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Pier 39 - wikipedia Pier 39 Jump to : navigation , search <Th_colspan="2"> Pier 39 <Td_colspan="2"> Pier 39 <Td_colspan="2"> Location within San Francisco <Th_colspan="2"> General information Type Shopping center Location San Francisco Coordinates 37 ° 48 ′ 36 '' N 122 ° 24 ′ 37 '' W ﻿ / ﻿ 37.8100 ° N 122.4104 ° W ﻿ / 37.8100 ; - 122.4104 Pier 39 is a shopping center and popular tourist attraction built on a pier in San Francisco , California . At Pier 39 , there are shops , restaurants , a video arcade , street performances , the Aquarium of the Bay , virtual 3D rides , and views of California sea lions hauled out on docks on Pier 39 's marina . A two - story carousel is one of the pier 's more dominant features , although it is not directly visible from the street and sits towards the end of the pier . The family - oriented entertainment and presence of marine mammals make this a popular tourist location for families with kids . The pier is located at the edge of the Fisherman 's Wharf district and is close to North Beach , Chinatown , and the Embarcadero . The area is easily accessible with the historic F Market streetcars . From the pier one can see Angel Island , Alcatraz Island , the Golden Gate Bridge , and the Bay Bridge . Blue & Gold Fleet 's bay cruises leave from Pier 39 . Contents ( hide ) 1 History 1.1 Sea lions 2 See also 3 References 4 External links History ( edit ) Pier 39 was first developed by entrepreneur Warren Simmons and opened October 4 , 1978 . On December 22 , 2017 , the Federal Bureau of Investigation arrested Everitt Aaron Jameson , a 25 - year - old former Marine , on suspicion of planning a terrorist attack in the Pier 39 area over Christmas . Sea lions ( edit ) California sea lions have always been present in San Francisco Bay . They started to haul out on docks of Pier 39 in September 1989 . Before that they mostly used Seal Rock for that purpose . Ever since September 1989 the number of sea lions on Seal Rock has been steadily decreasing , while their number on Pier 39 has generally increased . Some people speculate that sea lions moved to docks because of the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake , but the earthquake occurred months after the first sea lions had arrived at Pier 39 . It is likely that the sea lions feel safer inside the Bay . The sea lions at Pier 39 have become a tourist attraction in their own right Although the reason for their migration to the pier is unclear , the refurbishing of the docks in September 1989 required the removal of all boats from that area , leaving large open spaces for the sea lions to move into . Once the project was completed , boat owners returned , but did their best to navigate around the sea lions ; no efforts were made to encourage the new guests to leave . By the end of that year , less than a dozen sea lions frequented the docks at Pier 39 . By January 1990 , their numbers had increased to 150 animals . Owners of the 11 boats docked there began to complain about having to avoid the animals who can weigh up to half a ton , and odor and noise complaints began to pour in . Press releases caught national attention , and the sea lions began to attract tourists . Advice from The Marine Mammal Center was to abandon the docks to the animals , and to relocate the boats elsewhere . Sea lions on Pier 39 Pier 39 and the Pier 39 sign Old Port Gate Pier 39 at night Although fluctuations in the number of sea lions at Pier 39 are dramatic , as many as 1,701 ( Thanksgiving Week , 2009 ) have been officially reported at one time , many of whom are recognizable to researchers and others , and some of whom have been unofficially named . Volunteers and staff at The Marine Mammal Store and Interpretive Center monitor the sea lion population each day , and educational information