Maitland Gaol — Attraction in Newcastle-Maitland

It was under fairly major restoration construction when I was there in August 2018. Was still an absolutely amazing place to visit! Sadly because of the restoration work I couldn't get to see everything because I have an assistance dog and one of the stops required going up scaffolding steps, which I wouldn't want to do on my own, but I'm definitely not going to get my dog to do it, and to top it off, the disability access was blocked off by a giant skip! (couldn't tell if it was working but with the skip in the way, it didn't much matter, you couldn't use it,:7€7€_6₩£ so bummer). I WAS still able to get a pretty good idea of what it looked like like and what happened in there (I missed out on the chapel, it could have been worse!) But the little audio things they give you as your virtual tour guide are pretty nifty. I'm not sure it's the type of place you revisit often, but you should definitely go at least one. One star off for the lack of...

Good old country jail, worth a weekend visit. I took the self guided audio tour, which took me around 2.5 hours to visit all the exhibit areas, listen to all the accompanying tracks and really immerse myself in the whole thing. The entire place is very well maintained and was not too crowded, though a pair of headphones is recommended. While there, I saw one of the guided tours where the tour guide was animatedly explaining the history behind one of the exhibits; I liked her passionate presentation and will definitely book myself in on one of those tours for the next visit. Parking was not an issue and the town itself had quite a few dining options, so overall it was a good day out for the family. The only thing that can be improved a bit is the map they provided for the self guided tour. Even though all the exhibit areas were well marked, following the route sequentially based on the map was pretty challenging, at least to me on my...

Fantastic place to visit. Closest thing you will get to seeing a modern gaol. Some areas of the gaol are just hideous and you have to wonder how prisoners coped. But the worse of them stayed in the worse sections. Ivan Milat was once kept here. First time I visited his cell was marked but second time it wasn’t which was a pity. Maybe to try to forget one of the most cruelest men in Australias history. But the story of his escape attempt with another prisoner is on display to read. The gaol is often used for filming because it’s the closest thing to a modern gaol. It’s as if when it was closed the prisoners and guards walked and out and left it the way it was. Volunteers have re painted the cells which I thought was not a good idea because they had prisoner graffiti on them and the new paint has spoilt the depressing atmosphere of the place. Maybe in attempt to cover up the offensive graffiti but to me...