We loved everything about this tour…read more Our guide, Sammy, was funny, personable, charming, and well connected with the Carmel food and wine scene. He arrived a little early to our hotel, always a good sign. As we headed to Carmel, Sammy gave us a quick history of Monterey and Carmel that was filled with little tidbits that we didn't know despite coming to the area for decades. Our tour consisted of three restaurants for small plates paired with wine and three tasting rooms for short flights. Everything was amazing. The tour never felt rushed, even though I was trying before the tour to figure out how Sammy was going to fit everything in. This was the first time we'd done a tour like this and it definitely won't be the last. We look forward to touring with Sammy again.

Great from start to finish - responsive, very customer oriented and a wonderful day for all. Thank…read moreyou Sammy and your team - and we'll do e for coping with the terrible weather

The experience that Cane and Spur provided was exceptional! To start off, the owner Matt was…read moreincredibly accommodating; he worked with me despite having a fully booked tours on the day I wanted to come. I ended up taking the Private Tesla tour and I have to tell you, that is the way to do it! Prior to the tour, they took my wine preferences to make a customized route of tasting rooms. Since we took the private tour, the Tesla arrived at our hotel to pick us up, which was incredibly convenient and saved us an Uber. Our tour guide Jake was absolutely fantastic. He was personable, knowledgeable on wine and so friendly! One by one we visited each tasting room, and each had a different vibe. There is nothing cookie cutter about this tour. We didn't feel ANY pressure to purchase bottles at any location either (even though we left with atleast one from each anyways). During our tastings, Jake booked us a dinner at a restaurant in Carmel, took our bags to and from the car and helped us navigate the rest of our trip in Monterey- it was like having a personal concierge the whole time. After we finished our tastings, we were taken to the beach where we got to watch the sun set and my goodness was it beautiful! To finish off the trip, we were dropped off at our dinner restaurant. I was WOWed from start to finish. I would 100% recommend this tour if you're in the area. Whether it's the private tour or the bus tour, you will not be disappointed!

Took the tour back at the end of January and it was so much fun. We did the Carmel food and wine…read moretour. It was AWESOME! Our tour group ended up just being the two of us with our lovely guide, Jake. At first, we were a little bummed because we assumed it would be a dinner date with a presenter but it couldn't have gone any better. Jake is such a fun character! He's knowledgeable (taught us a lot), personable, stylish and charismatic. He's passionate about life, wine and was a great conversationalist. We went to 4 different restaurants and each place treated us to a lovely meal and drink or two. Each place was different and had its own style, cuisine and atmosphere. 1. Portabello- first up was duo 1/2 cups of soup: the mushroom bisque and the crab & corn bisque. Let me tell you as a crab fanatic that I probably could have ate the whole pot of that crab bisque. It was so rich and decadent 1a. Our second dish was a mushroom risotto. Also delicious and this was a much bigger portion. 1b. This was all paired with a glass of local Pinot Noir which delicious and medium bodied as well as a glass of Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand which was crisp, refreshing and wonderful fruit notes. I'm not a big white wine fan but I would buy this bottle. The owner came out and introduced himself, made small talk and then let us know that he would see us at the last restaurant since he owns it as well. 2. Flying fish - this place was our second stop and it was packed! I was immediately excited as obviously this was a good sign of things to come. Got greeted by a lovely waiter (sorry forgot his name) and presented us with an Asian ginger salsa and wonton chips as a light starter. It was a nice surprise and the flavor was not overpowering. He then poured us a local Chardonnay which was okay but we both weren't a fan. The waiter then recommended us to pick one of the two house favorites. We decided to go with the Almond Sea Bass. Oh em gee!! This was amazing! The fish was buttery and literally melted away in our mouth with the whipped potato and cabbage. I was sad we only had one to share. 3. Il Grilo - the owner is very innovative and it's reflected in his dishes. We had the liver pate which definitely was a surprise. Not our first choice of things we'd select but when in Rome... it was surprisingly better than I thought it would be. We enjoyed the pork cheek pasta a lot more . This was paired with a red wine (can't remember the name) 4. Dametra Cafe, lies nowhere else. - dessert! Can we have a moment of silence for the baklava and tiramisu!!! The best I have ever had! I'm from New York the melting pot of the U.s and I thought I had the best when I was there but nope I was wrong! The baklava was sooooo flaky, crispy, sweet and sticky. The caramel drizzle and whipped cream on top was heaven! I literally ate 2/3 by myself. And I definitely ate 1/2 of that tiramisu. Light fluffy, rich, chocolatey, coffee and cheesy. Sounds like a lot but it was perfection. I couldn't help myself, I really didn't want to share. Luckily my partner in crime and Jake were kind enough to oblige my selfishness. This was paired with a lovely port / dessert wine. Fabulous! To end the night at the restaurant, we were treated to a lovely surprise... a live performance by the owner and his friend el cantante. It was beautiful and really set a mood of just love, fun, and living life to enjoy these type of moments that are truly once in a lifetime. It's soooooo hard to say which one was my favorite but I will say this, we left the evening satisfied and full but not stuffed (which is a good thing). Why? Because it was a walking food tour as well. So we burned off some of those delicious calories. The only criticism I could come up with is potentially asking future clients what their wine preferences are and if there are any foods they don't like or aren't willing to try. Other than that, this was fantastic and we are so glad we did this tour!

