Alcatraz Island has a story so intriguing that it draws in over 1.5 million visitors each year making it one of the most visited attractions in San Francisco. But there are a few different tour options and only one authorized seller of tickets so you’ll need to plan ahead to make the most of your visit.
In this guide we compare the Alcatraz day and night tours to help you decide which one is a better option for your trip. Having been on both, we show you what we liked and didn’t like about each tour.
Our Experience
We’ve visited Alcatraz Island twice. The first time we included it as part of an epic 3 month road trip from New York to California during our 18 month honeymoon towards the end of 2019. For this trip, we took the Alcatraz day tour option because it was our first time in San Francisco and we didn’t have much time. The day tour was very interesting and offers a good base of information for those interested in the island.
The second time we visited Alcatraz in 2022 when we stopped in San Francisco before flying to Asia for 6 months. We spent several days in the city and had more time so we booked a night tour to Alcatraz. We wanted to compare the difference in the day and night tours. Overall, we think both options were done well and all of the photos in this guide we’re taken by us during both visits. Read more about us.
What Is Alcatraz?
Alcatraz is located in the San Francisco Bay and it has an extremely colorful past. So before we get into all the tour details, it’s important you know a little bit of background information about this mysterious island.
The first man to sail into what we now know as the San Francisco Bay was Juan Manuel de Ayala. He was the first person to lay eyes on the original island and mapped the entire bay in 1775, naming the tiny island Alcatraces. The name has since been slightly altered to Alcatraz.
Following the Gold Rush in the 1850’s, the US military built a fortress at the top of the island to protect the bay from naval invasion known as Fortress Alcatraz. On June 1st, 1854, the Alcatraz Lighthouse became the first lighthouse built on the west coast. By the late 1850’s, Alcatraz received its first military prisoners.
In 1909, the US army demolished the Alcatraz Fortress and military prisoners built the prison we can visit today. Following rampant crime in the late 1920’s, the Department of Justice changed Alcatraz to a maximum security prison. This new prison officially opened in 1933.
Sadly, Alcatraz prison was eventually closed on March 21st, 1963 after almost 30 years of operation due to financial problems. Millions of gallons of fresh water had to be shipped to Alcatraz weekly and eventually the government decided it simply just wasn’t cost effective to maintain the prison any longer.
The island was left abandoned for 6 years and in 1969, a group of Indigenous activists set up base to raise awareness about the troubles they faced. Eventually Federal Marshalls intervened and removed all people from Alcatraz in 1971.
Alcatraz As A Tourist Attraction
In 1973, Alcatraz was opened to the general public as a museum under the National Park Service as part of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area. Today, it’s one of the most popular park service sites receiving well over one million visitors every year.
Since Alcatraz Island is managed by the NPS, there is only way one visitors can reach it. You must use Pier 33, often known as Alcatraz Landing. Pier 33 is located about halfway around San Francisco’s Embarcadero between Fisherman’s Wharf and the Ferry Building. Here’s the Google maps location.
There is only one company that owns the sole rights to ferry crossings from Pier 33 to Alcatraz Island under contract with NPS. You need to book all tours with Alcatraz Cruises because the docks on the island are only accessible to this one ferry line.
Travel Tip: It’s essential you book with Alcatraz Cruises if you want to go inside Alcatraz. No other tour company is allowed access to the museum grounds. Always read the fine print before booking any tour. Even if you charter a private boat, you won’t be able to enter.
If you plan to drive your own vehicle, there is no parking available directly at Pier 33. Nearby parking meters may not give you enough time for your Alcatraz tour, but sometimes you can find on-street parking in the Fisherman’s Wharf area.
The closest parking facility is the Pier 35 Lot at 2 Bay Street with over 100 spots, but it can be expensive on weekends. We used a combination of walking and public transportation to get to the pier. You can also use the historic San Francisco streetcars, look for the MUNI F Line and stop at Bay Street.
READ: The prefect San Francisco itinerary
Tour Options On The Island
Alcatraz is open for tours everyday except on Christmas, Thanksgiving and New Year’s day. The Alcatraz ferry is also run on a winter and summer schedule. No matter the time of year, the earliest tour always begin around 8:45am. The summer season will have more ferry crossings later as daylight lasts longer.
When you purchase a tour ticket, you’ll pick a time which corresponds to when your ferry departs from Pier 33. You can check the City Cruises official website here for the ferry departure schedule after you know what tour you want to book.
There are four different types of tours available with varying costs and access privileges. We booked the day and night options, but you can also opt for more with a Behind the Scenes Tour or a combo tour with Alcatraz and Angel Island.
