Lot My Cup of Tea
City of Monterey run public parking for the super-touristy Cannery Row area.
The Good:
*Located ±1/4‐mile from the Monterey Bay Aquarium
*Approx 20 parking spots available w/ several ADA spots available
*Parking spots are clearly marked
The Meh:
*$20 (All Day) to park in an open lot which is the same as parking in their covered parking garage. I always feel like there should be an "elements" discount when it comes to parking.
*They only have an ''All Day" option.
*The spots are clearly numbered but the machine never asks what space # you're parked in, so honestly why bother numbering them? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
The Ugly:
*When we visited, the machine wasn't spitting out receipts to place on your dashboard--which left me wondering the whole time if I was going to come back to find a parking ticket on my windshield. And yes, I did leave a note for the meter maid (is that PC to say?) explaining I paid but no receipt was given.
Tldr: Street parking is preferable (i.e., cheaper) on Cannery Row (unless you're really planning on spending 8hrs there) but when that's not available this lot is a good 3rd option. read more