Fisherman's Wharf

San Francisco’s classic waterfront, packed with attractions: an antique arcade, an aquarium, sourdough bakeries and hot fudge sundaes.

About Fisherman's Wharf

Fisherman's Wharf is the most visited and least beloved part of San Francisco, and both facts are fair. It began as a real fishing harbour worked largely by Sicilian and Genoese families, and a small fleet still lands crab here, but most of what you see is built for visitors.

The trick is knowing which three blocks matter. The sea lions, the antique arcade, the historic ships and the walk west to Aquatic Park and Ghirardelli Square are genuinely good. The souvenir shops and the sit-down seafood houses on Jefferson Street are not where locals eat.

It is foggy and windy most afternoons, even in July, and it is the easiest neighborhood in the city for young kids, because so much of it is free and outdoors.

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How far is it?

Alcatraz ferry at Pier 330.5 mi · a 10 minute walk
Union Square1.5 mi · 15 min by cable car
Golden Gate Bridge3.5 mi · 12–18 min drive
Golden Gate Park4.5 mi · 20–25 min drive
SFO airport14 mi · 25–35 min drive

Getting here: Both Powell cable car lines end here, at Hyde and Beach and at Bay and Taylor. The F-line historic streetcar runs the length of the waterfront to the Ferry Building and the Castro. Buses 8, 19, 30 and 47. Parking is expensive, often $30–50 a day.

What to see

The Pier 39 sea lions

They took over the docks after the 1989 earthquake and never left. Numbers swing with the season, so check the webcam before a special trip.

K-Dock, Pier 39 · Free

Musée Mécanique

One of the largest collections of antique arcade machines anywhere. Bring quarters and set a per-kid budget.

Pier 45, Shed A · Free to enter

Ghirardelli Square

An 1893 chocolate factory turned open plaza, with samples and room for kids to run.

900 North Point St · Free

Aquatic Park

A sheltered cove where people actually swim, with a curved pier to walk out on and a 1930s bathhouse.

Foot of Hyde St · Free

Hyde Street Pier

Home of the national park’s historic ships, but the pier is closed for a rebuild and the fleet has been moved out of the city. Check the Park Service site before planning around it.

2905 Hyde St

The crab stands on Jefferson Street

Steaming pots on the sidewalk, cracked Dungeness in season. The one Wharf tradition locals will admit to.

Free to look

Things to do

Aquarium of the Bay

Walk-through tunnels under sharks and rays from the bay itself, plus touch pools. Indoors, which matters here.

Pier 39 · about $30 adult, $22 child

Alcatraz

Book about 90 days ahead through the official operator; it sells out. Two and a half to three hours on the island.

Ferries from Pier 33 · about $48 adult, $29 child 5–11

A bay cruise

An hour under the bridge and around the island, and the cheapest way onto the water.

From Pier 39 and Pier 41

Walk to Aquatic Park and Ghirardelli

Fifteen minutes west along the water, and the crowds thin with every block.

Free

Ride the cable car up the hill

Board at Hyde and Beach, where the line is shorter than downtown, and ride over Russian Hill.

Where to eat

The crab stands, Jefferson Street

Cracked crab and a shrimp cocktail, eaten standing up. Cheaper and better than most tables behind them.

about $10–15

Boudin at the Wharf

Clam chowder in a sourdough bowl, and a bakery window where you can watch the bread being shaped.

160 Jefferson St · about $20–30

Scoma’s

A family-run pier restaurant since 1965, and the one sit-down seafood house locals still rate. Book ahead.

1965 Al Scoma Way · about $45–65

In-N-Out Burger

Not local colour, but it is cheap, fast and the kids will eat it.

333 Jefferson St · about $10

Ghirardelli ice cream

A hot fudge sundae big enough to share, in the old factory courtyard.

900 North Point St · about $12

Local tip: Come before 11am on a weekday. The sea lions are active, the crowds have not arrived, and the fog usually has not either. Then walk west, because everything improves after Pier 39.