This full-day tour breaks you into Alcatraz Island prison and features guided entertainment and stops to explore the Palace of Fine Arts, Golden Gate Bridge, Land’s End and Twin Peak
Departure: Daily from major San Francisco hotels
Duration: 7-8 hours
Cancellation: Tours with Alcatraz tickets are not refundable
Ages: All ages
Ticket: email and mobile accepted
- Ferry to Alcatraz Island for the famous prison tour
- See San Francisco’s top attractions like the Presidio, Haight-Ashbury, Chinatown, and Coit Tower
- Make stops to photograph and experience the Palace of Fine Arts, Golden Gate Bridge, and Land’s End
- Hear guided tour narration in your own language
- Convenient pick up at two San Francisco hotels
- Local expert guide commentary in English
- Foreign language audios for the city tour available (specify at checkout)
- Meals or beverages
- Guide gratuity
Ride in Comfort as You Visit the SF’s Top Attractions.
Ride in comfort, walk the streets and float the bay as you tour the city’s top attractions, including Alcatraz. Our city insider guide goes way beyond “hop on hop off” to deliver a San Francisco sightseeing adventure that’s beyond your wildest dreams.
After a convenient morning pickup at two San Francisco central locations, your city tour begins on San Francisco’s waterfront and rolls through the Marina District. At the lovely Palace of Fine Arts, you will have the chance to stop and photograph the historic building and grounds.
On to the Main Event—a Trip Across the Golden Gate Bridge!
After stopping to photograph the Golden Gate Bridge, this San Francisco city highlights tour will take you to Land’s End where you can stretch your legs while overlooking Sutro Baths and the Pacific Ocean coastline. Later, you will be blown away by the beauty of Golden Gate Park.
For the last portion of the tour, your guide will explain the historic and cultural importance of neighborhoods like Haight-Ashbury, Castro, Nob Hill, and Chinatown. Finally, in North Beach, we’ll point out Lombard Street, Coit Tower, Washington Square and more.
Sail to Alcatraz Island for the Famous Prison Tour
Grab some lunch inFisherman’s Wharf, then make your way to Pier 33 to board your ferry for the Alcatraz Island Prison Tour. The 15-minute sail has incredible views of the city skyline, Golden Gate Bridge, Bay Bridge, San Francisco Bay and Angel Island — have your camera ready!
On arrival to Alcatraz Island, pick up the Cellhouse Audio Tour included with the purchase of this San Francisco and Alcatraz tour package. Hear the voices of prisoners and guards describing their experiences at Alcatraz in English, Spanish, Japanese, French, Italian, German, Dutch or Mandarin.
After touring on Alcatraz Island to your heart’s content, grab one of the returning ferries back to Pier 33. If you’ve worked up an appetite or thirst, there are plenty of Fisherman’s Wharf options before making your own way back to your hotel.
Things to Know About This Tour:
You must bring a government issued photo ID to board the Alcatraz Ferry
Children under the age of 8 must have an appropriate child seat for the city tour
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- Convenient pickup at two San Francisco hotels
- See Fisherman’s Wharf, Pier 39, and the Marina District
- Stop and explore picturesque Palace of Fine Arts
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- Cruise across the iconic Golden Gate Bridge
- Stop at a spectacular vista for photographs
- Take in the Pacific Ocean coastline at Land’s End
- Enjoy panoramic views of Sutro Baths and the Cliff House
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- See Golden Gate Park with its many gardens and museums
- Learn the fascinating history of San Francisco’s Haight-Ashbury
- Roll through San Francisco’s Castro and Mission district neighborhoods
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- Enjoy views of Chinatown, Nob Hill, and the Financial District
- See North Beach, Coit Tower and crooked Lombard Street
- Enjoy lunch in North Beach or Fisherman’s Wharf (not included)
- Say “hi” to the famous San Francisco sea lions
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- Board your ferry for the Alcatraz Island tour at Pier 33
- Enjoy the “The Alcatraz Cellhouse Audio Tour” (foreign languages available)
- Free time to explore Alcatraz Island; take a return ferry to Pier 33
Times listed are approximations. Traffic and unforeseen events can cause delays
Authentic guide!
Our guide was very knowledgeable, enthusiastic, approachable, and thorough. She also adapted well to detours and other unplanned obstacles.
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Nathan M, TrustPilot
Authentic guide!
All in all, we felt the price justified the experience and recommend Extranomical to future visitors to San Francisco.
Our guide was very knowledgeable, enthusiastic, approachable, and thorough. She also adapted well to detours and other unplanned obstacles. She even handled well an interruption by a participant who took a mobile phone call. Moreover, she was authentic and really cared that her guests would have a quality experience.
Nathan M, TrustPilot
Everything we expected!
Our guide Don was excellent. Loved his laid back California vibe. We had a pretty thorough tour of the city, with great commentary. The coach was comfortable & sheltered us from the chill.
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Leenora B Broussard, GetYourGuide
Everything we expected!
Our guide Don was excellent. Loved his laid back California vibe. We had a pretty thorough tour of the city, with great commentary. The coach was comfortable & sheltered us from the chill. By the afternoon, Alcatraz was everything we expected & the boat ride was gorgeous.
Leenora B Broussard, GetYourGuide
Amazing tour!
SF tour and stops at key areas . Alcatraz good and able to stay as long as you want so no pressure!
Jane Corser, GetYourGuide
Awesome tour!
Joseph was our tour guide and Archie was our driver and they made a great team with their combined knowledge from growing up in the area.
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Lindsey Feld, GetYourGuide
Awesome tour!