is provided to tourists who visit from around the world . Scientists continue to collect information there , adding to knowledge about sea lion health , dietary habits , and behavior . In November 2009 the more than 1,701 ( Thanksgiving Week , 2009 ) sea lions that had lived at the pier began to leave , and by late December 2009 nearly all were gone ; a similar flux in population occurs annually , with the animals returning in the spring . Although the reason for their seasonal appearance and departure is not known for certain , according to Jeff Boehm , executive director of the Marine Mammal Center in Sausalito , `` Most likely , they left chasing a food source , '' anchovies and sardines . A handful of sea lions did return in February , and by late May several hundred could once again be seen on Pier 39 . It remains unknown exactly where they went and why . However , in December 2009 , nearly 4,000 sea lions that were identified as members of the California sub-species were seen outside Oregon 's Sea Lion Caves , suggesting that they were likely the sea lions from Pier 39 . See also ( edit ) San Francisco Bay Area portal 49 - Mile Scenic Drive The World Famous Bushman References ( edit ) Jump up ^ Fisherman 's Wharf Merchants Association Jump up ^ `` San Francisco : Man arrested over ' Christmas terror plan ' '' . BBC News . 22 December 2017 . Retrieved 23 December 2017 . ^ Jump up to : http://www.marinemammalcenter.org/learning/education/pier39/history.asp A History of the Sea Lions at PIER 39 Jump up ^ San Francisco 's famous sea lions leave in droves External links ( edit ) Wikimedia Commons has media related to Pier 39 ( San Francisco ) . Official website Coordinates : 37 ° 48 ′ 36 '' N 122 ° 24 ′ 37 '' W ﻿ / ﻿ 37.8100 ° N 122.4104 ° W ﻿ / 37.8100 ; - 122.4104 <Th_colspan="2"> San Francisco Bay Area Ferry Terminals <Td_colspan="2"> Blue and Gold Fleet Golden Gate Ferry Angel Island - Tiburon Ferry San Francisco Bay Ferry ( WETA ) Alameda Alameda Ferry Terminal Harbor Bay Ferry Terminal Berkeley Ferry Terminal Emeryville Ferry Terminal Oakland Ferry Terminal Defunct Alameda Mole Oakland Long Wharf Contra Costa Planned Hercules Station & Terminal Richmond Ferry Terminal Defunct Castro Point Ferry Terminal Marin Ayala Cove Ferry Terminal Larkspur Landing Sausalito Ferry Terminal Tiburon Ferry Terminal San Francisco China Basin Ferry Terminal AT&T Park Pier 35 Pier 41 Pier 43 1 / 2 San Francisco Ferry Building Defunct Hyde Street Pier Pier 39 San Mateo Oyster Point / South San Francisco Ferry Terminal Planned Redwood City Ferry Terminal Solano Mare Island Vallejo Ferry Terminal <Th_colspan="2"> San Francisco attractions Landmarks 49 - Mile Drive Alcatraz Bay Bridge Cable Cars The Castro Chinatown City Hall Cliff House Coit Tower F - Market Streetcar Fairmont Hotel Federal Reserve Bank Ferry Building Fisherman 's Wharf Fort Mason Fort Point Ghirardelli Square Golden Gate Bridge Grace Cathedral Haight - Ashbury Jack Kerouac Alley Lombard Street Mark Hopkins Hotel Market Street Mission Dolores Nob Hill North Beach Old U.S. Mint Painted ladies Palace of Fine Arts Pier 39 Public Library Sutro Baths Sutro Tower Transamerica Pyramid Treasure Island Union Square Museums and art Asian Art Museum Aquarium of the Bay Cable Car Museum California Academy of Sciences Cartoon Art Museum Children 's Creativity Museum Chinese Historical Society Museum Conservatory of Flowers Contemporary Jewish Museum The Walt Disney Family Museum de Young Museum Exploratorium Haas - Lilienthal House Legion of Honor Musée Mécanique Museo ItaloAmericano Museum of Performance & Design Museum of the African Diaspora Precita Eyes Randall Museum Ripley 's Believe It or Not ! San Francisco Art Institute Diego Rivera Gallery San Francisco Museum of Modern Art San Francisco Maritime Railway Museum USS Pampanito Wattis Institute for