Trip Report: May 16, 2018 5 Night Pacific Coast Cruise – Day 3, Part 1

You can start this trip report from the beginning by clicking here.

Day 3, Part 1: San Francisco & Alcatraz

You can see today’s Navigator by clicking here.

All ashore this day was 7:00 am, but we didn’t need to leave the ship that early for our excursion.  I had set my alarm for 6:45, but woke up at 6:30 as we were docking because of the noise and vibration, I assume which were from the thrusters.  I don’t think we have ever sailed in an aft room before, and I don’t recall (although I have a terrible memory and can’t be certain) it being so loud while pulling in/out of ports when staying midship or forward.  It didn’t really bother us, but I could see how some people would be bothered by it.

Let me talk for a minute about how I decided what to do in this port.  We had never been to San Francisco before, and I have always wanted to visit Alcatraz, so when we booked this cruise that immediately became my first priority.  I would have loved to see other parts of the city as well, but we were only in port until 4:30 so unfortunately we just didn’t have time to see anything else without being rushed (and stressed about missing the ship).  A lovely reader who lives in San Francisco (who I actually ran into several times on the Alaska portion of this cruise, the first one being in the middle of nowhere in the Yukon) even emailed me to offer to take us on a city tour, but I was’t sure how long Alcatraz would take and I didn’t want to be rushed, so unfortunately I had to decline.  In order to visit Alcatraz, you have to go through Alcatraz Cruises to buy admission tickets, the price of which includes the ferry ride to/from the island.  You have to buy tickets for a specific day & time, and they go on sale 90 days prior to the date of the visit.  They often sell out, so if you want to go, buy them as soon as you can.  I think that DCL usually offers this as a port adventure, but I heard that for our sailing, DCL cancelled the Alcatraz port adventure a few weeks prior to sailing and left those people with very few, if any, time choices left to buy tickets on their own.  So, if you really want to go, I would buy the tickets on my own and not book it through DCL.

Our tickets were for 10:00 am, but we were supposed to arrive no later than 9:30 am, so by 8:00 we were all ready and went to Cabanas for breakfast.  This was one of the girls’ plates:

From our table in Cabanas, we could see Alcatraz!  We could also see that it was cloudy and dreary outside.

After breakfast, we went up to deck 10 to get some pictures of the city.  It was also pretty chilly at 53 degrees.

That’s the Golden Gate Bridge back there in the fog.  We sailed under it that morning between 5:00-6:00 am, but we didn’t get up to see it as we knew we would be sailing back under it that afternoon.  I talked to some people who did, and they said it was foggy and mysterious and beautiful.

This was the cruise terminal building that we would walk through to get on/off the ship.  It is at Pier 27.

I wasn’t sure how long it would take us to walk to Pier 33, where Alcatraz Cruises is located, but I knew it was pretty close.  About 9:00 am, we disembarked the ship on deck 4 in the atrium.  This was new to me – I only remember disembarking on decks 1 and 2 in the past.

The terminal building was completely deserted, which felt kind of weird.  I kept wondering if we were going the right way.

Once out of the terminal building, we started walking towards Pier 33.  The entire walk was very pedestrian friendly, with crosswalks and wide sidewalks.

Looking back towards the ship and terminal building:

The weather was in the 50s and windy, but no rain.  I think it eventually got up into the low 60s.

The walk was just a few blocks and only took about 5 minutes.  This is what most of it looked like:

This is Pier 33, home to Alcatraz Cruises and where the ferries dock:

Our tickets were at will call, so I picked them up here:

The area was really pretty, with lots of plants and seating.  There was a gift shop, cafe and snack bar as well, but we didn’t go over there.

We had a few minutes until we were supposed to line up for the ferry, so we walked around and checked things out.

At 9:30, we got into the line to board the ferry, as instructed.

We watched as this ferry docked and unloaded so that we could get on it:

The ferry was large and spacious, and ours wasn’t crowded at all.  There were 2 levels and outdoor seating as well.

The ferry left promptly at 10:00 am, and the ride was short, probably 5-10 minutes.  I took this photo as we were docking at Alcatraz.  You can see just how close we are to the Wonder:

We got off the ferry and I was immediately struck at how beautiful the island is.  There is lush landscaping and beautiful views everywhere you look.

We grabbed a map (they usually cost $1, but a kind stranger gave us one that he was finished with) and headed towards the cell house.  There are a few other buildings that you could go inside of, but we wanted to go straight to the cell house.  I took these photos as we climbed the hills to get there.  Note that the path to get up to the cell house is steep and winding, and would be difficult for those with mobility issues.  Over the entire distance, it covers an elevation equal to a 13 story building.  But, they do have a tram which will take those that need it.

In this photo, you can see the tram at the very top of the path:

The views from everywhere on the island are beautiful:

Another steep path:

We finally reached the cell house and when you first walk in, you are given the option to get the audio tour guide (included in the ticket price).  We got them and are so glad we did.  The audio tour is excellent!  It gives clear instructions about where to start it, when and where to walk, and is narrated by former inmates.  It gives so much interesting information about everything that you are seeing.  Even our kids liked it, and it kept them interested and engaged.

When you first enter and are walking towards the audio guides, you see the shower area:

This is where the audio tour starts.  You can see the red sign showing you where to stand when you press the start button:

There are these great boards all over the building showing you information.  This one is at the beginning and, along with the audio guide, introduces you to the narrators:

This is the D Block, the most secure part of the building.  It was home to the solitary confinement cells:

The cells on the bottom level are the solitary confinement:

Checking out the solitary confinement cells:

The tour gives information about several of the many escape attempts from the island over its 30 years in operation:

The cage below is the “gun galley”, where armed guards would walk.  During one escape attempt, a prisoner scaled the cage and bent the bars enough to slip inside.

This is one of the windows where prisoners would talk to their visitors:

Okay, that’s a lot of photos so I’m going to stop there for now.

Up Next: Day 3, Part 2 -San Francisco & Alcatraz

.

You can read my other trip reports here.

As always, don’t forget to like me on Facebook (click here) and follow me on Pinterest (click here) for all of the latest Disney Cruise Mom Blog updates!

Disclosure: I pay for all of my own Disney vacations, but occasionally I am sent on assignment for a family travel website, kidtripster.com.  We were given one complimentary Alcatraz ticket for the purpose of a review for kidtripster.com.