Dena was was absolutely wonderful!! Dena took out myself and eight girls and we had a blast. Dena…read moreplanned everything and we just had to show up. We went to four great places and had a great lunch provided by Dena! I would 10000% recommend behind the scenes tours to anyone looking for a tour in the area. It was FUN, comfortable, and even educational. 10/10!

We had such an amazing and memorable day with Dena! This is absolutely the way to see wine country,…read morecurb to curb service with lots of fun in between. Our tour included a delicious lunch and Dena even brought a birthday cake to help us celebrate our special day!

Our friends bought us a private tour - Enjoy Carmel by Carmel Food Tours. We would highly recommend…read moreCarmel Food Tours - we thought they did a great job. They were super responsive when we wanted to book our tour with just a few days notice - so mad props for their fast, friendly service in getting us booked so quickly!! Our guide was friendly and very knowledgeable about Carmel, and provided an overview about the area and was very willing to answer any questions we had. We enjoyed chatting with her throughout the 4 hour experience. We enjoyed tastes from 5-6 different locations throughout the downtown Carmel area. We were definitely provided a lot of variety and everything was delicious - from doughnuts and coffee and nuts to French onion soup and sushi. We had the opportunity at one of the locations (Toro) to have an interactive experience, spending time speaking with the general manager learning the background about the restaurant. We also had a special sake tasting featuring three different sakes. It was a very unique experience and the sushi was also extremely fresh and delicious. Overall, it was a good experience and we were able to enjoy a nice variety of food that local restaurants provide. Important tips for future tour goers: 1. Don't eat before going on a food tour. We thankfully didn't eat -otherwise, we would not have been able to enjoy the food tour to its fullest. 2. Don't book any reservations to restaurants that same day. We were still stuffed by the time it was time to go to dinner - and that was more than 5 hours later!

This was such an amazing experience! I learned so much about Carmel. Our tour guide Bonnie was…read moregreat! All the food and wine stops were exquisite! Lives this and will definitely do this again!

Sonja was a great tour guide! Shared lots of history of the city. We enjoyed ourselves.read more

Wow what a fabulous way to learn about a city and support local businesses. We had an exceptional…read moreexperience. Marty our tour guide was so kind and knowledgeable about the history of Monterey. She gave wonderful suggestions and explained in detail each local restaurant and what made them worth adding to the tour. I highly recommend this experience.

I've been asking my husband to take me segwaying for a LONG time. He surprised me on our 10th…read moreanniversary! Genuinely, Monterey is the best place to do segwaying. My husband and I have been to Monterey plenty of times but with the segways we took the local paths/dunes that we would never want to walk/bike. What a great way to see how beautiful Monterey is. We saw some seals and amazing waves! Luckily gloves were supplied because it was cold today. Graham was our guide today and we had a wonderful time with him. He was very patient with us when teaching us how to use the segways, made sure we were aware of any bumps and great with the crowd in congested areas. Very funny, sweet man. Absolutely recommend when visiting Monterey. There would still be plenty of time to go to the aquarium or hang around the downtown area if you do an early tour.

It was my 1st time riding Segway. Jerry taught us how to balance ourselves n ride in less than…read more15mins and then we started our tour. The route had breathtaking views of the pacific coast . We also stopped at a Monarch sanctuary to see butterflies, hummingbirds. Highly recommend this fun activity with friends and family

My wife and I are visiting from Miami and came across Shearwater's charter quite fortuitously. We…read moreare with our twin seven year olds and our nine year old; Kevin could not have been more accommodating, engaging and amazing at allowing our kids to ingratiate themselves in the operation of the boat. It is not only a beautiful sailboat, departing from a very convenient location, but also offers a very cool experience to see Monterey from the opposite perspective that we're used to (especially the aquarium). We had an incredible afternoon and can't wait to be on the water with Atalanta again!

Kevin did a wonderful job with our trip! He was so knowledgeable about the entire bay. He provided…read moresnacks and drinks and made it a really fun trip on the water. Would highly recommend for a nice, casual trip with friends of family. Feel free to bring a few bottles of wine to enjoy (just not red wine, since it may stain during rough waters).

Just tried to use our gift certificates. Called and spoke to the owner who was gracious and…read moreapologetic as he informed us the business had closed last year. We are bummed but understand and respect his kind response and explanation. Closed business

Doug is the owner/operator of this fun and informative tour. His knowledge and love for what he…read moredoes shines thru. This is a must do not just for old movie lovers but Doug really brings the area to life with his wealth of knowledge and history of the area me and my family would otherwise not know. The tour was approximately 3.5 hrs and it flew by!