One week in August. The car world stops everything.
Monterey Car Week 2026 runs from August 7 to 16. Ten days of auctions, races, concours, rallies and private exhibitions that draw collectors, manufacturers and enthusiasts from sixty countries. And on August 16, Pebble Beach hosts its 75th Concours d'Élégance on the 18th fairway of one of the most famous golf courses in the world.
What is Monterey Car Week?
Monterey Car Week is not one event. It's a cluster of a dozen overlapping events held simultaneously across the Monterey Peninsula in California. Each has its own character. You pick the ones that match your interests.
- 📅 Dates: August 7-16, 2026
- 📍 Location: Monterey Peninsula, California: Pebble Beach, Carmel-by-the-Sea, Laguna Seca, Cannery Row
- 🏎️ Main events: Pebble Beach Concours d'Élégance (Aug 16), Pebble Beach Road Races (Aug 12), The Quail (Aug 14), Mecum and RM Sotheby's auctions, various brand events
- ✈️ Nearest airport: Monterey Regional (MRY, 10 min), San Jose (SJC, 1h30), San Francisco (SFO, 2h)
Nobody comes to Monterey for one event. Most people build a 3 to 5-day itinerary combining the public events with brand showcases and evening dinners. The atmosphere is relaxed by comparison to a racing circuit: no one is racing against each other. They're here for the passion.
Pebble Beach Concours d'Élégance: 75th edition
The 75th Pebble Beach Concours d'Élégance takes place on Sunday, August 16, 2026. Around 220 of the world's rarest and most historically significant automobiles are displayed on the 18th fairway of Pebble Beach Golf Links. Judges evaluate each car on originality, condition, engineering and design.
- 📅 Date: Sunday August 16, 2026
- 📍 Venue: Pebble Beach Golf Links, 18th fairway, Pebble Beach, CA
- 🎟️ Tickets: general admission around $500, sold in advance at pebblebeachconcours.net. The Concept Lawn (new cars and design studies) has separate ticketing.
- 🏆 Best of Show: the most prestigious award in the collector car world. 2025 winner was a 1934 Packard 1108 Twelve Dietrich Convertible Victoria.
Arrive early. Cars begin taking their positions from 7am. The fairway fills by 9am and the crowds thicken through the morning. The best light for photos is before 10am. Best of Show is typically announced around 5pm.
- ✅ Buy tickets online months in advance: they sell out
- ✅ Wear layers: Pebble Beach fog in August can be thick in the morning, burning off by noon
- ✅ Bring good walking shoes: the course is large and on grass
- ✅ The Tour d'Élégance (Thursday) is free to watch along the public roads of 17-Mile Drive
Road Races and The Quail
Two other events define the week for many attendees: the Pebble Beach Road Races on Wednesday and The Quail on Friday.
- 🏁 Pebble Beach Road Races (August 12): vintage race cars compete on a closed-road circuit through the Del Monte Forest. Spectating is free along the roadside. The atmosphere is informal, loud and brilliant.
- 🌿 The Quail, A Motorsports Gathering (August 14): private by-invitation concours at the Quail Lodge, with a focus on motorcycles, rare sports cars and pre-war exotica. Tickets are allocated, not freely sold. Wait list available at quaillodgeandgolf.com.
- 💰 Mecum and RM Sotheby's auctions: hundreds of collector cars cross the block during the week. The auction previews are open to registered bidders and spectators. Results frequently set world records.
- 🎨 Brand events: Ferrari, Lamborghini, Porsche and BMW host private events and exhibits during the week. Some are ticketed; many require an invitation.
The Road Races are the most accessible event of the week. Bring a chair, find a spot along the course before 8am, and watch an unscripted parade of Ferrari Testarossas, Jaguar D-Types and Group C prototypes go past at full noise. It costs nothing.
Woodward Dream Cruise: the world's largest one-day car event
1.5 million spectators. One day. A 27-kilometer stretch of Woodward Avenue from Pontiac to Birmingham, Michigan. The Woodward Dream Cruise happens the third Saturday of August and draws more people than any other single-day automotive event in the world.
- 📅 Date: Saturday August 15, 2026
- 📍 Location: Woodward Avenue, from Pontiac to Birmingham, Michigan (Detroit area)
- 🚗 The event: 40,000 classic and muscle cars cruise Woodward Avenue over 12 hours. Anyone can participate with a vehicle. Spectators line the entire route.
- ✈️ Access: fly to Detroit Metropolitan Airport (DTW), then drive or Uber north. The cruise runs roughly 45 minutes from downtown Detroit.
Woodward is everything Pebble Beach is not. Loud, democratic, gasoline-scented and free. A '67 Mustang sits next to a '71 Chevelle sits next to a hand-built hot rod built in someone's garage over twenty years. Nobody is judging. Everyone is celebrating.
- ✅ Park and walk: Woodward Avenue itself is for the cruise cars. Find parking east or west of the route.
- ✅ Royal Oak and Birmingham are the most concentrated viewing areas
- ✅ Bring sunscreen and a folding chair: you will be outside for most of the day
- ✅ Combining Woodward (Aug 15) with Pebble Beach Concours (Aug 16) requires flying overnight between coasts, but it is doable
How to plan your trip
Most international visitors to Monterey Car Week build a 4 to 5-day trip around their core event priorities. Here are three approaches depending on your interests.
- 🏆 Concours focus : arrive Thursday, watch the Tour d'Élégance along 17-Mile Drive for free, attend the Concours Saturday or Sunday. Three nights in Carmel or Monterey.
- 🏁 Racing focus : arrive Tuesday, attend the Road Races on Wednesday, visit Laguna Seca for the Motorsports Reunion (Aug 13-16), skip the Concours if prices are a concern.
- 🚗 Full week : five or more days. Combine auctions, Road Races, The Quail if you have an invitation, the Concours, and the Carmel-by-the-Sea Concours on the Avenue (free, Saturday afternoon).
Book your accommodation before the end of March. Hotels in Pebble Beach, Carmel and Monterey fill completely for Car Week. Pacific Grove (15 minutes away) is a quieter and cheaper alternative base.
Budget and practical tips
- ✅ Flights: San Francisco or San Jose are the main entry points. Fly into SFO and drive the Pacific Coast Highway south: one of the great road trips on the continent.
- ✅ Car rental: essential. Public transit does not cover the Monterey Peninsula efficiently.
- ✅ Accommodation budget: expect $300 to $700 per night during Car Week for decent accommodation on the peninsula. Pacific Grove and Salinas are more affordable.
- ✅ Pebble Beach Concours ticket: ~$500 per person. The Tour d'Élégance and the Road Races are free.
- ✅ Weather: August in Monterey means morning fog (50°F/10°C) burning off by noon (65-70°F/18-21°C). Bring a light jacket regardless of what July weather told you to expect.
- ✅ Traffic: Pebble Beach road access is controlled. Follow GPS routing to your specific event, not your instinct.
If you're planning a broader US events trip, read our NYC fall parades guide and check our festival travel insurance guide before you book.