Pillar Point Harbor, Half Moon Bay Reviews

Pillar point harbor is a delight. We bought live Dungeness crab, had lunch while we had the cooked and cleaned. A must go for those who have not been there.

Huge outer harbor with tons of space for anchoring out. Good depth, but watch out for the weeds. Kelp kept getting stuck in our generator's raw water intake. Very strong holding out there, though. The marina has a lot of commercial and private fishing boats, so it smells very fishy and is always very busy. Some fishermen were selling sea urchins and other fish right off their boats.

Friendly and helpful staff. That deputy Harbor Master T. Finch was quite knowledgeable and obliging.

First time there and I really enjoyed it with my fam.

Was able to utilize the "RV parking lot" for several hours while we waited for a call from Pillar Point RV park (we were waiting for an opening). Check in with the HarborMaster before you intend to do any lengthy parking, as the parking lot is basically for "fishing or harbor related activities", and therefore parking an RV for recreational use isn't really permitted. Spend some time walking around the harbor area as there are plenty of things to see. Several places to eat as well. Very clean walkways and surrounding areas. Public restrooms were clean as well. Plenty of public parking. Would recommend.

You have to go to The Barn. Great food and service. Sit inside or out. Good price s. Must be try:. Mac attack! 1 mile south on West.

Great...launch area was busy ..since good weather for Crabbing.. Recreational opened last week but weather was not great.

It's a nice little harbor and when the weather is good it's a great place to relax. Plus there's restraunts nearby that serve good food and if you want you can rent kayaks here as well.

If you are fortunate enough to get a spot here you will not willingly let it go until death. This is a great place to launch a fishing trip for all kinds of sea creatures. The staff at the harbor maintains it to the highest standard. The community that exists between boat owners here is symbiotic and beautiful.

One of our favorite places to see the ocean. Plenary of parking. Great restaurants. Hiking. Traffic may be an issue getting there over the weekend. Go early.

Coastal community with local flavors. Grew up near here. Still visit every chance I get.

Very cool...its really cold there but it's a nice place

Great selection of big lively crabs and as a bonus some sea urchin. Vendors we're nice too

Usually a really nice mini road trip here. Things are open for outside dining and take out.

Great restaurants, beautiful place to walk on the dock and buy a fresh fish from the fisherman's boat

Excellent launch pad for fishing fun with beautiful views of sparkling ocean amongst the masts.

Went on a fishing trip with the ace of hearts. Caught my limit. And had a great time. Nice places to eat that are close by. Nice place to spend the day.

Nice place to visit and spend day working in marina and enjoying the day

I went there for a fishing expedition on Capt. Pete's, My google maps got me there just fine and in a timely manner. 46 minutes it said and 46 minutes it was. More importantly we got out on Capt. Pete's Boat in 12-15' swells at 12 seconds not a problem on Capt. Pete's Boat. We were out and back in under 3 hours with our limits, in time to watch the Maverick's Surf Comp. I highly suggest if you have the means take a trip with Captain Pete. I went out a week before with a company out of Berkeley and none of the crew wore masks and they smoked cigarettes while out, Capt. Pete played down the mask rules, the need for gloves, washing hands and provided purell, his boat was clean and clean... I appreciate Capt. Pete and his dedication and will not be going out with that Berkeley original eldo boat ever again. But there is something to be said for going under the Golden Gate..

Pillar Point is really fun , they have food and icecream. Lots of traffic to get there but it is a good time.

The best seafood dinner we've had , in a while at Ketch, Joanne. Fresh food, great drinks, We will definitely go back.

Nice area, will be great when more businesses move back in

I have been to,and lived at many harbors,Long Beach, Newport, Catalina, Dana Point, Marina Del Ray,Redondo Bch., Huntington, Galveston Tex. ....Pillar Point harbor is the Best.thx,Bear

Great time crabbing and fishing off the pier next to the boat harbor. Rock and dungeness crab. Various fish not biting because of the Sea Lions off in the very near distance.

A great place to go for a walk and enjoy one of their great sea food restaurants.

I staid on my cousin's boat here. The bathrooms are usually clean. You will probably see a sea lion or dolphin occasionally. There are kayaks to rent, restaurants nearby and you can paddle board around. It is interesting to watch the fish sellers and buyers on the weekend. I had a great time!

Very pricey for RV parking and no hook ups. Enjoyed the harbor and peir activities. Brought a Wild King Salmon fresh off the boat. Nothing better

Always awesome, good time.
Barbara's fishtrap best seafood in the area.

Very good place to anchor when traveling the coast. Restaurants close by. The Half Moon Bay Yacht club is very friendly. I Had a good time.

Wonderful harbor to take a walk, can also get fresh catch from the local fishermen, and if you are lucky you can catch a sea lion in the water!

Drive out to the point parking. Walk beach, hike, dogs In. Mavericks

This place is relaxing in the earlier part of the day. Around 11 a.m. it starts to get busy.

There's something fun about being able to buy crabs directly from small fishing boats right on the water.

Very lovely little harbour to walk around and dine and buy fresh crabs, especially. Free parking.

Nice, calm, and very pleasant to visit. Fresh fish available to purchase too.

