Monterey County California Monterey Car Week Festival

For one week each August, the Monterey Peninsula becomes the center of the automotive world. Monterey Car Week brings together auctions, vintage racing, concept car debuts and some of the most prestigious car shows on earth, culminating in the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance.

The week has grown from a single event into more than fifty, spread across Monterey, Carmel, Pacific Grove, Seaside and the surrounding coast. Collectors, enthusiasts and industry figures come from around the globe, and the peninsula’s roads fill with cars most people only see in museums.

This guide covers what Monterey Car Week is, the events that define it, and how to plan a trip to the peninsula for it.

What Monterey Car Week Is

Monterey Car Week is an annual, week-long celebration of automotive excellence held on the Monterey Peninsula each August. It includes car shows, exclusive gatherings, vintage racing and high-profile auctions, and it attracts collectors, dealers, journalists and enthusiasts from around the world.

The centerpiece is the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, widely considered the most prestigious car show in the world. Around it sit events like The Quail, a Motorsports Gathering, the Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, and major auctions from houses such as RM Sotheby’s and Mecum.

For a nearby comparison, see the Monterey County California Carmel Bach Festival.

The Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance

The Concours d’Elegance, French for a competition of elegance, is held on the eighteenth fairway of Pebble Beach Golf Links, overlooking the Pacific. It began in 1950 and is now the flagship of Pebble Beach Automotive Week, drawing about 15,000 attendees and a field of collector cars from around the world.

Entrants apply for acceptance, and classes are arranged by type, marque, coachbuilder, country of origin or era. Judges assess authenticity, function, history and style, selecting first-through-third place in each class and then conferring the Best of Show award on one car from the class winners. The winner receives an engraved trophy and an engraved watch.

Many competing cars are valued in the hundreds of thousands of dollars, and some have sold for millions. That combination of rarity, condition and setting is what makes the Concours the pinnacle of the concours circuit worldwide.

The Rest of the Week

Car Week is far more than one Sunday. The Pebble Beach Tour d’Elegance sends more than 150 Concours entrants on a scenic drive around the peninsula on the Thursday, and vintage racing at Laguna Seca runs through the weekend. Auctions, concept-car debuts, forums and smaller shows fill every day.

Location	Monterey Peninsula, California
Typical timing	A week in August, ending with the Concours on Sunday
Flagship event	Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, on the 18th fairway
Other highlights	The Quail, Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion, major auctions
Founded	The Concours began in 1950; the week grew around it
Attendance	About 15,000 at the Concours, with many more across the week
Setting	Coastal Monterey, Pebble Beach, Carmel and Laguna Seca

A Week of Cars and Coast

What distinguishes Monterey Car Week from other automotive gatherings is its setting. The events unfold along one of the most beautiful stretches of coastline in the country, and the week doubles as a summer visit to the Monterey Peninsula.

The town of Monterey hosts auctions and displays, Carmel-by-the-Sea holds its own gatherings on Ocean Avenue, and Pacific Grove’s Lighthouse Avenue hosts smaller shows. Between events, the aquarium, the coastal trail and the seventeen-mile drive are all close at hand.

Planning Your Visit

Car Week is the busiest week of the year on the Monterey Peninsula, and lodging is the hardest part of the trip. Rooms sell out months in advance and prices rise sharply, so anyone planning to attend should book as early as possible and consider staying farther afield.

• Reserve lodging many months ahead, as Car Week is the peninsula’s peak week.
• Buy Concours and event tickets early, as the most popular sell out.
• Plan for traffic, and use shuttles or arrive very early on event days.
• Check which events are free, since several smaller shows cost nothing to attend.
• Dress for coastal fog in the morning and sun in the afternoon.

Beyond Car Week

The Monterey Peninsula is worth visiting in any season. The Monterey Bay Aquarium and Cannery Row anchor the waterfront, Point Lobos State Natural Reserve offers coastal trails and coves, and the seventeen-mile drive threads through Pebble Beach past some of the coast’s most photographed scenery.

Inland, the Salinas Valley and its agricultural landscape provide a contrast to the coast, and the wine country of Carmel Valley is a short drive away. For automotive enthusiasts, the region also holds museums and collections worth seeking out between Car Week visits.

Auctions, Racing and the Small Shows

Beyond the Concours, the week’s identity is shaped by its auctions and its racing. The major auction houses hold flagship sales in Monterey during the week, and the results are watched closely as a barometer of the collector market. Cars that change hands at these sales are often among the most significant in the world.

The Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion, formerly the Monterey Historic Automobile Races, brings vintage racing to WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca. Historic race cars run in period-correct classes, and the sound and spectacle of the event draw crowds of their own. It is one of the largest historic racing gatherings anywhere.

