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Bixby Bridge, Big Sur, CA

Photo: Diliff, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons. Cropped and resized.

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Bixby Bridge

Bixby Bridge is a sightseeing stop in Big Sur, CA, part of the Monterey Peninsula guide. Cost: free.

Highway 1, about 13 miles south of Carmel · Big Sur, CA

Why you should go…

Bixby Bridge carries Highway 1 across Bixby Creek about 13 miles south of Carmel. Opened in 1932, the reinforced concrete open-spandrel arch is 714 feet long and stands 280 feet above the canyon floor. In 2026 Monterey County approved a 12-month no-parking pilot on both sides of the highway from about 900 feet north to 700 feet south of the bridge, so plan to see it as you drive across. The bridge has appeared in films such as Top Gun: Maverick.

  • #bridge
  • #big sur
  • #highway 1
  • #scenic viewpoint
  • #photo spot

What's around here?

The closest stops to Bixby Bridge, ordered by straight-line distance. A few more like it, plus some different kinds of fun so you can build a full day.

  • Stay
    Outdoor Adventure

    Big Sur Lodge

    $50+

    A lodge inside Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park with guest cottages, a restaurant, a cafe and a grocery store beside the park's trails.

    10 mi awaySwitch it up: Stay

  • Sport & Outdoor
    Iconic

    Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park

    Under $25

    Look down on McWay Falls, an 80-foot waterfall that drops onto a Big Sur beach, from a trail above the cove.

    20 mi awaySwitch it up: Sport & Outdoor

  • Sightseeing
    Local Gem

    Salinas City Center

    Free

    Downtown Salinas improvement association promoting Old Town's restaurants, shops and events.

    25 mi awayMore like this

  • Sightseeing
    Iconic

    Old Fisherman's Wharf

    Free

    Historic waterfront pier in Monterey lined with seafood restaurants, shops and whale-watching operators.

    30 mi awayMore like this

  • Tours
    Family Favorite

    Princess Monterey Whale Watching

    $50+

    Narrated whale watching and wildlife cruises on Monterey Bay aboard two large heated vessels departing from Old Fisherman's Wharf.

    30 mi awaySwitch it up: Tours

  • Tours
    Outdoor Adventure

    Discovery Whale Watch

    $50+

    Narrated whale watching cruises departing daily from Monterey's Fisherman's Wharf.

    30 mi awaySwitch it up: Tours

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