A startling realization has tourists avoiding Big Sur, to the concern of residents.

Residents of Big Sur noticed it first, as commute times were surprisingly short. Then people working in hospitality, when few guests came through doors. Finally tourism officials added up the numbers and in a report issued on April 1, confirmed a dramatic drop in visitors to Big Sur.

The cause was clear after See Monterey surveyed people who stayed in Monterey County from 2023 to 2025, when numbers began to slide. Tourists realized that Bixby Bridge is just that—a bridge.

“That’s why we’ve never used images of Bixby Bridge in our promotional materials,” says Rob O’Keefe, See Monterey’s president and CEO. “We cringed every time Big Little Lies used it in shots.”

O’Keefe says the downward trend first came to his attention when he had an appointment at Nepenthe. Not only did he arrive 45 minutes earlier than usual, there were also no images popping up on his social media feeds.

A bartender at the famed restaurant also noticed. “People used to sit on the patio and post pictures they had taken at the bridge, but the patio has been empty,” he observes.

Residents complain that the region has been eerily quiet. That unsettling lack of human-made noise caused a number of people to leave their Big Sur vacation homes empty, preferring their vacation homes in Pebble Beach.

A spokesperson for Keep Big Sur Wild expressed an additional concern. The steady stream of vehicles on Highway 1 and the rowdy campers kept predators at bay.

“We’re beginning to see packs of wild pigs and coyotes, some the size of chupacabras,” she said in a statement. “This will eventually pose a problem for humans once they devour everything else.”

Keep Big Sur Wild has teamed with Big Sur Land Trust and other organizations to work alongside See Monterey for a solution. They are asking residents and those in hospitality for ideas.

“We need to bring mass tourism back to Big Sur,” the spokesperson said. “Otherwise it will become an isolated wilderness.”