel on the list of “must do” girls getaways.
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