Carmel is a rather unique seaside town in Northern California. In a setting that feels far removed from the real world, tree-shaded streets are lined with lovely Victorian buildings and little storybook cottages. It’s the perfect 48-hour getaway from San Francisco. Whether you’re looking for a romantic weekend with your significant other or a short girls’ trip, this is the spot for you! From beautiful ocean views and meandering hidden passageways to delicious restaurants and fun boutiques, here’s what to do in Carmel.

Note: I’ve put together an itinerary for 48 hours in Carmel. You will see that it’s over 3 days (2 nights) because reservation check-in to La Playa Hotel begins at 4 PM. Thus, your first “day” in this destination will actually be the evening that you arrive. Enjoy this outline of top things to do in Carmel!

Day 1 in Carmel

Stay at La Playa Hotel

La Playa Hotel is nestled in the heart of Carmel-by-the-Sea. It’s a newly restored, 75-room, historic hotel that’s located just steps from the sands of Carmel Beach. There are a variety of rooms that you can select depending on your needs (including accessible accommodations). The proximity to the beach is superb, and they also offer freshly baked cookies every day (I had two per day, they were so yum)!

One of the highlights of this hotel is the to-go boxed breakfast with croissant, yogurt, granola, and fruit. It’s included in the room rate and available from 7 AM to 10 AM every single morning. You’ll be set for breakfast for your entire trip!

Book your room here.

Dinner at Seventh & Dolores Steakhouse

Alright, after you check in, it’s time to get started with the first item on the list. Who doesn’t love starting with food? Luckily for you, food comprises many of the top activities. For your first dinner in Carmel, I recommend Seventh & Dolores Steakhouse. This restaurant offers a modern vibe and a great patio in the back.

My top menu recommendations include:

• Seasonal salad with local south county asparagus and puffed wild rice
• Burrata from Puglia in a subtle walnut oil vinaigrette
• Miso roasted Brussels Sprouts

Check out the rest of the menu and book your reservation here.

Visit Carmel Beach at sunset

Depending on what time you like to eat dinner, you may want to swap these last two things to do in Carmel. During the summertime, sunset is after 8 PM, so you may be done with dinner at that point. Either way, hitting Carmel Beach at sunset is a must, especially during your first night. It’ll set the mood for your entire vacation and help you appreciate the beauty of the place you’re in. You can either walk to the beach or drive down and try to find parking in the designated spots. It can get crowded during sunset but I was able to find a spot when I went both times.

Day 2 in Carmel

Enjoy your box breakfast

Up and at ‘em! Today is your first full day in Carmel, and you’ll want to make the most of it. This will be your busiest day here, so grab your box breakfast before heading out.

 Explore the charming courtyards and passageways

Carmel is well-known for its meandering courtyards and passageways, 41 of them to be exact. Below are some of my favorite finds from my trip to Carmel. They can help serve as a guide as you travel the small beach city by yourself.

Courtyards & Passageways:

• Unnamed courtyard with flowers – Located near the Carmel Music Box Company, I found the most beautiful purple flowers blooming in April!
• Der Ling Lane and Passageway – Der Ling Lane is considered to be the oldest public alley in Carmel. As you enter from Ocean Avenue the store on your right was originally a gift shop owned by Adolf and Hallie Lafrenz who befriended the Chinese princess Der Ling. They named their storybook-styled shop in her honor. The Lafrenz home was located at the end of the wood arched, old Carmel stone pathway full of flowers, small benches and the lure of a very secret garden.
• The Secret Garden Passageway – This tiny bamboo-lined passageway connects Dolores Street to San Carlos Street and beckons the walker into the hidden sanctuary of Pilgrim’s Way bookstore and garden — for over 40 years a local favorite. Here it is nearly possible to listen to the quiet while enjoying the peaceful fountains, mysterious figurines, and enticing gifts.
• Tuck Box Courtyard – Possibly my most favorite place to have tea and scones, the Tuck Box was built in 1926 by Hugh Comstock for artist Bonnie Lee to display her antiques and rare shawl collection, and is the iconic fairytale cottage of Carmel.