Smaller events give the week its texture. The Little Car Show in Pacific Grove celebrates microcars and unusual vehicles, Carmel hosts Ferrari displays on Ocean Avenue, and manufacturers stage concept and new-model debuts alongside the historic field. Many of these events are free, which makes the week accessible even without a Concours ticket.

The Collectors and the Culture

Monterey Car Week is as much a social occasion as a series of car shows. Collectors, dealers, restorers and journalists gather from around the world, and the week functions as an informal industry summit. Deals are discussed, trends are set, and reputations are made on the show field and in the auction rooms.

That culture is what makes the week more than a parade of expensive cars. Restoration standards debated at Pebble Beach influence what collectors value everywhere, and the attention paid to authenticity and history has shaped the wider hobby for decades.

For casual visitors, the appeal is simpler. The peninsula fills with cars that are rarely seen in public, and the atmosphere, from the fairways to the racetrack to the village streets, is unlike anything else on the automotive calendar.

Practical Notes for Attendees

Car Week is a marathon, and pacing matters. With more than fifty events across a week, no one sees everything, and the best approach is to choose a handful of priorities and let the rest go. The Concours and the vintage racing at Laguna Seca anchor most itineraries, with auctions, forums and smaller shows filling the days between.

Traffic is the week’s defining logistical challenge. The peninsula’s roads are not built for the volume Car Week brings, and event days can turn short drives into long ones. Arriving very early, using shuttles where they are offered, and grouping events by location all help.

Weather on the coast is variable, with fog in the mornings and sun in the afternoons. Layers are essential, particularly for the Concours, which starts at dawn on an exposed fairway. Comfortable shoes matter too, since a day on the show field involves a lot of walking.

Why the Week Matters

Monterey Car Week has no real competitor. Other cities hold car shows, and other concours draw important cars, but nowhere else do the auctions, the racing, the shows and the industry gatherings converge in a single place at a single time. For a week each August, the peninsula becomes the center of the automotive world.

That concentration gives the week its energy. Enthusiasts can see a Best of Show contender in the morning, watch historic race cars run in the afternoon, and follow an auction result in the evening. The range is what makes the week compelling, whether a visitor is a lifelong collector or simply curious about cars.

The setting does the rest. Between the fairways, the coastal roads and the village streets, Monterey provides a backdrop that no convention center could match. It is a week that turns an entire region into a celebration of the automobile.

The Peninsula During Car Week

The week transforms the whole peninsula, not just the show fields. Hotels, restaurants and shops fill with visitors from around the world, and the roads carry a parade of cars that would draw a crowd anywhere else. For a few days, Monterey feels like the center of a global gathering.

The towns each contribute their own character. Monterey hosts auctions and displays, Carmel-by-the-Sea stages gatherings on Ocean Avenue, and Pacific Grove’s Lighthouse Avenue welcomes smaller shows. Even the drive between venues becomes part of the experience.

For locals, the week is both a boon and a logistical challenge, and the festival’s organizers encourage visitors to travel responsibly and respect the communities that host the events. Planning ahead, using shuttles and being patient with traffic make the week far more enjoyable for everyone.

Festival Area Map

The map below marks the Monterey Peninsula and Pebble Beach, with the approach along Highway 1 for planning your visit to Car Week.

Frequently Asked Questions

When is Monterey Car Week?

It is held over a week in August, ending with the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance on Sunday.

Where is it held?

Across the Monterey Peninsula, including Monterey, Pebble Beach, Carmel and Laguna Seca.

What is the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance?

It is the flagship car show of the week, held on the 18th fairway of Pebble Beach Golf Links and widely considered the world’s most prestigious concours.

How many events are there?

More than fifty related events take place across the week.

Do I need tickets?

The Concours and most major events are ticketed, while some smaller shows and gatherings are free.

How far ahead should I book?

Lodging should be booked many months ahead, since Car Week is the peninsula’s busiest week.

What to Expect From the Next Car Week

How often does it take place?

The week is staged every year, each August.

When is the next Car Week?

The next edition is expected in August. Confirm dates, events and ticket details with the organizers.

Will the format change?

The core events, including the Concours and the vintage racing at Laguna Seca, have been stable, while new shows and debuts are added each year.

Last updated: October 2026

Monterey Car Week is the closest thing the automotive world has to a pilgrimage. Between the Concours on the eighteenth fairway, the auctions, the vintage racing and the coastal setting, it is a week that rewards enthusiasts of every kind, whether they come for the machinery, the history or simply the spectacle.