We did this tour on the first full day we were in San Francisco and we felt it was a great introduction to the city! Joseph was our tour guide and Archie was our driver and they made a great team with their combined knowledge from growing up in the area. Alcatraz was awesome and we were lucky enough to experience it during fleet week with the Blue Angels flying above us. Highly recommended activity!
Lindsey Feld, GetYourGuide
Excellent experience
Both the city bus tour and Alcatraz Island experiences were excellent, with a very experienced and well understood morning tour guide.
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Ralph L Lewis, GetYourGuide
Excellent experience
Both the city bus tour and Alcatraz Island experiences were excellent, with a very experienced and well understood morning tour guide. Unfortunately, coordination between Extranomical and the Guided City Tour people was not as seamless as it should have been. When we arrived in the morning, the on site coordinator didn't have us listed for the afternoon tour and I had to make a last minute phone call to Extranomical to be apprised of the afternoon check-in details.
Ralph L Lewis, GetYourGuide
Very Exceptional!
Tour guide Kimmy collected us on time from our Hotel and proceeded to give us a wonderful insight and tour of San Francisco in her mini bus - 12 people in total and very covid safe
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Suzanne Fitzgerald, TrustPilot
Very Exceptional!
Tour guide Kimmy collected us on time from our Hotel and proceeded to give us a wonderful insight and tour of San Francisco in her mini bus - 12 people in total and very covid safe (masks mandatory) - we covered so much area and learnt so much about each area... history, movie sets and famous people, restaurants to visit, etc - I now feel very wise about SF! We had two stops along the way and even did a trip along the Golden Gate Bridge. Amazing photo's from this vantage point (a whale even made an appearance in the bay on queue). Kimmy's knowledge (being a local) is exceptional! We were then dropped off at the Pier to head off on the Alcatraz tour with plenty of time to buy lunch. Was a really interesting and informative day. (For lunch, if you are not into the hamburgers and fried fish available along the wharf area - cross the road from the pier to a really lovely cafe - beautiful indoors/outdoors, food and bathrooms).
The visit to Alcatraz is a must - very sobering indeed and definitely a 'must do' when in San Francisco. It is a really good idea to research the 'Escape from Alcatraz' story before you go as this will really give you a better understanding of the prison and day-to-day life. When you arrive on Alcatraz - go to the top where the prison is actually located and where you are able to pick up (free) an audio machine to take you on a personal tour.
Excellent tour - highly recommend to all visitors to SF - run by a very professional company.
Suzanne Fitzgerald, TrustPilot
Very enjoyable
Went on the full day tour of San Francisco and Alcatraz. It was very enjoyable. Bus driver Jack was super friendly and Michelle our tour guide was very knowledgeable about San Francisco.
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Ingrid Bennett, TrustPilot
Very enjoyable
Went on the full day tour of San Francisco and Alcatraz. It was very enjoyable. Bus driver Jack was super friendly and Michelle our tour guide was very knowledgeable about San Francisco. Took us to a lot of sights and different areas of the city.
Ingrid Bennett, TrustPilot
A must tour!
The Alcatraz/City tour was good. Our guide showed us all the major sites & explained them well. Alcatraz is a must & the tour made it as easy as possible.
Kerry Dubbert , TrustPilot
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Easily the most comprehensive city tour of San Francisco, we take you to visit the: Ferry Building, Marina District, Palace of Fine Arts, Presidio, Golden Gate Park, Haight-Ashbury, Fisherman’s Wharf, Land’s End, Cliff House, Castro District, Chinatown, Union Square, Lombard Street, North Beach, and, of course—Golden Gate Bridge!
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All tours of Alcatraz are operated by the National Park Service. While rangers are available for questions, the primary content of the tour is delivered through an audio guide available in English, Dutch, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin, Portuguese, Russian, and Spanish languages.
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San Francisco can be chilly in the morning so it’s best to dress in layers and wear comfortable walking shoes or sandals.
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You must present valid government-issued photo identification to pick up your tickets at Alcatraz Pier 33. A photocopy of a passport suffices as valid photo identification.
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Besides your valid government-issued ID, bring a light water-resistant jacket, camera or phone, water bottle, hat, sunscreen, umbrella (if the forecast calls for rain), and a credit card or cash for purchasing souvenirs or snacks.
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The amount of time you can stay on Alcatraz Island is up to you. Return ferries to San Francisco leave the island about every 20 minutes. Most guests find that 2 hours is sufficient time to do the complete prison tour. The ferry between Alcatraz Island and San Francisco takes about 15 minutes.
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Pier 33 Alcatraz Landing is fully accessible. Many areas on Alcatraz Island are also accessible with the use of the S.E.A.T. (Sustainable Easy Access Transport) Tram.
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First, the combo tour makes for an easy, seamless day in which we pick you up at your hotel and deliver you to Pier 33 to catch the ferry to Alcatraz. Also, our contract with the National Park Service allows us access to Alcatraz tickets only when they are part of a tour package.
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Meals are not included on this tour. There are multiple food options available in Fisherman’s Wharf where you can purchase lunch or snacks. Please note that food is not permitted on Alcatraz Island.
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We will manage the day so that you are at Pier 33 one half-hour prior to your departure time to check in. You must present valid government-issued photo identification at the will call booth to collect your Alcatraz tickets.
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Tour operators like Extranomical must purchase the Alcatraz tickets in advance and they may not be transferred or refunded after purchase.
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When you arrive at Pier 33, there is a separate “Will Call” line for visitors to pick up prepaid tickets. Please arrive 30 minutes prior to your departure time to check in. You must present a valid government-issued photo ID or passport.
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There are no dining options on the Island. Guests may bring bottled water to drink. Please plan accordingly and enjoy your lunch after the City Tour and before your Alcatraz experience.