Heads up if you're planning to save cash by staying near Monterey Regional Airport - there's some serious neighborhood pushback brewing about noise levels. Even though this airport has been a budget traveler's dream (direct flights from Denver for $198 on United when I checked yesterday), locals 4 miles away are threatening legal action. I've stayed at the Comfort Inn on 1252 Munras Ave twice specifically because it's near MRY and room rates were $89/night versus $200+ downtown.
The weird part is Monterey Regional isn't even that busy - we're talking about 400k passengers per year versus SFO's 57 million. As someone who regularly books hotels near smaller airports to save money (like Providence PVD where I snagged a $65 Quality Inn rate last month), I'm watching this closely. The proposed restrictions could kill off some of the cheaper flight options that make Monterey accessible for budget travelers. Right now you can still get deals like the Alaska Airlines $158 special from Seattle, but who knows how long those will last if the neighbors get their way.
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