Join us at the Maritime Museum of San Diego for a high-speed 75-minute narrated Naval History Tour!
The US Naval Vietnam-era PCF 816 Swift Boat Listed In National Register Of Historic Places is part of the unique collection of historic vessels found at the Maritime Museum of San Diego.
Visitors interested in Naval History can come aboard the PCF 816 Swift Boat for a 75-minute narrated San Diego Bay tour. Visitors report they find this experience is well worth their time, and find the tour to be safe, educational, and and entertaining outdoor adventure.
Two tours will be offered, with check - in at 12:15 p.m. and 2:15 p.m. Tickets are only $24 per person with purchase of general admission to the Maritime Museum of San Diego. Tickets can be purchased online in advance at sdmaritine.org or at the Museum Ticket Booth, based on availability.
The Maritime Museum of San Diego Museum ship collection includes four vessels of historic distinction on the National Register; PCF 816 Swift Boat, 1914 Pilot boat, the world’s oldest active sailing ship Star of India, and the 1898 steam ferry boat Berkeley – listed as National Historic Landmarks.
PCF 816 is a tangible reminder of the service and dedication of so many Swift Boat sailors and allows visitors the opportunity to better understand what they sacrificed.
The Swift Boat Sailors Association brought the PCF 816 Swift Boat to the Maritime Museum of San Diego to be restored and operated on San Diego Bay.
Prior to the pandemic, these Naval History Bay tours were one of the most popular on-the-water experiences the Museum offered to visitors.
Unique to this experience is the retired Swift Boat Sailors and docents who talk about what it was like to be a crewman in Vietnam, serving as a Quartermaster, Gunner’s Mate, Engineman, Radarman, Bosun’s Mate or Skipper.
The Navy first used the PCF 816 Swift boats on coastal patrol as a part of Operation Market Time to interdict seaborne supplies on their way to the Viet Cong and the North Vietnamese Army in South Vietnam. Later, the boats moved into the rivers and canals of the Mekong Delta and the Ca Mau peninsula to conduct special operations: gunfire support, troop insertion and evacuation, and raids into enemy territory. To the U.S. Navy, Swift Boats were weapons of war.
The notice of the National Register of Historic Places announcement was presented to Maritime Museum of San Diego by the Department of Parks and Recreation Office of Historic Preservation on July 27, 2018. The honor includes PCF 816 Swift Boat in the official list of cultural resources worthy of preservation.
Available Weekends Only. May not be combined with any other offer. Requires purchase of general admission at regular price. Space is limited. Reservations are based on availability.
Maritime Museum of San Diego
1492 N Harbor Drive
San Diego, CA 92101
Jan 11 - ongoing
Naval History Bay Tour Departs from Maritime Museum of San Diego located at 1492 N. Harbor Drive between Grape and Ash Street,
This boat tour provides visitors with an educational tour of San Diego Bay. The 45-minute Bay sightseeing tour takes guests out on the water in a large loop first heading toward North Island and the...
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