Fisherman's Wharf travel guide

Heaps of attractions, restaurants & the piers as basis for Bay cruises make Fisherman's Wharf a tourist magnet

Over the last few decades San Francisco's importance as a fishing harbor declined significantly. Although there are still some fishing boats bringing their catch back to this Northern port of the city, the main thing that drives Fisherman's Wharf is tourism. With plenty of amusement installations, hotels, shops and restaurants you can easily spent a whole day or more exploring.
One of the four main areas of Fisherman's Wharf is Ghirardelli Square, named after the former chocolate factory of the Italian business man Domingo Ghirardelli which recently was turned into a shopping center.
About 80 shops and restaurant gathered in the pretty court yard. Next door you'll find Cannery, the red brick building of the former Del Monte tinning factory. This building also has been turned into a shopping gallery with some fancy but also some very touristy shops, bars and restaurants. In 2003 the chic Argonaut Hotel also opened in this complex.
Pier 39 decorated with big colorful flower pots has to offer even more shops than Ghirardelli Square and Cannery together. Since 1990 there has also been a new attraction: a herd of hundreds of male sea lions is chilling out in the sun at the pier. Visitors are spoiling them with plenty of fish so it seems they decided to make this their new local hangout on their return from the Channel Island after their mating season.
A modern addition to Fisherman's Wharf is the Anchorage Shopping Center, where - despite the impressive anchor sculpture - you won't find any ships docking but fancy boutiques and the Howard Johnson's Motel instead. In the inner court yard you'll come across jugglers, musicians and magicians entertaining tourists with their shows. At the end of Pier 45 you can inspect the wold war two submarine "USS Pampanito" and at Pier 43 the "Balclutha", a steel cargo ship from Cape Horn Fleet. Hyde Street Pier is home to six more museum ships open to the public. Newer and smaller boats can be chartered for fishing trips. During the main season (November to June) you'll meet a lot of locals around here - coming for the Dungeness Crabs: fresh crab meat served in a sourdough bread make for a delicious snack!

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alainpaulj

Il faut aimer l'ambiance très fête foraine. L'endroit est monopolisé par les restaurants, boutiq... more

2009-08-20 / follow alainpaulj / report abuse