I spent a lot of time in Monterey, first as a student at the DLI for a year, 1981 - 1982, then later as a visitor, 1987 - 2000, after I got a job in Silicon Valley, less than an hour away. My friends and I thought nothing of driving an hour from Palo Alto for lunch on Fisherman’s Wharf on a Sunday afternoon.
It was nice when I was there. It still had a small town feel, to me, in spite of all the tourists. People here on FR that live in the area say that the region has really gone down hill since 2000.
I grew up there, while my Dad was at the Postgraduate School, I still try to go back every few years, I still enjoy it, but yes, it has done downhill to a degree. They rely heavily now on Chinese tourists, and they haven’t been coming lately, so business has really dropped.
But Carmel is still of my favorite places on the planet.
Maybe, but it's still pretty nice.