Fourth of July tourism impacts on the Monterey Peninsula

MONTEREY, Calif. (KION-TV)-  The Fourth of July weekend saw many people coming to the Central Coast, especially out on Old Fisherman's Wharf in Monterey.

The holiday falling on Monday gave businesses a lovely three-day weekend, which meant an extra boost and more foot traffic to come through.

"With gas prices being high, people are taking shorter trips, and Monterey is the perfect destination," said Chris Shake, the CEO of Old Fishermen's Grotto.

With prices rising, people from all over the state are looking for that quick getaway.

"People who are on their holiday will include this in their stops,' said Monica Lal, the president and CEO of the Monterey Peninsula Chamber of Commerce. "We have visitors who stay in our hotels who are even from Hollister."

Destinations like Old Fishermen's Wharf brings in a school of tourist. Old Fishermen's Grotto was busy serving up a storm to hungry customers.

"We're seeing upswings of about 20-30% increase in sales and also visitors to the wharf," said Shake.

Fourth of July festivities may be over but things were still busy out on the wharf, with some coming to dine or shop.

"We're definitely up from pre-Covid numbers, so we're on an upswing," said Shake. "It's a good sign; it shows there's some positives for the rest of the summer."

It's not just the restaurants that thrived this weekend.

"The small businesses that rent kayaks, that rent bikes, they were seeing a lot of activity here locally on El Estero," said Lal. "It was nice to see so many people in our community out and about."

Hospitality is one of the significant economic drivers for the Peninsula. Lal also adds hotels were also seeing solid businesses on the weekend.

The Monterey Peninsula Chamber of Commerce also said the city's Fourth of July parade was at 75% capacity in 2019. Like many events, Monterey's Independence Day parade was shut down due to the pandemic. It was the first time the city held the parade in two years.