The 17-Mile Drive was laid out by 1892 by the Pacific Improvement Company as a pleasure excursion for guests of its Hotel Del Monte, and to attract buyers for large scenic lots. The hotel operators first called it the 18-mile Drive.
Sightseers on horseback or in carriages stopped to pick up polished agates and pebbles on Pebble Beach and to admire odd trees such as the Witch Tree and the Ostrich Tree. By 1907 only automobiles used it. The Los Angeles Times called it one of the great wonders of the world in 1919.
The loop has five main entrances, including one from Highway 1 and one from Carmel. Most of the road is owned and operated by the Pebble Beach Company.