Hi All,

I'm going to be in San Fran mid-week, mid-January. I'd like to do the Alcatraz tour, and am wondering if I should pre-book? What are the chances of a sellout at that time?

Thanks!

i wouldn't worry about it.

You may want to wait till you get here to know what's the weather is like on the days of your visit. It may be foggy or windy or rainy. It's not only the tour of the prison, it's the views of the city which should be seen and photographed.

We tried to do this tour a couple of years ago in March and did not prebook. We were disappointed as the tours were booked several days ahead and our time in San Fran was limited to one day. No amount of sweet-talking, whining, begging, or pleading could get us on the tour. We had to settle for harbor cruise and view Alcatraz from the outside only.

Yes, prebook if you can. The Alcatraz tours sell out fast. The park sets aside a bunch of tickets for tour operators who bunch them together with full-day bus tours to Sausalito and such - and it's much more pricey.

No that there's anything wrong with Sausalito - but you can get there by ferry, so why pay for a bus?

If you just want Alcatraz - I sincerely suggest prebooking.

If nothing else, you may avoid long lines by prebooking and do dress in layers.
M

We came back from the Bay area yesterday - decided to cancel going down the coast because of the rain. Despite the rain in SF, Alcatraz was booked - we couldn't get a reservation 2 days in advance.