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For information about the park, visit the National Park Service website for Alcatraz Island: nps.gov/alca. Come to Alcatraz for a prison tour while enjoying the historical and cultural experiences unique to the San Francisco Bay. Located in the middle of the San Francisco Bay, Alcatraz Island is one of Golden Gate National Recreation Area's ...
Jul 24, 2023 · Departures from San Francisco are available throughout the day beginning at 8:45am. The ferry, operated by Alcatraz City Cruises, runs approximately every thirty to forty minutes to and from Alcatraz. You may return to San Francisco on any ferry. The island closes for the day at 6:30pm in the summer, and 4:30pm in fall, winter and spring.
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- About Visiting Alcatraz
- Tickets to Alcatraz
- Getting to Alcatraz Landing (Pier 33) and Alcatraz Island
- Alcatraz Ferries
- Alcatraz Cellhouse Audio Tour
- Download The National Park Service App
- Alcatraz Famous Inmates
- Alcatraz Escape Attempts
- Is Alcatraz Haunted; Are There Ghosts?
- Best Time to Go
A National Park Ranger meets each arriving ferry to welcome visitors to the island and to provide a brief orientation and review the day’s program schedule. In addition to the great cellhouse tour, there are permanent and temporary exhibits, ranger led walks and talks, a trail to take, gardens to see, and lots of interpretive signs around the islan...
Purchase your tickets earlybecause they often sell out days in advance. This is especially true during the summer months and holidays. The tickets are timed and dated. Buy tickets from Alcatraz City Cruises. It’s the only concessioner authorized by the National Park Service. The price of the ticket is specifically for the ferry and the cellhouse au...
When you book your ticket(s), you select a specific date and time, and that’s the date and time your ferry leaves Alcatraz Landing (Pier 33) and heads to Alcatraz Island. Here are three options for getting to Alcatraz Landingat Pier 33 and a map with locations pinned:
The ferry takes about 15-minutes to get from Alcatraz Landing (Pier 33) to Alcatraz Island. Once on the island, you can get back to Pier 33 on any ferry departing the island. Check the schedule posted at the dock, so you don’t miss the last ferry of the day. Ferry tips: On my most recent visit, the last Day Tour ferry left Alcatraz at 4:25pm. For t...
Tip: It’s a ¼ mile (0.4 km) uphill walk from the boat dock to the cellhouse. Visitors with limited mobility are welcome to take the free Tram up and down the hill. The excellent 30-minute audio tour guides you through the cellhouse and features former prisoners and guards telling their stories. It’s called Doing Time: The Alcatraz Cellhouse Tour. T...
You can have more information about Alcatraz literally at your fingertips, if you Download the National Park Service App onto your smartphone. Search the app for Golden Gate National Recreation Area, and then select Alcatraz Island from the list of GGNRA locations. You’ll find descriptions and location information for 14 sights on the island.
Alcatraz was a maximum-security federal prison from 1934 to 1963. Among the 1,545 men sent there, a few were famous: Al “Scarface” Capone, George “Machine Gun” Kelly, Arthur “Doc” Barker, Alvin “Creepy Karpis” Karpavicz, Robert “The Birdman” Stroud, Ellsworth “Bumpy” Johnson, and Meyer “Mickey” Cohen.
There were several attempted escapes but only one that may have been successful. In 1962, three men, Frank Morris and the Anglin Brothers tunneled out of their cells and slipped into the bay in a makeshift raft. They were never seen again, and their bodies were never found. On the cell block tour, you’ll learn how Morris and the Anglin Brothers dug...
There are reports of people hearing crying or moaning coming from the empty cells. It’s also claimed that a prisoner in Cell 14D died after screaming that he was being killed by a ghost. Some visitors have also claimed they felt extreme coldness after visiting Cell 14D. So, maybe there are ghosts on Alcatraz, or maybe it’s just the cold wind blowin...
Weather-wise, mid-September through mid-November is best.The summer fog (nature’s air conditioner) doesn’t roll in as often and the winter rains haven’t yet started. The rest of the year, the weather is mixed: there are often gorgeous, sunny days in winter and spring, and summer days can quickly turn chilly if the fog rolls in. Dressing in layers i...
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- Sharon Odegaard
- Be Sure To Book Ahead. If you postpone making a tour reservation until the week you are visiting San Francisco, you may be disappointed. Book at least a few weeks in advance, if possible — you can order tickets up to three months in advance.
- Wear Layers And Comfortable Shoes. You’ll be walking up steep hills and old steps, so wear flat-soled shoes. I wore tennis shoes that were nicely cushioned, which turned out to be perfect for the somewhat uneven paths and worn stairways.
- Arrive Early For Boarding At Pier 33. It’s tour day! With your pre-purchased timed ticket in hand, head for Pier 33 about a half-hour early to check in.
- Pick Up An Audio Tour At The Cell Block. Disembark at the dock, right next to the iconic guard tower. Listen to the brief orientation talk given by a National Park Service guide, then head up a hill to the main attraction of your tour: the prison cell blocks.
Departure times for the return boats are posted at Pier 33 and at the dock on Alcatraz. You can take any boat back, butdon't miss the last one! Night Tours.The night tour runs Tuesday through Saturday, at 5:55 and 6:30 p.m, in summer, and lasts about 2.5 hours. Return boats leave Alcatraz at 8:40 and 9:25 pm.
Allow at least 3 hours to tour Alcatraz including the time to get back and forth on the boat. Your ticket will include a time for the boat going over, but you can grab whichever boat you want for the return trip. The last boat departs for those on a day tour at 4:25 PM. There are also guided night tours of the island.
The easiest and quickest way to grab your tickets is online through the official Alcatraz City Cruises website. But if you’re old-school, you can also ring them up at +1-415-981-7625. They’re open seven days a week, from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm PST. Or if you’re the spontaneous type, you can waltz up to the ticket booth at Pier 33 Alcatraz ...