Here are the options:
Just by looking at the graph, you can see the day tour is the shortest option making this a good choice for visitors who don’t have a lot of time. We liked the night tour because it offered a few more extras for just a little bit more money.
All tours include a round trip ferry service to Alcatraz Island and the Cellhouse audio tour. We’ll show you exactly what to expect for the guided audio tour around the main cell blocks on the island. You’ll then have the chance to explore the island further and this is where the tours begin to differ.
The behind the Scenes Tour of Alcatraz is a unique opportunity and limited to a maximum of 30 people. It’s a small group tour led by a NPS Ranger or expert historical educator to off-limits areas most visitors don’t get to see. Afterwards, you can choose to participate in the full Alcatraz Night Tour experience or return to Pier 33 on any departing vessel.
Travel Tip: If you collect the National Park Passport Stamps, you’ll be able to pick up a few during your visit. There are two stamps to collect including one for the Alcatraz Island Lighthouse and one for the Golden Gate Recreation Area.
Our Alcatraz Island Day Tour
The Alcatraz day tour is a 2.5 hour long option and it gives you the chance to freely explore on your own. As you investigate, rangers are stationed throughout the island to answer any questions. Inside the complex, there are also many informational signs and exhibits.
We took the day tour of Alcatraz in the fall of 2019 and don’t want to give too much away. So we’ll simply give you an idea about what to expect and then you can decide if this is the tour for you.
1. Ferry Ride And Arrival
After waiting in line at Pier 33, we boarded the ferry and sailed straight to Alcatraz Island. It took about 15 minutes so it’s a short ride. Onboard, there is a small snack bar and we decided to get two hot dogs to fill up.
To be honest, our hot dogs were pretty good and fairly priced considering we were on a tour. But water on the ferry is extremely expensive so look for the water bottle filling station to save yourself some cash. The ferry had many other snacks available and while the line was quite long, it moved quickly.
Upon arrival to Alcatraz Island, we disembarked and a large crowd gathered in front of Building 64. These were the residential apartments housing prison officers and it was first building constructed on Alcatraz. From here, a guide explained important information about where to go before we could explore freely.
Make sure you stay long enough to see what special programs are offered on that day. There will also be a ferry schedule sign nearby so check what time the ferry is headed back to Pier 33. From here, our large group was lead to the cellhouse.
Travel Tip: After you hear about the special programs, beeline it for the cellhouse audio tour so you can spend the rest of your time exploring the island (you’ll see plenty of signs directing you where to go).
2. Cellhouse Audio Tour
Follow the walkway as you head straight to the main prison entrance. There should be a sign outside indicating the start of the cellhouse audio tour. This will be your first real taste for the prison of Alcatraz. As you cast your eyes on the rusting grey-blue metal doors, you’ll immediately feel your insides crawl and shudder.
Once inside, make your way to the long narrow and very open shower room. Imagine taking a shower with some of the most hardened and creepy criminals in the history of the United States.
“Hey Mr. Scarface, could you please pass me the soap?”
Line up here until you reach the front to pick up your audio headset which is available in 10 different languages. This is where the tour officially begins. But keep an eye on the time if you want to see any special programs. If you have any questions about timing, feel free to ask the rangers because they’re incredibly helpful and want you to have to good time.
The cellhouse audio tour runs on a one way system and each location has a number. All you have to do is input that specific number when you get to the next location and the tour will start playing automatically. All devices come with a headset so you can easily listen.
You’ll slowly begin making your way around the cell blocks hearing the stories from the past. We thought it was fascinating to learn what happened here between these walls.
3. Sounds Of The Slammer
The Sounds of the Slammer was a special program from our day tour. It discussed what a typical cell looked like along with how the different prison blocks were arranged.
Alcatraz housed four main cell blocks (A,B, C and D) each with three tiers of cells. Some cells measured no more than 9ft by 5ft wide so just imagine a bed, toilet and sink inside these tiny dimensions. It certainly doesn’t leave a lot of room for maneuvering.
Cell blocks B and C were the longest rows and contained the most cells. In between cell blocks, each corridor was a given a famous street name such as Broadway, Michigan and Park Avenue. Cell block D is where misbehaving prisoners were sent. If they had a particularly serious offense, they would find themselves in one of the six segregation units known as the Hole.
Each hardened steel cell door was operated by a series of levers and mechanisms located at the end of that particular row of cells. Individual or multiple cells could be opened at the same time using this mechanism. It was innovative technology at the time, replacing the traditional lock and key method.
