California Roots Music & Arts Festival

For attendees coming up/down the coast rather than flying: Amtrak's Coast Starlight (daily, LA-Bay Area-Seattle) stops at Salinas, and Amtrak Thruway motorcoaches connect Salinas station to Monterey as one through-ticket, with Monterey stops including the Transit Plaza (Amtrak station code MRY, a bus stop, not the airport) and the Monterey Marriott. From the Transit Plaza the fairgrounds is ~2 mi. MST Route 7 or a short rideshare finishes the trip.

Intercity coaches from LA, San Francisco, San Jose and beyond stop at the Salinas Train Station (3 Station Place, Salinas), the only Greyhound/FlixBus stop in the area. From Salinas Transit Center, MST Route 20 (Monterey, Salinas) runs to Monterey Transit Plaza; then MST Route 7 or a short rideshare covers the last ~2 mi to the fairgrounds.

Rally runs round-trip event coaches to California Roots from ~26 pickup points around California, with drop-off right at the fairgrounds gate and the same bus home each night. Reclining seats, WiFi, power outlets, onboard restroom; coolers and non-glass food/drink allowed, alcohol for 21+. Note the crowdsourced model: 'A trip gets confirmed once a minimum number of riders book seats (usually 25)', book early and watch for the confirmation.

MST Route 7 (Monterey, Ryan Ranch) links Monterey Transit Plaza downtown with the Monterey Regional Airport, and its official schedule map shows it running the Fremont/Aguajito/Garden Rd corridor past Monterey Pines Golf Course, i.e. the festival's own parking area, between downtown and the airport. Fare is $2.00 regular / $1.00 discount single ride (2-hour window incl. transfers when paying contactless), $6.00 daily cap, tap-to-pay with any contactless bank card or mobile wallet onboard. CAUTION: the festival/venue guidance still references 'bus lines #9 and #10' on Fremont St, but MST's current official route list no longer shows a Route 9 or 10, those appear to be legacy numbers, so riders should trip-plan on mst.org rather than rely on the festival's stale route numbers.

Both Uber and Lyft operate at MRY, and six permitted taxi companies (California Taxi, Green Cab, Marina Taxi, Salinas Taxicab Services, Salinas Yellow Cab, VIP Taxi) serve the terminal with no reservation needed, regulated by the Monterey County Regional Taxi Authority. A $4.00 airport surcharge is added to taxi meter rates. The venue is only ~2 road miles from the terminal, so this is the practical default for fly-in attendees, a 5-10 minute hop.

Typically $70-130 a night off-peak guide, higher on festival dates

Typically $170-300 a night off-peak guide, higher on festival dates

1200 Olmsted Road, Monterey, CA 93940

Typically $100-190 a night off-peak guide, higher on festival dates

1106 Fremont Boulevard, Seaside, CA 93955

Typically $100-190 a night off-peak guide, higher on festival dates

1131 Fremont Boulevard, Seaside, CA 93955

Typically $100-190 a night off-peak guide, higher on festival dates

Monterey/Seaside/Marina and Pacific Grove carry substantial short-term-rental inventory, and the neighborhoods around N Fremont St and Del Rey Oaks put many listings within walking or short-drive range of the fairgrounds. The City of Monterey and Pacific Grove both regulate/limit STRs, which keeps supply tighter than raw tourist demand suggests. The festival lands on Memorial Day weekend, peak Monterey tourism, so booking early for this particular weekend is the safe advice.

A genuinely strong tier for this festival given the venue itself offers no camping: Monterey County has real Hipcamp inventory across Carmel Valley, the Salinas Valley, Prunedale, and toward Big Sur, private-land tent sites, glamping, and ranch stays typically 20-45 min from the fairgrounds by car. A car is effectively required.