Had it not been declared a historic district in 1967, this charming, cobblestone corner of New York with the city's largest concentration of early-19th-century commercial buildings would likely have been gobbled up by skyscrapers. In the early 1980s the Rouse Company, which had already created Boston's Quincy Market and Baltimore's Harborplace, was hired to restore and adapt the existing buildings, preserving the commercial feel of centuries past. The result is a hybrid of historical district and shopping mall. Many of its streets' 18th-, 19th-, and early-20th-century architectural details re-create the city's historic seafaring era.

At the intersection of Fulton and Water streets, the gateway to the Seaport, stands the Titanic Memorial, a small white lighthouse that commemorates the sinking of the RMS Titanic in 1912. Beyond it, Fulton Street, cobbled in blocks of Belgian granite, turns into a busy pedestrian mall. Just to the left of Fulton, at 211 Water Street, is Bowne & Co. Stationers, a reconstructed working 19th-century print shop. Continue down Fulton to Front Street, which has wonderfully preserved old brick buildings -- some dating from the 1700s. On the south side of Fulton Street is the seaport's architectural centerpiece, Schermerhorn Row, a redbrick terrace of Georgian- and federal-style warehouses and countinghouses built in 1811-12. Some upper floors house gallery space, and the ground floors are occupied by upscale shops, bars, and restaurants. Also here is the visitor center and gift shop of the South Street Seaport Museum (PHONE: 212/748-8600; COST: $8 to ships, museum, galleries, walking tours, Maritime Crafts Center, films, and other seaport events; OPEN: Apr.-Sept., Fri.-Wed. 10-6, Thurs. 10-8; Oct.-Mar., Wed.-Mon. 10-5; Subway: A, C, 2, 3, 4 to Fulton St./Broadway Nassau), which hosts walking tours, hands-on exhibits, and fantastic creative programs for children, all with a nautical theme.

Cross South Street, once known as the Street of Ships, under an elevated stretch of the FDR Drive to Pier 16, where historic ships are docked, including the Pioneer, a 102-foot schooner built in 1885; the Peking, the second-largest sailing bark in existence; the iron-hulled Wavertree; and the lightship Ambrose. The Pier 16 ticket booth provides information and sells tickets to the museum, ships, tours, and exhibits. Pier 16 also hosts frequent concerts and performances and is the departure point for various cruises, including the Seaport Music Cruise (PHONE: 212/630-8888; COST: $20 and up), which hosts jazz and blues performances; the Circle Line's Seaport Liberty Cruise (PHONE: 212/563-3200; COST: $13), a one-hour sightseeing trip; and "The Beast" (PHONE: 212/563-3200; COST: $16), a 30-minute speedboat ride out to the Statue of Liberty.

To the north is Pier 17, a multilevel dockside shopping mall that houses national chain retailers such as Express and Victoria's Secret, among others. Its weathered-wood rear decks make a splendid spot from which to sit and contemplate the river, with views as far north as midtown Manhattan and as far south as the Verazzano-Narrows Bridge.

As your nose will surmise, the blocks along South Street north of the museum complex still house a working fish market, which has been in operation since the early 1800s. Hundreds of species of fish are sold by the fishmongers of the Fulton Fish Market. Get up early (or stay up late) if you want to see it: the action begins around 3 AM and ends by 8 AM. PHONE: 212/748-8786; COST: $12; OPEN: 1st and 3rd Wed. of every month, depending on weather, at 6 AM; tours by reservation only. COST: $5 to ships, galleries, walking tours, Maritime Crafts Center, films, and other seaport events. Subway: A, C, 2, 3, 4, 5 to Fulton St./Broadway Nassau.