Alcatraz Landing Pier 33 — Attraction in San Francisco

We had a great time overall here. If you get the chance to come here, BUY YOUR TICKETS EARLY. It's also best to order through the official site as well. When we got there, I overheard what the ticket prices were for the day we went and it went up around $15-$20. Luckily though, we bought our tickets early. When your in line waiting for the cruise, they take a picture of you and whoever you want with the Alcatraz background for a fee at the end of the tour. Make sure you also don't carry anything bigger than a regular size backpack either or else you can't take it with you. Once you get to the island, prepare to walk quite a bit (a lot of places are uphill, then on the way back, downhill). They do offer assistance for handicapped people as well. I was quite surprised about how they let you spend all day there if you choose to. Once you get on the island, you look at the ferry times and coordinate when you want to go back. I applaud them for letting you get the most for your money. The whole thing probably takes at least one hour and can go to about three hours. Once your ready to leave, be prepared for the waiting game. Once the ferry comes, they let all the passengers off which takes about 20ish minutes, then slowly everyone starts to get on. Then, we you get back on shore back to San Francisco, you follow the exit signs and find the picture you first took when you were standing in line to go. One last interesting thing to note, either while your waiting for your ferry time or after you finish (preferably see this after you finish), there is a mini replica of what Alcatraz used to look like in its hay day. Furthermore, on the ground there is a giant compass highlighting the hot spots...

If you are into legend and attracted to the life of Alcapone and such then Alcatraz must be on your list. We started from Pier 33 with Hornblower cruise to Alcatraz.it took 15 minutes to reach Alcatraz. There you can take some options to explore the island: Join a free guided tour with a ranger. They normally welcome visitors at the pier of Alcatraz Island. Do not forget to tip the guide, plz. :) Take a tour with free audio guide and follow every instruction and listen every detail from the audio guide. Start the audio tour at the main building (prison area). Do not forget to return the audio guide at the end of the audio tour. Free and easy.

If you have 2,5 -3 hours to spend then take the free guided tour. If you have between 1,5 to 2 hours I suggest you take the audio tour. If you have less that 1,5 hours better go free and easy explore yourself. btw, the cruise transfers visitor every 30-40 minutes. we were lucky coz when we were there at the end of the tour at the book & souvenir shop, there was a lady sitting in the middle of the book store. Her name is Jolene Babyak. She's a living witness of Alcatraz during its active period and she's the author of Breaking The Rock. She told us a very interesting story regarding life of alcatraz...

The hour-long Alcatraz audio tour was SO good and definitely worth the trip. I brought my own headphones and the staff let me use them with their audio device, which was a plus. The audio device was easy to control and it provided a step-by-step tour that guides you easily and correctly throughout the prison. There were a lot of people attending (we did the 9:30 am tour), but it was still easy to walk through the prison and look at everything. It's a bit of a walk up to the prison, but it has nice views and no stairs. My only complaint is the flies. They weren't in the prison or further into the island, but on the boat ride to and from the island and while you're standing at the dock to board, they are literally EVERYWHERE. I read online that they're the worst in September and October, so maybe it was just that. But even on the boat, they just covered the walls, the windows and will land all over you. A ton of people around us were complaining about them, swatting them away and getting up to try and escape them. One lady even had several stuck in her hair. And it's not just in the boat, they're even bad outside out of the boat while it's moving. The fly infestation is why I docked my review a star. It was...