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Alcatraz Tours: Day Tour vs. Night Tour – Which Is Right for You?
- Alyssa
- 25 minutes ago
- 10 min read
Alcatraz is one of San Francisco’s most popular tourist destinations! The once-active prison now serves as a national park and offers panoramic views of the city skyline, the Golden Gate Bridge, and the Bay Bridge. The only way to get to and from the island is by ferry, and you must pre-book your time online when purchasing tickets to Alcatraz. City Cruises is the ferry provider, and you can purchase tickets directly through them on their website here! The park offers both day and night tours of the island, and there are a few differences between them, keep reading to find out which is right for you!
General Alcatraz Island Information:
A daytime tour ticket for adults costs $45.25. It includes the ferry ride to and from the island, admission, a guided audio tour inside the cell house, and any ranger talks. The nighttime tour is slightly more expensive at $56.30 for an adult ticket. It includes a ferry ride around the entire island (only offered on the night tour), admission, the same guided audio tour, any ranger talks, and entrance to the prison hospital (only offered on the night tour).
There is no set time limit for how long you can stay on the island, as long as you leave on the last ferry departing with your ticket type. If you book a day tour the latest you can stay on the island is around 4:00 pm, and if you book a nighttime tour the last ferry leaves the island at 9:25 pm. The earlier your ticket time, the longer you can stay on the island!
The meeting point for both tours is at Pier 33, about a ten-minute walk from the iconic Pier 39. If you plan on visiting the pier 39 sea lions, and Alcatraz during your trip to the city they are doable on the same day! It is probably the easiest to do on the same day since they are so close together! We like to park at the Pier 39 parking garage when we are in the area since it is a relatively secure lot with active security. It is more expensive, but we have not had any issues with break-ins! With that being said, keep in mind that car break-ins do happen often in the city, keep all valuables with you, and never leave bags or luggage unattended!
For both tours, once you arrive at Pier 33 there will be huge signs letting you know you are in the right place! There is a small line with security checking tickets, and behind that is a seating area where you can wait for your boarding time. You cannot eat or drink in this area, so make sure to finish anything before entering (we did not know, and had to finish our coffee outside of security). Once your boarding time is shown on the signs you can line up for the ferry. If you want to get a spot on the top of the ferry, lining up earlier is a good idea, but if you do not care where you sit there is no point standing in the line, you can board at the end after the line has cleared some.
Once on board it is a 10-15 minute ferry ride to Alcatraz Island. Food and drinks are offered onboard for an additional fee. There are amazing views of the city skyline, both bridges (Golden Gate and Bay Bridge) and Alcatraz from the ferry! This is a great time to take pictures of the city, and the island!
Once you arrive at the island the ferry will dock, and give everyone time to dismount safely. This can be a little slow, especially if you are on one of the upper floors, but you have amazing views to keep you entertained!
As you dismount the ship you will be greeted by national park signs and a ranger giving you directions to navigate the island. For those who need extra assistance, or have mobility issues there is a complimentary tram that will take you from the bottom of the island to the top, (and vice versa) where the audio tour begins. Each person who needs the tram can take one guest with them. The island is essentially one big hill, equivalent to walking up about 13 stories! It can get tiring walking up the hill, but there are plenty of spots to rest and sit, and even some small exhibits to look at on your way up!
The beginning of the audio tour is located near the cell house and is easy to find with many signs pointing you in the right direction as you walk up the hill. We strongly recommend taking the guided audio tour! It is about a 30-minute self-guided tour with headphones and takes you around the entirety of the prison. We have done it with and without the audio tour, but the audio tour adds a lot to the experience! It is very informative and walks you through the various cell blocks of the prison.
If you opt out of the audio tour you are eligible for a $15 refund per person. To receive the refund you must find the end of the audio tour near the main gift shop, and inform a staff member that you would like a refund for not taking the audio tour. The refund is $15 in cash per ticket. Park rangers and staff outside of this area do not process the refund.
An important thing to keep in mind when planning your trip is the time of year of your visit. There may be baby seagulls and geese hatching, which causes some of the exhibits and parts of the island to be closed to visitors! In May and June, we saw multiple baby seagulls and even a few baby geese, but missed out on a few parts of the island! As recently as June 2024, there is also active construction on Alcatraz, which may also cause some of the exhibits to be closed!
The Day Tour:
The Alcatraz day tour is a great way to see the island! You have plenty of time to explore, and hopefully some sun in the afternoon to help you stay warm. The day tour is the cheapest ticket option and is $45.25 for guests 12 and up. Children under 12 tickets cost $27.55, and seniors 62 plus get a slightly discounted ticket price of $42.65. Alcatraz City Cruises website does offer a family discount ticket option for two adults and two children under 12 for $131.85, which can save you just under $14 compared to booking all the tickets separately. However, the family ticket bundles are limited and sell out quickly!
The earliest time slot you can book for the day tour is 8:40 AM, and the latest is 3:50 PM. Do not worry if you cannot book the earliest time slot, as most options give you plenty of time to explore the island and do the audio tour. With that in mind, the last few time slots give you the least time on the island, and may make you feel rushed during your visit! We prefer to book around 10:30 AM to about noon, when we take family and friends to have a slow morning, but still take our time exploring the island!