Click here for a list of all the passageways and courtyards in Carmel.

Visit the Carmel Shell Mural

The Carmel Shell Mural is public art that was sponsored by Visit Carmel and the Carmel Public Library. It’s located at the corner of 6^th Avenue and Mission Street across from Devendorf Park. If you’re after all the Instagrammable things to do in Carmel, this is a spot you can’t miss!

Read more details here.

Have lunch at the Alvarado Street Brewery & Bistro

Who’s hungry after all that sightseeing? Stop for lunch at Alvarado Street Brewery & Bistro! You can grab a bite to eat (I recommend the burrata and salads!) and sip your way to satisfaction with beer flights. Here are some of the beers they offered as well as my general thoughts on each that I tried:  

• Monterey beer – Light lager, pre-Prohibition era, the type of beer you take to the beach
• Mai Tai – West Coast IPA, 2-time gold winner, tropical notes
• Hoppy Hiker – Hazy IPA, proceeds go to Big Sur land trust, “drool maker” beer
• Howzit – More fruity, with passionfruit, orange, and guava, also has less alcohol, it’s a kettle sour

Wine tasting in Carmel

You may only be up for this if you didn’t make lunch boozy (or perhaps if you’re ready to continue the fun!). No shame either way. Carmel can be the perfect spot to spend the afternoon hopping between the charming wine tasting rooms strewn about downtown.

Galante Vineyards Tasting Room

Wine tasting in Carmel is easy. There are countless tasting rooms, but I recommend Galante Vineyards Tasting Room. This is a highly rated wine bar with a cute patio and firepit in a cozy hidden courtyard. It features local, estate-grown wines, and it’s the perfect spot to hit between lunch and dinner as it’s open from 1 to 6 PM every day except Saturday when it’s open from 12 PM to 6 PM.

Visit here to learn more.

Dinner at Stationaery

Stationæry is a neighborhood restaurant in Carmel. It’s located between San Carlos and Mission Streets in San Carlos Square, which is a cute courtyard. Although it’s a fairly new restaurant, it’s known for its great relationship with local farmers. In the past, the cuisine in Carmel has historically lent itself to a more traditional palette, more French and Italian inspired. However, that is evolving as more younger chefs are coming into the city and aiming to have more seasonally inspired menus, which lends itself well to innovative cuisine.

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What to eat

I highly recommend the asparagus with hazelnuts, aioli, chili and cured egg yolk, as well as the strawberry and olive salad. I found these dishes to be both unique and delicious. My friend had the lobster roll and we ended up splitting the most sublime citrus & olive oil cake I have ever had.

Post dinner sunset at the beach

After dinner, we drove down to the beach for another great sunset! Carmel sunsets are something else, you have to see it to believe it. Tip: Bring layers, as it can get quite chilly once the sun starts to set. The water in Northern California’s beaches are almost always too cold to get in but that doesn’t stop us locals from enjoying the beach!

Day 3 in Carmel

Eat your final breakfast

It’s your final day in Carmel! Go grab your box breakfast from the hotel, so you can get your day started off right. The last thing you want is to be hungry the entire time you’re sightseeing. Tip: Have your breakfast out in the patio off the dining area, the views of the hotel gardens are beautiful.

Visit the Fairytale Cottages

You can’t visit Carmel-by-the-Sea without seeing the fairytale cottages. In fact, it’s always ranked as one of the top things to do in Carmel. The village of Carmel was originally founded in 1902, and it was a haven for famous artists, poets, musicians, and writers. These so-called storybook cottages sprouted up because of Hugh Comstock’s imagination. Comstock was a builder/toymaker who had a loving wife that collected dolls for her business. He was inspired to build a whimsical home for his wife where she could house her dolls. This eventually served as a studio for her.