It's a really good place to visit and get fresh fish and crab that is in season. We went here to get crabs and they were still moving and alive, fresh off the boats. It's just only a matter of a dollar less if you buy them frozen from the stores. Needless to say, the experience for us buying it local and fresh was great, and smelling the ocean breeze while taking a walk with a great view around the port was absolutely refreshing.

There's so many spot for public parking and there are a few restaurants to dine as well as a few picnic tables available by the port. When we went there, I even saw some folks fishing/catching crabs and had a boiling pot ready right next to their picnic table.

Beautiful view of the sunset. Several places to eat.

This is a fully equipped marina with plenty of amenities. Even have a large parking lot for an RV park when passing through the area. Great for a fully self contained RV to setup and be walking distance from the fishing. Plenty of jetty walls to block the waves so you can get out and kayak fish easily from the launch ramp area too.

Beautiful harbor. Many locals come on Saturday morning to buy fresh seafood from the local fishermen. Depending on the season, I've seen king salmon, Alaskan prawns and sea urchin being sold in November

Beautiful harbour. Surrounded by great places to eat ranging from Ketch Johannes, Barbara's Fishtrap, Princeton Seafood, HMB Brewing Co, and many more. Nice place to just come and sit, watching the waves and boats. Crabs and other fresh fish is always amazing being so close to the source. Many boats sell their fish right on the docks. Always walk down Johnson Pier and look for the whiteboards near the ramps: they say what fish is being sold at the boats. Simply a lovely place to go.

Great food. Take a walk around the harbor and on the pier with your special someone an have lunch.

Beautiful just beautiful there. Nice relaxing. fisherman are great super nice people.

Such a beautiful place with a great view of the clear ocean water

It is a beautiful place to go and you also can get some wild ocean fishes from some shipowners (you need to pay by cash). I donot know why, but there are a lot of Asian. This might is an interesting experience. All the shipowners are friendly, and I hope you can have a good day here like me.

We loved this place. Our favourite thing in the world, was to take the boat out past the harbour & out into the open sea & go fishing for 25 species of beautiful Rock Fish, Ling Cod, Flounder, Halibut, Ocean Perch, Mackerel, Bonito, Dorado & Sea Bass. My husband has since passed away & the boat is destroyed & will never run again, but those were the very best times of our lives, out on that boat, fishing on the open sea. If you decide to fish out of Pillar Point, you may purchase a year round fishing license, which permits the dropping of crab nets & traps during the daylight hours . You need to mark your traps with your name & phone number on your marker bouys. Also available to the fisherman that is only visiting this area, is a 1 day fishing permit, available as well is a 3 day weekend permit.
In order to comply, with the current species restrictions & bag limits, one needs to ask the surf & bait shop for the local area fishing guide, which provides information on: identification of fish species, seasonal regulations, designated marine preserve areas that forbid any fishing at all, bag limits, size requirements, toxin load the fish carries & warnings which fish, medically fragile persons should not consume, tidal charts, which methodologies of capture/fishing are allowed for each species, what times of year certain breeding species are off limits, which areas that certain species can be bagged or which are to be avoided, etc etc. These guides are extremely comprehensive & rendered in immaculate detail.
I highly, highly, recommend you take one with you when you go out with the intention, to do more than just the catch & release methods. PLEASE BE AWARE, THAT THE CALIFORNIA FISH & GAME WARDENS, DO CHECK BAG & SIZE LIMITS ON A REGULAR BASIS, SO BE SURE TO BE ACCURATE & MINDFUL. This is an actual, enforceable, example: A LING COD THAT IS EVEN 1/4" inch UNDER THE SIZE LIMIT, CAN EARN YOU A MANDATORY FINE, OF UP TO $500... EASILY.
I also must warn, inexperienced boaters, or visitors, unfamiliar with this stretch of water & shoreline, that when the fog begins to roll in, it is time for you to roll in as well. The fog rolls in quickly, obscuring visibility to just a few feet & the shoreline & open sea become mysteriously indicernable from each other. It's a good way to wind up on the rocks or become forever lost at sea.
My favourite thing in that area, are the 3 tone Bell Buoys. I can fall asleep, listening to the soothing, random music, of these unique Bell Buoys (as most only have one bell, or one tone) combined with the motion of the waves, rocking the boat like a mother rocking a cradle,
the warm sun on my face & back, the clean salty , misty , breeze on my cheek & I'm gone.ZZZzzzz.
This is a good activity if you're into social distancing. I will always miss those days as I know,
I will never be able to go
do that, on our boat, together, ever again.
I reccomend doing this activity, in this place,
if that is your joy & pleasure in life, as it is mine & was ours. Go make some pleasant, misty watercolor memories, for yourself, like we did. I am forever grateful for those memories, as they sustain me now, like food for my soul.

We love coming here.. The Half Moon Bay area has a Lot to offer.. Great place to stay.

Got some off the boat. Your going to need to reserve how many crab your going to get. Call pillar point habor to find out what boat's are going out to get crab.

Go there to buy fresh live dungeness crabs from the boats.

Great place to buy live crab! A local restaurant can clean and cook it for a small fee. Delicious!