VIBE

Since being declared a historic district in 1977, this seafront area has been rehabilitated from an all-but-abandoned commercial quarter to a sleek shopping and dining center with nods to its more glorious past. The cobblestone streets hold some neat finds, like Schermerhorn Row (a stretch of red brick Georgian counting houses, many now occupied by upscale bars and bistros), a memorial commemorating the sinking of the Titanic in 1912, and the South Street Seaport Museum (on Schermerhorn Row, offering collections of maritime paintings, sailor-made scrimshaw, and a fleet of historic ships). Since the Fulton Fish Market moved to the Bronx in 2005 (it had a 183-year tenure at its original site on Fulton Street, where it had been the most important wholesale East Coast market since 1822), the cornerstone of the development has been the more modern Pier 17, a massive waterfront shopping and entertainment center.

GO HERE WITH

History buffs; shopping companions; friends; family; kids

WHY WE LIKE IT

The restored streets are well worth a wander, and there are some neat shopping finds too. While we’re not that smitten with the masses of chain stores in the Pier 17 mall, side-street finds like Browne & Co. (211 Water Street), which creates lovely stationery on a working 1870s letterpress, have won us over. A stop at the Fulton stall market–a food, farmer, and craft market–is always a fun (and filling!) activity. And we also like coming here to snap photos of the Brooklyn Bridge.

WHAT WE WOULD CHANGE

A bit too much mall, not quite enough history.

GOOD TO KNOW

South Street Seaport was restored by same company that revamped Faneuil Hall in Boston.

CLOSEST COMPS

Houhai (Beijing); Faneuil Hall (Boston)

Click here for our full-form mobile travel guide, The Purple Passport to New York City.