San Francisco is known for its fog, which is one thing early morning guests to the island need to be prepared for! During the early mornings, it can be foggy, but it starts to disperse as the day goes on. Wearing layers of clothing is a great way to be prepared for the ever-changing weather! We recommend bringing a jacket, no matter your tour time! It can get windy on Alcatraz even on warm sunny days!
We lucked out with the weather when we took our most recent daytime tour, it was clear, sunny, and warm, even on Alcatraz! The island offers amazing views of the Golden Gate Bridge and the San Francisco skyline on a clear day. The afternoon is one of the best times to go to try and avoid fog, as it normally clears up in the late morning, and begins to come back in the early evening!
As you make your way up the hill towards the starting location of the audio tour there are various small exhibits you can stop at. We enjoyed the garden, morgue, firehouse, and the red power exhibit.
Most exhibits are open during the day tour, and there are plenty of park rangers, and museum staff to help point you in the right direction, and even talk you through some of the exhibits. One of our favorite parts of the day tour was the garden! It was closed during our night tour, but during the day it was staffed with knowledgeable volunteers. We learned a lot about the history of the garden on Alcatraz, and even how it was used to help with prisoner rehabilitation.
One area of Alcatraz you will not see on the day tour is the prison's hospital wing, this section is reserved for those visiting on the night tour, or other specialty tours. This is the main difference between tours, the only other large difference besides the time of day is the ferry ride. Daytime tours come to the front side of the island directly from Pier 33, while the night tour ferry circles the island, and gives you almost 360-degree views of Alcatraz! If you do not mind missing out on those two extras, the day tour may be your best choice for visiting Alcatraz Island! It is cheaper, and provides more time and flexibility to explore the island at your own pace!
The Night Tour:
The Alcatraz night tour is a unique experience where you can wander the eerie prison halls with fewer crowds, uncover special exhibits, and immerse yourself in the haunting atmosphere of the island after dark. This ticket option gives you less time to explore the island, but provides a longer and more immersive ferry ride around the island and access to the prison's hospital wing, where Al Capone spent most of his time!
The night tour starts with an extended ferry ride around the island, something not offered on the daytime tours! This provides a great opportunity to take pictures of Alcatraz from various angles! After circling the island, the ferry docked and we dismounted in the same spot as on the day tour.
Most aspects of the night tour are similar to that of the day tour. The audio guide is the same on both tours, and most exhibits are open. However, there were a few that were closed, like the garden and the firehouse while visiting on the night tour!
The Alcatraz night tour hosts about two special talks every hour ranging in topics from the history of Alcatraz, its inmates, and even the Native American Occupation of the island. There are schedules posted at the beginning of the cell house audio tour, and we quickly snapped a photo on our phone to have the information easily accessible. On the same schedule, the ferry departure times are listed. There are only three ferry departures on the night tour, so make sure you know when they are unless you want to spend the night on the rock!
A special treat for guests on the nighttime Alcatraz tour is access to the prison's hospital wing. We almost missed it since there was little signage! We stumbled upon a small stairway inside the prison's dining hall and saw a small sign stating night tour guests could visit the hospital.
It was an eerie experience to wander the halls of the prison hospital, especially with the sun beginning to set! There are various rooms within the hospital wing to explore like; an x-ray room, examination room, Birdman's room, and various other holding cells and living quarters.
The prison felt less crowded during the night tour, and there was more room to walk around and look at the exhibits. We enjoyed taking pictures and exploring the island while it was slower.
As we started towards the lighthouse outside the cell house, the wind picked up! This area of the island was extremely windy, and cold! The sun was setting and the fog had started coming in, but you could still see the city skyline, and make out parts of the Golden Gate.
We visited in mid-June, and the sun does not even start to set until around 8 PM, so if you want to experience the island in darkness, summer is not the best time of year to plan a night tour! The final ferry departs the island around 9:25, but you would have little time to explore the cell house and the island in darkness. So although this is a night tour, there will still be a lot of sunlight while you explore.
The two main additions to the night tour compared to the day tour are the extended ferry ride around the perimeter of Alcatraz Island, and the inclusion of the hospital wing of the cell house.
If you want to experience a night on the island instead of a warm sunset and early twilight, the winter months are better since the sun sets earlier. However, if you prefer to see a sunset from the island, summer is a good time to visit! For $11 more per person, the night tour provided interesting additions to make up for the price difference!
What to bring to Alcatraz:
Camera
Walking shoes (steep hills, and lots of walking)
Hat (preferably one with a neck strap so it doesn’t blow away in the wind)
Sunscreen (you can still burn in fog!)
Jacket (wind and fog come in quick!)
Summary:
Visiting Alcatraz Island is a must when in San Francisco! Daytime and nighttime tours are offered year-round, and range in price from $45.25 for a day tour, and $56.30 for a night tour. Both tours include an award-winning, self-guided audio tour of the cell house, a ferry ride to and from the island, and special ranger/volunteer talks about the island and prison. The night tour has an extended ferry ride around the island and access to more areas of the prison buildings like the hospital. If you do not mind missing out on the additions of the night tour, the day tour is a great option, it is cheaper and provides more flexibility! The day tour also offers access to more areas outside such as the garden. We enjoyed both tours and strongly recommend making the ride out to Alcatraz if you are visiting the city!
Let us know below which tour you want to take when you are in San Francisco, or which tour you have taken, and if you liked it!
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