From there, the storybook theme snowballed, and there are 21 original Hugh Comstock cottages still in Carmel. If you’re wondering what to do in Carmel on your 48-hour getaway, this must be on your list!

My favorite storybook cottages

• Hansel and Gretel – Hansel and Gretel have two side-by-side picturesque structures that were built in 1924 and 1925 respectively. They appear as though they’re straight out of a children’s book with steeply pitched roofs, arched windows and doors, and rustic Carmel stone chimneys.
• Storybook Cottage – This is a little pink cottage that was built in 1926. It has only been painted by the current owners in the last few years. Of all the houses, it has the best view from the street, which makes it easily accessible for photos. As you tour these houses, remember that these homes are privately owned, and you should be respectful of the property. 
• Our House – This house presumably belonged to Hugh and Mayotta Comstock who had a whirlwind romance. Hugh is the one responsible for crafting these houses after he initially built one for Mayotta’s dolls. Our House was built in 1928.
• Obers House – This is also an original Comstock that’s just a short way down the street from Hansel’s and Gretel’s homes. Throughout the years, it has been updated with landscaping, gardening, and an additional garage. The houses here do not have numbers or addresses, but rather names to support comraderie and personality.
• The Studio – As Comstock’s design business grew, he outgrew his office in his personal residence “Obers.” So he built a studio on the lot next door, continuing with the Tudor “Fairy Tale” style of many of his earlier cottages, but adding leaded glass and Carmel stone, lending a country element to his whimsical style.

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Walk or hike in the Mission Trail Nature Preserve

The Mission Trail Nature Preserve is one of the best things to do in Carmel that pertains to nature. It’s a 33-acre park that’s mostly undeveloped. There are five trails throughout the land that are ideal for working up a sweat.

In fact, now that you’ve gotten the cute fairytale cottages out of the way, there’s nothing holding you back from going for a walk, hike, run, etc. that helps you build up an appetite for lunch. My favorite trails here are the Mesa loop (1/4 mile) and the Serra Trail North Loop (1/2 mile round trip). For a longer hike, try the Serra-Flanders-Doolittle loop (1 1/2 miles round trip).

Lunch at Brophy’s Tavern

Brophy’s Tavern is an Irish pub and sports bar located in Carmel-by-the-Sea. It features comfort food, craft beer, and local wine. After spending the morning adventuring, it’s the perfect spot to sit, hang out, and enjoy yourself before heading home. Don’t miss their cute outdoor patio seating.

Stop by a few Art Galleries

A few early residents of Carmel including visual artists, authors and poets, lived in tent settlements near the coast. Then, just after the 1906 earthquake in San Francisco, the area became inundated with musicians, writers, painters and other artists attracted by the budding artist colony. Whether you’re an art enthusiast or admirer, Carmel is an exploration of nearly 100 art galleries within one-square mile, featuring the works of world-renowned artists like Thomas Kincade and one-of-a-kind finds.

Tea & Scones at a Fairtytale Cottage

I used to come to the Tuck Box with my boyfriend (now my husband) all the way from the South Bay when we both lived there in our 20s. This cottage, now over 80 years old, serves breakfast & lunch including some amazing scones & homemade marmalade with tea. The Tuck Box was built in 1927 by Hugh Comstock and was based on his wife’s doll collection and is one of the cutest fairytale cottages in Carmel. Do stop by for a late afternoon tea and scones before you leave Carmel.

Final thoughts on Carmel

If you have a canine companion, Carmel is known for being dog-friendly, with numerous hotels, restaurants and retail stores admitting guests with dogs. Carmel is also known for several unusual laws, including a prohibition on wearing high-heel shoes without a permit, enacted to prevent lawsuits arising from tripping accidents caused by irregular pavement. Along with the lack of tacky street signs and house addresses, this unique beachside city is a must-visit at least once. I would love to hear your thoughts in the comments below on Carmel, have you been here?!

Note: While this trip was sponsored by Visit Carmel, all opinions expressed here are my own.