An absolute must see! (Alcatraz Island)

Member Name: janeh

Product:	Alcatraz Island
Date:	16/07/02 (248 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Facinating, Excellent value, Superb quality

Disadvantages: none

When we decided to return to San Francisco I made sure we pre-booked tickets to Alcatraz before we left the UK. Last time we visited in 2000, we hadn’t realised how popular the trip was and never anticipated not being able to book whilst there. That time we had to make do with a boat trip around the bay, this time I booked two months in advance via the website www.blueandgoldfleet.com. It only cost $31 for two, a bargain as it turned out.

You board a boat at Pier 41 for the short ride across to the island itself. From the city, you do not realise how high the island really is and how elevated some of the buildings actually are.

When you disembark you are led to a large concrete area where a tour guide greets you and explains the routes to take and what to expect etc. There is quite a lot of walking up stairs and hills, so for those with disabilities etc there is a trolley bus to take you to the top.

We started off by going into the “theatre” to watch a film about the history of the Rock which was very interesting. It outlined the various uses the place has had over the years by the Army and of course the prison and of the Indian occupation in the late 1960’s and how the place has been turned into the tourist attraction it now is. It is now one of the Golden Gate National Recreation Parks.

After getting the background of the Island we walked the steep but interesting climb to the actual prison. The island is now a home to thousands of birds and small animals. We visited in June and this was the breeding season for the seagulls, so we saw many baby chicks in nests and wandering around pestering their parents. They are very messy, so watch where you tread and lean against.

When you get to the prison, your ticket includes a self-guided tour where you are given a tape recorder and set of headphones. A marker on the floor tells you when to switch the tape to play and you then have a narrator to walk
you through the prison. Obviously you an stop, rewind etc at any point, but it is best to let it run to get the best effect. The tape is extremely impressive, with superb stereo sound that makes you feel like you are experiencing all the things you hear on the tape.

You are told of the conditions the prisoners were kept in and hear the echoes of the doors banging shut and the screaming of the inmates etc. You are told to go to different cells and are told stories such as how the marks on the door relate to a failed escape attempt or that Al Capone was thought to have been in this particular cell etc. The voices change on the tape to people who actually experienced Alcatraz, either as a prison guard or an actual prisoner. There are stories of riots, escapes and you see cell mock-ups of how some of the prisoners tried to escape by digging out of the back of their cells and leaving hand made heads in the beds to fools the guards. How Robert Stroud famous as being the Birdman of Alcatraz, never actually kept birds whilst on the island. He earned his Birdman nickname as a result of keeping canaries at his previous prison Leavenworth. Al Capone was kept here, but no-one seems to know exactly which sell he was kept in.

The cells are very small and consist of just a narrow bed, basin and toilet with open bar doors. None have windows although the tour includes the canteen, where prisoners had great views of the bay and city – so near and yet so far!

Apparently the inmates were given good food in order to keep them from rioting and given hot rather than cold showers to stop them from becoming acclimatised to cold water in-case they were tempted to take a swim.
There were a few attempts at escape, none of which were said to be successful, although three men are unaccounted for during the escape depicted in the film The Great Escape. There was no evidence of their survival, but equally no bodies were found – so who knows?


When the tour ends you just had back you headphones etc and a free to wander the island. Boats leave every half an hour so you can stay for as long as you want. The tour itself takes about one hour, so you really need to allow yourself a minimum for two, so that you can wander at leisure and visit the shops etc.

There are gift shops, restrooms and information points around the island and the views are magnificent on a clear day. Remember to take a camera a plenty of film (you are allowed to take pictures inside the prison too).

This really is the must visit location in San Francisco. I cannot tell you how fascinating the tour is or how good the narration and background sounds etc really are. You an buy a copy of the tape in the gift shop, but to be honest you cannot possibly get the same effect as when you are actually inside the prison.

Without doubt this was the highlight of our trip and something I will never forget.

Summary: