Alcatraz Day Or Night Tour – Which Is Better?

Planning a trip to San Francisco and wondering which is better, the Alcatraz day or night tour?

As one California native and frequent travelers to the state, we’ve got all the expert info on San Francisco and Alcatraz prison.

While both the day and night tour of Alcatraz are good and definitely worth doing, there are advantages and disadvantages to each option (though our favorite was the night tour).

➡️ Our Top Pick: For last minute Alcatraz tickets or just a combo tour of the prison and San Francisco, we recommend Dylan’s Tours.

🌉 Overview: Alcatraz Day Or Night Tour?

👉 We spent time out on Alcatraz island during our last Northern California visit so we can share all the differences between the day and night tour, pros & cons of each, what to expect, and tour & last minute ticket options for the prison.

✅❌ Alcatraz Day VS Night Tour (Pros & Cons)

There are pros and cons for both the day and night tour options on Alcatraz, so which one is better comes down to personal preference. Both are consistently busy, but each has its own perks.

🌞 Alcatraz Day Tour Pros & Cons:

*️⃣ Tip: During the day, it’s better to do the Alcatraz tour in the early morning vs afternoon to avoid the largest crowds (unless you plan on staying through to the night ferries).

🌚 Alcatraz Night Tour Pros & Cons:

*️⃣ Tip: The Alcatraz tour (day or night) is better and less crowded during the middle of the week, Tuesdays through Thursdays, compared to weekends or holidays.

👉 Alcatraz is worth visiting day or night, but we think the night tour is best to access other parts of the prison, avoid the largest crowds, and have a beautiful, spookier setting at the prison.

🌁 What To Expect On The Alcatraz Tours

Besides a few modern updates like bathrooms and a gift shop, it looks like nothing has changed at Alcatraz prison and it’s definitely one of the most interesting places to tour in San Francisco (day or night).

🌞 What To Expect On The Alcatraz Day Tour:

• Depending on where you’re staying in SF, you can walk, cable car, or Uber to Pier 33 where the Alcatraz tour (both day and night) starts

• Arrive at least 30 minutes before departure to get in line and get a good spot on the ferry (outside at the front of the boat is best for views)

• The ferry ride from Pier 33 to Alcatraz takes about 15 minutes

• Off the boat, a short guided tour starts as everyone walks uphill to the main prison (there’s a decent amount of walking at Alcatraz)

• Once inside, the whole tour is a self guided audio tour done by former guards and prisoners (it’s very interesting)

• After the audio tour, wander open areas until the last ferry leaves (but at least 3 hours is recommended)
  
  

*️⃣ FAQ: The Alcatraz day or night tour includes a roundtrip ferry, self guided audio tour, access to all open areas, and the permanent exhibit (The Big Lockup: Mass Incarceration in the United States).

🌚 What To Expect On The Alcatraz Night Tour:

• Like the day tour, the Alcatraz night tour also leaves out of Pier 33

• Alcatraz night tours start in the winter at 3:50 pm, and in the summer at 5:55, 6:30, and 7:05 pm (we suggest eating dinner before to be able to explore the island until the last ferry leaves)

• The Alcatraz ferry ride, short guided tour, and self guided audio tour are all the same at night as day

• After the audio tour, explore until the last ferry leaves and see other areas of the prison (they had the hospital open when we visited)

• As crowds head back, the island gets even spookier as it empties out, and though it’s not “scary”, the eerie feeling is why we prefer the night tour
  
  

*️⃣ FAQ: The Alcatraz self guided audio tour, day or night, is about 35 minutes long straight through (though we paused it often to look more deeply at things).

🪨 Best Alcatraz Tour

Alcatraz tickets should definitely be purchased in advance, they often sell out (especially night tours), but for those that can’t get them ahead of time or need them after they’ve sold out, there are options.

Normal pre-purchased tickets for Alcatraz are sold through City Experiences (all others go through a middleman) while combo tours, last minute tickets, or sold out dates can be bought through tours ⬇️.

⭐️ Alcatraz Tour Tickets:

• San Francisco, Muir Woods, Sausalito, and Alcatraz add on

• Alcatraz and Golden Gate Bridge Express (cheapest option)

• Private San Francisco with Alcatraz add on

• Golden Gate Bridge and Alcatraz pass by tour (Golden Gate or whale watching type tours pass by Alcatraz but don’t tour the island)
  
  

🤑 Alcatraz Tour Ticket Prices:

The cost for just an Alcatraz tour ranges from about $45-100 depending on time and type. Last minute or combo tour prices range from $100 to $400 depending on the type of city tour.

📔 Alcatraz History (Know Before You Go)

While the Alcatraz audio tour explains plenty about the prison, it makes the tour (day or night) even better with some extra knowledge:

• Alcatraz was where the worst of the worst ended up, but what really made it so bad was the isolation (we went in “the hole”, the hospital wing, and the “mentally ill” room and could see how that’d make someone crazy)

• Guards and other prison employees did live on Alcatraz with their families

• The Birdman (Robert Stroud) was one of the worst prisoners at Alcatraz
  
  

• Al Capone was moved from Atlanta to Alcatraz prison in 1934

• Aside from sharks, the cold temperatures, strong currents, and long distance to shore made swimming out of Alcatraz almost impossible

• No one knows if the 3 Alcatraz escapees survived, but some believe they may have gotten away with it

• There are no prisoners still serving time at Alcatraz, as the prison shut down for good in March of 1963
  
  

*️⃣ Tip: For more info, watch Alcatraz movies like Escape From Alcatraz, Birdman of Alcatraz, and Murder in the First before a day or night tour.

🔁 Wrap Up: Alcatraz Day Or Night Tour?

Both the Alcatraz day tour and night tour are worth doing, but we personally prefer the night tour because it’s spookier, there’s more access to other parts of the prison, the city light views are beautiful, and less tickets are sold.