San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park

Ahoy, mateys! If it's seafaring history you're after, look no further. An expansive fleet of ships, a maritime museum, and proximity to urban San Francisco puts this National Park in a league of its own.

The Maritime Museum isn't just a bastion of fisherman's wisdom. Housed within the fabulous art deco Bathhouse building, the Maritime Museum fuses history, art, and practical knowledge. Whether it's 1930s murals or sailors' knots you're after, the museum has a variety of exhibits.

Walk down to the water for a tour of the historic vessels docked at Hyde Street Pier. An impressive fleet of ships built in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries will send you back in time. Take in the view of the Marin Headlands and the Golden Gate Bridge and breathe in the salty air of the Pacific.

Stretch your legs with a long walk along Municipal Pier or dive in the frigid water if you're feeling froggy. Go hunting for long-lost ancestors at the west coast's most extensive Maritime Research Center. Peruse folk art, photographs, nautical maps, and oral histories as you make your way through the enormous collections. Who needs Alcatraz when you've got sailor's bounty and pirate's booty?