Alcatraz Island

How to book before it sells out

The mistake people make with Alcatraz is leaving it until they land. Only one company, Alcatraz City Cruises, is authorised to land on the island, all ferries leave from Pier 33 on the Embarcadero, and there is no walk-up queue worth joining — in summer the day tours sell out 60 to 75 days ahead, so buy the moment your dates are fixed and before you book a single other thing in San Francisco. For most people the standard day tour (about $47.95 / ~£36) is the one: it includes the 15-minute crossing and the Cellhouse Audio Tour, narrated by former guards and inmates, which is the part that actually grips you. The night tour costs more and is best for atmosphere, with a smaller crowd and a sharper programme, but it goes earliest of all.

Which ferry to take, and is the hype real?

Take the earliest ferry you can get: morning light is clearest before the afternoon fog rolls through the Golden Gate and can hide the whole island, and the cellhouse is quieter before the mid-morning sailings land. Allow two and a half to three hours door to door, remember it’s a steep 10–15 minute climb from the dock up to the cellblock, and bring a layer because it’s colder and windier on the bay than in the city. This is the rare blockbuster that earns the hype, and on a first trip it’s the ticket to secure before any other — pair it with a walk to Fisherman’s Wharf rather than stacking another paid sight on the same morning, because the ferry timings make Alcatraz a half-day in its own right.