We enjoyed the Sounds of the Slammer because this program discussed the opening and closing of cell doors. It also included a practical demonstration plus stories from during and after the operation of Alcatraz prison. Unfortunately, we weren’t allowed to open the cell door using bed sheets and a wheel to lasso the level like Sean Connery in the Rock!
4. Escape Attempts
Alcatraz was officially dubbed the inescapable island but there were a series of escape attempts over the years. Did anyone make it out successfully? Well, that still remains a mystery.
Are you a romantic who wants to believe that someone managed to escape, despite the fact they were in prison for committing a serious and heinous crime? Or are you a firm believer of facts, logic and physics that suggest no one made it out alive?
In a nutshell, there were 14 escape attempts made by a total of 36 inmates throughout Alcatraz prison history. Some of the stories are sad while other stories are downright hilarious and full of ingenuity.
During our day tour, there was an escape attempts special program taking place in the dining hall next to the cell house. It was a highlight for us thanks to some fantastic storytelling by the park ranger who led the program.
We won’t divulge any more information here so you can hear all about these wild stories for yourself when you visit. Or if you can’t wait, you can read more about the escape attempts here.
5. San Francisco Views From Alcatraz
For the remaining part of our day tour, we explored the island on our own. As you can see in our photo, certain outdoor spaces were closed, but there was still so much to see. We visited the Recreation Yard, Rose Garden, Officer’s Club, Water Tower, Warden’s House, and Model Industries Building.
The views of the San Francisco Bay were absolutely stunning and we found numerous viewpoints to soak it all up. Depending on the time of day and positioning of the sun, you can snap photographs of Oakland Bridge, San Francisco city and the Golden Gate Bridge.
READ: Best Golden Gate Bridge photo spots
Our Alcatraz Night Tour
When we revisited San Francisco in 2022, we wanted to see what the island was like at night. So we took the Alcatraz Night Tour on October 11th which fell during the seasonal change schedule (typically around Oct 11th to Nov 5th). This time of year is the best of both worlds because we had the chance to explore areas usually closed at night due to increased lighting from daylight savings time.
Overall we think the Night Tour at Alcatraz offers a little more bang for your buck. But it’s only only available Tuesday to Saturdays so you’ll have to plan around these days. Similar to the day tour, a round trip ferry service is included in the ticket.
1. Better Ferry Experience
The first thing we instantly noticed about the night tour was the detailed live narration on the ferry as we sailed to Alcatraz Island. During the entire crossing, we learned about the history of San Francisco and the Bay.
Travel Tip: If you choose to stay for the night tour, you’ll be on Alcatraz Island for about 5 hours. There is food available on the Alcatraz ferry, but not on the island so you might need to plan accordingly.
Another highlight was the route the ferry took after leaving Pier 33. We completed a full circle around Alcatraz Island which is not done on the day tour. The narration on the ferry explained additional information we had not previously learned about.
As we circled the entire island, we got to see some of the sea caves which were used in one prisoners escape. If you look closely at the buoys in the water, you may also get a glimpse of a sea lion sunning himself.
Travel Tip: The water around Alcatraz Island has an average temperature of about 54°F (12°C) with little variation that would prove challenging for escapes. However, avid open water swimmers do swim across the bay regularly.
2. Arrival On Alcatraz
The boat was split into two groups of about 100 people and two tour guides met us right at the the dock. After both groups were on land, we headed in opposite directions. We liked that there was only one boat on the island during our entire night tour and it was a welcome relief from the large crowds we experienced during the day tour.
Our group headed to the right and the tour guide spoke about various points of interest on our 20 minute walk. We ended at the entrance of the cell house audio tour. And similar to the day tour, we picked up our audio guide headsets in the shower room and listened to the familiar voices once again.
After we ended our audio tour and handed in our headsets, we were met by a docent who was was about to give a special program in just a few minutes.
Perfect timing, we stayed for the special program and chatted with the park ranger. We won’t be disclosing the special programs on the Alcatraz night tour so you can be completely surprised. The best advice we can give you is to speak with the rangers and tour guides because they always know the ins and outs of the island.
Following our own advice, the ranger we spoke to gave us some great advice about how to maximize our time on Alcatraz Island. However, this won’t pertain to every night because programs and experiences are constantly changing.
As long as you attend the cellhouse audio tour, one or two of the special programs and spend a little time exploring on your own, we think you’ve done extremely well. So anything else will be a bonus!
3. Hospital And A Sunset
In between the two special programs we chose to attend, we learned the old Alcatraz hospital was to be opened at 5:30pm which is an area we had never seen. So we hot footed it to the hospital just in time to see the the remnants of the old Alcatraz operating room, exam rooms, pharmacy and sick wards.
As former scientists, we enjoyed seeing how the hospital operated. This experience alone was certainly worth our visit. Not that many people knew about the opening of the hospital so always ask the rangers when you get to the island.
Another great part about the night tour is that you have a little more time to explore the island compared to the day tour. So even after our audio tour, two special programs and the hospital visit, we still had time to see a few other areas.
Many of the same outdoor areas were open, but it was interesting to see the buildings on Alcatraz light up as the sun started to set on the horizon. The colors in the sky slowly transitioned to bright pink and orange. At this point, we started to watch our time a bit more closely because we certainly didn’t want to be spending the night on the island if we missed the ferry.
Our ferry was scheduled to leave the dock as the sun was setting behind the Golden Gate Bridge. This night tour was the perfect ending to a day in San Francisco. And that concludes our comparison!
Before visiting Alcatraz, you might want to watch some of these old movies to get in the mood:
- Birdman of Alcatraz (1962)
- Point Blank (1967)
- The Enforcer (1976)
- Escape From Alcatraz (1979)
- The Rock (1996) – Our personal favorite!
- The Book of Eli (2010)
Even the Harry Potter Franchise created by JK Rowling features Azkaban prison which can only be based on one place…
READ: PCH road trip from San Francisco to San Diego
How To Get Tickets
City Experiences are the official provider of Alcatraz Island tour tickets. The best way to book tickets is directly with them on the official website here. But you can also book combination tickets if you want to see more of San Francisco.
Each tour we mention is an authorized seller of Alcatraz Cruises through City Experiences and these can be a great option if you can’t get tickets too. Here are highly rated options:
While Alcatraz is run by the NPS, ticket prices include roundtrip ferry transportation, the cellhouse audio tour provided by the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy and a Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Act fee. Since there is no federal entrance fee, unfortunately America the Beautiful passes don’t give you free entry.
Our Alcatraz Island Photos
We took hundreds of photos on the island for our Alcatraz day and night tour comparison. Here are a few of our favorites:
The Morgan Conclusion
What we like: We were genuinely surprised at how well the Alcatraz day and night tours were put together. Each tour option offered something unique and it’s nice to see many different options. We also really enjoyed the special programs run by park rangers because we learned so much. Even with two visits, we’d visit Alcatraz again because it’s such a fascinating place.
What we don’t like: There are a few downsides to visiting Alcatraz. Depending on the tour you book, it can be pricey, but we do think it’s a fair price point for what you get. Our day tour was also packed because there were a few boats on the island at the same time which made it very crowded. And since Alcatraz tours will take at least 3 hours, it can be hard to add to your itinerary if you’re short on time.
Is Alcatraz worth visiting? Yes, visiting Alcatraz is worth it. But overall, we’d recommend the night tour over the day tour for a few reasons:
- Onboard ferry narration and circling around the entire island is worth it
- Smaller tour sizes make for an intimate experience
- Ability to see San Francisco Bay as the sun sets from Alcatraz Island
- Chance to explore bonus areas often closed to general public
- More information is offered with docent guided tours and talks
However, if you can only fit one Alcatraz tour into your schedule, the day tour is still a great option and it’s slightly cheaper.
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We hope our day and night tour comparison to Alcatraz helps with planning your visit!
Please let us know if you have any questions about visiting Alcatraz in the comments below.
Happy Travels,
Mark and Kristen
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Mark and Kristen Morgan are travel, hiking and photography experts. Over the last 6 years traveling full time, they have explored more than 40 countries and 30 US states.
Where Are Those Morgans has been featured in USA Today, Gestalten, Get Your Guide, CityPASS and Condé Nast Traveler along with various other publications. Read more about us.
Thank you so much for this post! I didn’t realize the website I almost bought tickets on was not the official tour company, so I saved money and was able to book the behind the scenes tour that the website I was looking at said wasn’t available!
You’re very welcome, Elizabeth. We hope you have a fantastic trip to San Francisco and enjoy the Alcatraz tour!
Alcatraz is easily one of our favorite San Fran attractions. We’ve been 2x. I’m always blown away by the walking tour. Absolutely love the step by step information. I always highly recommend visiting Alcatraz.
Yes we thoroughly enjoyed the tour of Alcatraz and would do it again. Highly recommend for first time visitors to SF!
Alcatraz seems like a great place to visit, so much history in one place. It must of been a harsh place to serve time but also to work, not your average commute.
You’re right, not a typical commute! We were worried the Alcatraz tour wouldn’t hold up to our expectations but it did with room to spare. Definitely recommend it if you get a chance to visit San Francisco.