| Fisherman's Wharf tips and photos posted by real travelers and Monterey locals. • 39 Photos
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OK, this is pretty touristy, but I even met some locals there and it is a fun place to wander around. There are some wonderful restaurants here, and when we were visiting people were standing outside of their restaurant handing out free samples of their clam chowder to entice you into their establishment. You will also find a variety of shops, whale-watching tours, and at the end of the Warf you can watch the seal lions that frequent the area. When we were there we could hear them barking and roaring. Three laid on one float all afternoon. They hardly moved while we watch them, except for occasionally rubbing their faces against their companion or scratching with their hind tail fins. We also watched some swimming about in the water below us. You will also see birds in the area, so bring binoculars. Leave a Comment
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Fisherman's Wharf was built in 1870 for the fishing industry in Monterey. The wharf has seen a lot of history,from being a major part of the sardine industry, to a favorite stomping ground of Steinbeck. Today the pier is still acts as a dock, but mainly to whale watching cruises, not to fishing boats. Overlooking the marina, you can watch the sea lions and birds who fill the area.
This wharf area has a definate tourist feel. Sort of like a boardwalk back East. A good number of restaurants and a few shops line the pier. The problem here are the crowds. We went back and walked along it after everything had closed up and it was a nice spot to look over the city at night. While this is a good place to see, keep it brief, there are other areas of the city worth more of your time.
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Fisherman's Wharf has a combination of great views, wildlife, and history, along with a lot of tourist traps; if you want to hear about the touristy shops, below average restaurants, and crowds of people, check out my tip listed under Tourist Traps.
This is a great place to watch the sea lions in the late evening after most of the tourists have moved on. There are also some fishing boats that unload and clean their catch here while the birds watch. You will also get some great views of the marinas, Commercial Wharf, and the Bay.
The history of Fisherman's Wharf is much more interesting than the tourist junk! After Spanish, Mexican, and finally US rule, Monterey's first wharf was constructed in 1870 by the Pacific Coast Steamship Company. The city purchased the wharf in 1916 and expanded it to include warehouses, seafood wholesalers & retailers, and its first tourist attraction--a restaurant! In 1923 a 123-foot section of the wharf broke during the loading of a ship, and the city rebuilt and expanded the wharf, adding the docking areas to the east where the whale watching boats dock today. Fisherman's Wharf really didn't become a tourist destination until after the sardine industry began to fail, but by the mid 1950s tourism was a booming business.
This wharf's official name is Municipal Wharf I, helping to explain why nearby commercial wharf is Municipal Wharf II, or sometimes just Wharf II.
The Monterey County Weekly "Best Of 2006 Readers' Picks" named Fisherman's Wharf as the best Place to People Watch in Monterey County! Leave a Comment
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Fisherman's Wharf is a must see in Monterey. The shops, the restaurants, the sounds, the views, and the smlls: this is what Monterey is all about. The wharf is a pier extending out into the bat for about 1000 feet (approximately), and there are many small shops filled with touristy souvenir like items--shells, postcards, tshirts, etc.
Fisherman's Wharf was built in 1846 for many trading vessels bringing goods from around Cape Horn. During that time, Monterey California was the major port on the Pacific Ocean. In the following years, the booming whale industry took over and dominated the pier. But it was the tiny sardines that made Monterey an industry leader. Although, sardines did not have a monopoly on the wharf. Daily catches of salmon, albacore, mackerel, rock cod, squid and shellfish were also abundant.
There are also a great number of restaurants on the wharf, and they are pretty much all seafood. There is a good website with a complete listing of wharf restaurants if you think you might want to dine out for seafood in Monterey (which I do recommend). Mike's Seafood and Rappa's are particularly well known.
You can also catch whale watching trips as well as fishing trips from here. Check the website for more info. Leave a Comment
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The wharf at Monterey has lost all of it original authenticity, so don't get your hopes up on a freshly caught fish dinner. The seafood at the restaurants are sometimes local, but they are part of the same global fish distribution system any fish monger would have along the coast. The souvenir shops are full of kitch--logo sweatshirts, sea shells, etc,--non of which are really produced locally, but are nevertheless Monterey Logo junk. A walk out to the end of the pier offers a view of the sea lions on the rocks beyond although it's also possible to walk around to see the animals up close. Whale watching tours leave every hour from the wharf, but see my "tourist traps" warning about this activity. Also, see my recommendation about restaurants here. There are quite a few to choose from and the menu outside can be deceptive. The restaurant business is competitive, so don't forget to ask for the window table before you step inside and commit yourself. Leave a Comment
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Fisherman's Wharf is an historic wharf in Monterey, California. It was used as an wholesale fish market up until the 1960s.It is now a tourist attraction as commercial fishing tapered off.
Fisherman's Wharf is lined with seafood restaurants ranging from casual, open-air clam bars, to formal indoor dining with views of the bay. Along with Cannery Row, Fisherman's Wharf is one of the few areas in Monterey that sells souvenirs, so the restaurants are interspersed with gift shops, jewelry stores, art galleries, and candy shops. Whale watching tours and fishing trips leave from the wharf, and Sea Lions often sleep on the pilings, buoys, and moored boats in the bay. It is accesable by foot only. Leave a Comment Directions: The wharf is located at the end of the Alvarado Mall, just west of the municipal wharf on Lighthouse Avenue.
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This long wharf with wooden houses was built during the 19e century by whales fishermen.
Now, each house shelters a restaurant or a shop. It is the paradise for tourists and for otters. Leave a Comment
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Visit Fisherman's Wharf. Here you will find side by side restaurants, shops, seals, seagulls, pelicans, boats and more. This is also the place to go if you want to do some whale watching.
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We went whale watching on Memorial Day, May 29 2004, and boy did we
make the totally wrong choice to spend a precious long weekend. We booked
our tour with Sam's Fishing Fleet at the Old Fisherman's Wharf,
Monetrey Bay: the 9:00 AM tour costs $41 PP. The tour lasted five hours and
the only whale "watching" we did was for all of 10 minutes and it was
nothing more than the faint outline of the backs of a few blue whales and
humpback whales from a distance....the most we saw was the air spouts
from the blow holes.
Now comes the most miserable part : we spent 4 hours just going to and
coming from the canyon where the whales were supposed to be feeding on
krill, fish, anchovies, etc. We spent those hours watching almost all
the people on board throw up on the side of the boat. Constantly! A few
were violently sea-sick and spent the entire time just moaning and
trying to make it through the trip, counting the minutes until it was over.
To be fair, we were warned of this before and the wife and I took
motion sickness tablets, but we still felt queasy the whole time.
There are other tour operators who provide the same service for less
money (less time too) and this review is not against the Tour Operators:
just against the whole idea of whale watching.
San Diego's Sea World was far far far better, and we got to see a lot
more of whales there than in the open ocean in their natural habitats. Leave a Comment
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When in Monterey, take time to visit Fisherman's Wharf. Bring your appetite, as there are a number of fine places to eat. While there, check out the sea lions that gather at the base of the pier. Leave a Comment Directions: Downtown Monterey
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