Top Landmarks in East Palo Alto
East Palo Alto sits along the western edge of San Francisco Bay, and its most recognizable landmarks reflect that position: a working waterfront turned public parkland, a commercial gateway corridor, and a cluster of retail and hospitality buildings that anchor the city's edge near Highway 101. This guide covers the sites most commonly associated with East Palo Alto, how they're arranged across the city, and how a visitor might string them together on foot or with a short drive. For a broader rundown of activities beyond these landmarks, see the companion East Palo Alto Travel Guide: Things to Do, Landmarks, Food, and Itineraries.
Cooley Landing
Cooley Landing is the city's best-known destination and its clearest link to the Bay itself. The site was once a working port and later an industrial dumping ground before being restored and reopened as public parkland with shoreline trails, picnic areas, and the Cooley Landing Interpretive Center, which focuses on the site's ecological restoration and its history as a landing point for Bay shipping. A section of the remaining pier is preserved, giving visitors a sense of the site's earlier commercial use even as the surrounding marsh has been returned to a more natural state. The park connects directly to the San Francisco Bay Trail, a regional multi-use path that runs along much of the Bay's perimeter, so it's common to see cyclists and walkers passing through on longer trips as well as visitors who come specifically for the shoreline views and birdwatching. Because Cooley Landing sits at the literal edge of the city, it's a good place to start or end a visit — check the official park listing before heading out, since access details and programming can change seasonally.
The Bay Trail Shoreline
Adjacent to Cooley Landing, the local segment of the Bay Trail deserves its own mention as a landmark in its own right rather than just a connector. This stretch offers open views across the water toward the Dumbarton Bridge and the hills beyond, and it's flat and easy to follow, which makes it a popular option for a short walk or bike ride without needing a car to reach multiple viewpoints. Interpretive signage along the trail touches on the restored salt marsh habitat, a useful complement to the exhibits at the Cooley Landing center. Wildlife viewing here is casual and unscripted rather than curated, so bring binoculars if birdwatching is a priority.
University Avenue Corridor
Moving inland, University Avenue functions as East Palo Alto's main commercial spine and its most visible gateway. The corridor carries a mix of local businesses and is the route many visitors use when arriving from the Dumbarton Bridge side of the Bay or connecting toward Stanford University and downtown Palo Alto to the west. While University Avenue isn't a single landmark in the way Cooley Landing is, the corridor itself — its entrances, signage, and general streetscape — is commonly referenced as a defining feature of the city's layout. It's a practical spine to know if you're planning to explore on foot, since several other points of interest sit within a short distance of it.
Ravenswood 101 and the Retail Gateway
Near the Highway 101 interchange, the Ravenswood 101 shopping area and the freeway-facing IKEA East Palo Alto store form a recognizable commercial cluster that many visitors encounter first, simply because of its visibility from the highway. The IKEA location in particular has become a familiar visual marker for the city among regional drivers, even for those who never stop. Nearby, the Four Seasons Hotel Silicon Valley at East Palo Alto adds a notable piece of architecture to this same gateway area, sitting close to the water and serving as a landmark for orientation when navigating between the freeway and the shoreline. Together, these sites form a loose commercial cluster distinct from the quieter, park-oriented character of Cooley Landing.
How the Landmarks Cluster
Geographically, East Palo Alto's landmarks fall into two general groupings. The waterfront cluster — Cooley Landing and its adjoining Bay Trail segment — sits at the city's eastern edge along the Bay and rewards an unhurried visit focused on walking, cycling, or simply taking in the shoreline. The inland cluster, centered on University Avenue and the Ravenswood 101 / Highway 101 gateway, is more oriented toward commercial stops and orientation points such as the Four Seasons and IKEA. The two clusters are a short drive apart, and combining them into a single outing is straightforward: start at the water for a walk, then move inland along University Avenue to take in the commercial corridor before continuing on to other regional destinations.
Planning a Visit
Because East Palo Alto is compact, most of these landmarks can be covered comfortably in a few hours, making them easy to fold into a longer regional itinerary that includes neighboring Peninsula cities. For a structured plan, the East Palo Alto 1-Day Itinerary and East Palo Alto 3-Day Itinerary both build around these clusters. If you're deciding when to go, Best Time to Visit East Palo Alto covers seasonal considerations, particularly relevant for shoreline walking at Cooley Landing. Pair a landmarks-focused day with a look at Best Things To Do in East Palo Alto and Where to Eat in East Palo Alto for meal options near University Avenue, and check the East Palo Alto FAQ for other practical questions before you go.
As with any urban shoreline or commercial corridor, ordinary awareness of your surroundings is a reasonable approach, particularly around dusk near the waterfront trails. Official sites for Cooley Landing and the Bay Trail are the best source for current access information, so it's worth checking ahead if your visit depends on a specific feature being open.