Contemporary Arts Parks and recreation Alamo Square Bay Area Ridge Trail Candlestick Point Corona Heights Crissy Field Dolores Park Glen Canyon Golden Gate National Recreation Area Golden Gate Park Lafayette Park Lake Merced Marina Green McLaren Park Mount Davidson Mount Sutro Ocean Beach The Presidio San Francisco Bay Trail San Francisco Zoo Stern Grove Twin Peaks Yerba Buena Gardens Views Coit Tower Twin Peaks Seal Rocks / Ocean Beach Baker Beach Golden Gate Bridge Fort Funston Hamon Observation Tower at the de Young Museum Strawberry Hill Crissy Field Pacific Heights Alamo Square / Painted Ladies Top of the Mark Alcatraz Treasure Island Lombard Street Powell - Hyde Cable Car Ferry Building Bernal Hill 49 - Mile Scenic Drive Hawk Hill Fort Baker Entertainment American Conservatory Theater Bill Graham Civic Auditorium Cow Palace The Fillmore War Memorial and Performing Arts Center Yerba Buena Center for the Arts Sports San Francisco Giants AT&T Park Candlestick Park Kezar Stadium Food and drink Anchor Steam Boudin Bakery Buena Vista Cafe Cioppino Dungeness crab Ghirardelli Square Mission burrito Tadich Grill Tonga Room & Hurricane Bar Top of the Mark Shopping Metreon Stonestown Galleria Union Square Westfield San Francisco Centre <Td_colspan="2"> National Register of Historic Places listings in San Francisco <Th_colspan="2"> Shopping in the San Francisco Bay Area North Bay The Mall at Northgate , San Rafael Town Center at Corte Madera The Village at Corte Madera Solano Mall , Fairfield Oakland / East Bay 4th Street , Berkeley Abella Center , San Pablo Bayfair Center , San Leandro Bay Street Emeryville Broadway Plaza , Walnut Creek El Cerrito Plaza Grand Lake , Oakland Hilltop Mall , Richmond Jack London Square , Oakland Macdonald 80 Shopping Center , Richmond Montclair Village , Oakland NewPark Mall , Newark Oakland City Center Pacific Commons , Fremont Pacific East Mall , Richmond Piedmont Avenue , Oakland Point Richmond Historic District Rockridge Market Hall , Oakland Skywest Commons , Hayward Solano Avenue , Albany and Berkeley Somersville Towne Center , Antioch Southland Mall , Hayward Stoneridge Shopping Center , Pleasanton Sunvalley Shopping Center , Concord Telegraph Avenue , Berkeley Union Landing , Union City Uptown Oakland Westgate Center , San Leandro The Willows Shopping Center , Concord San Francisco / Peninsula Chinatown , San Francisco San Francisco Ferry Building Fisherman 's Wharf , San Francisco Haight - Ashbury , San Francisco Hillsdale Shopping Center , San Mateo Metreon , San Francisco Westfield San Francisco Centre Serramonte Center , Daly City The Shops at Tanforan , San Bruno Stonestown Galleria , San Francisco Union Square , San Francisco Westlake Shopping Center , Daly City San Jose / South Bay Eastridge Center , San Jose Great Mall of the Bay Area , Milpitas Downtown Los Gatos Milpitas Square PruneYard Shopping Center , Campbell San Antonio Shopping Center , Mountain View Santana Row , San Jose Stanford Shopping Center , Palo Alto Vallco Shopping Mall , Cupertino Westfield Oakridge , San Jose Westfield Valley Fair , San Jose Westgate Mall , San Jose Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Pier_39&oldid=819736343 '' Categories : Landmarks in San Francisco Piers in San Francisco Blue & Gold Fleet Tourist attractions in San Francisco Companies based in San Francisco Shopping malls in the San Francisco Bay Area Fisherman 's Wharf , San Francisco Shopping malls established in 1978 Hidden categories : All articles with unsourced statements Articles with unsourced statements from October 2013 Coordinates on Wikidata Talk Views Contents About Wikipedia Български Deutsch Español Français 한국어 Italiano Nederlands Polski Português Simple English 中文 4 more Edit links This page was last edited on 11 January 2018 , at 00 : 34 . 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