San Francisco's Ferry Building Tour Receives Accolades



The Ferry Building, Saturday morning

 My tour of San Francisco's Ferry Building and the Embarcadero was recognized this week with a bronze award in the audio travel broadcast category of the Society of American Travel Writer's annual Lowell Thomas travel writing awards.
The timing couldn't have been better: today the Ferry Building was named one of the 10 "great places" of the year by the
American Planning Association.
My tour was produced by Visual Travel Tours, a California company that offers downloadable programs for mobile devices covering travel destinations all over the world.
I wrote the script and took the photos of the Ferry Building and Embarcadero waterfront, an area that has undergone a renaissance the last 10 years (the voice on the audio tour is a professional broadcaster, however, not me).
The judges had some nice things to say about the tour: "Laura Del Rosso introduces old-fashioned tourism to the full power of modern multimedia. She has produced an elaborate but easy-to-understand travel guide to San Francisco that you can put in your computer -- save on your iPod -- or simply slip into your pocket stored on your cell phone. Wherever you keep it, you'll be glad you have it....It's the closest equivalent you'll find to having a good friend show you around a city she loves. Travel can be tricky. With Del Rosso's guide, it should be a treat, instead."


MUNI's historic F-Line streetcar

 The tour, which is designed as a two- to three-hour stop-and-start walking tour, covers the Ferry Building and its food hall, the farmers' markets and the Embarcadero waterfront north and south of the landmark building, with a special focus on the history of the area going back to the Gold Rush.
The tour can be purchased in four ways: 1) in text and photos for print 2) photos and text for mobile devices 3) an audio-visual tour for mobile devices and 4) a complete package, including a CD. Enjoy!