Reviews of Kingston Penitentiary (Museum)

Mike Mayer

Closed in 2013 but open for tours. Very interesting and informative.

David Schaus

Excellent place to visit. Very interesting history happened here.

Anuj C

Great time to know how it looks like inside of a penitentiary. Tour guide was great and tells you a lot of interesting fact and real stories.

F. M.

We absolutely loved our tour of KP. We have been wanting to go since it closed. It's reasonably priced and worth every penny. Thanks so much to our guide Susan. (aka Calvin :) She was excellent, knowledgeable and friendly. All of the guides were, actually. We really enjoyed the overall experience. I hope someday they open up the underground tunnels to visitors. I'd love to have heard more about them during the tour. (and more ghost stories too, please) We'd really like to go back again someday, soon.

Greg Cook

Highly recommend this tour. Our tour guide was also a retired teacher and a very knowledgeable guy. He had many very interesting facts and stories about true life events their. The tour was at a nice pace with lots of time to view the areas we saw from the cells to the grounds. We were allowed to take pictures and as we entered different areas of the jail each had a former prison guard who detailed what occurred in each spot we toured. We could ask questions and the educational experience was great. The tour we took at 4:00 pm lasted about 1:45 minutes and the temperature being 27 and partly cloudy was just the perfect weather for this type of thing. With a fair amount of walking you might want to consider hot temperatures making this a less pleasant experience. They do have water cooler stations provided throughout with paper cups for free and you are also allowed to bring your own water containers to fill up as well. If you like the jail thing you have got to go to this one..highly recommended by me..enjoy.

Canuck

Tried and tried to book a tour online but was never able. Back from visiting Niagara Falls, I decided to stop at the KP to see if I can buy tickets ... lo and behold, they had room for the next visit. Boy what a treat! There is so much history there and the stories the guard tell are chilling.

Pravesh Sharma

Nice place for a walkthrough in penitentiary, knowledgeable guide, we came to know about real life jail experience and some enjoyable stories. Overall great experience but should have option to opt in non guided tours as well for some photo enthusiasts. Otherwise guided trips are also worth.

john geiger

Great tour! BOOK WELL IN ADVANCE! long tour way better than the short one....but short is still great!

var0831

Very knowledgeable tour guide and area staff. Fascinating facts of which we weren't aware. Gift shop had minimal items as it was end of season.

Nagabandi Dheeraj Kumar

It’s a great place to visit and know how correction center worked for ages. There are retired people who guided the entire tour with their experiences added. The stories from various inmates are very interesting. It’s expensive but half of the money goes for donation.. also it’s worth for what you experience there.

Meghan M.

Our tour guide Calvin, was absolutely amazing! So knowledgeable about all the history about the prison and made the tour fun and interactive! Was the absolute best way to spend my birthday! Will be back again for sure!

Wayne Louie

The fellow newest stuff, and it was a thorough history. Plan for it taking longer than expected...

Anthony Lombardo

My girlfriend really wanted to go and I thought it would be boring but let me tell you I was wrong. The penitentiary tour was amazing. The team working here were very knowledgeable. What I liked the most, was that we were able to ask questions to the guys that worked there. Will be back one day to do the extended tour.

Lisa McY

We got to speak to retired Guards that worked at the Pen for decades. It was incredibly intriguing and their stories and candor made this a truly incredible experience. Amelia was knowledgeable and engaging as our tour guide. Well worth the time and money!

Ashish Castelino

Book your tour in advance as they are sold pretty soon. Well guided tour with emphasis on architecture and stories. Certainly takes you back in time.

angeles sevilla

Really cool experience with good displays. Our tour guide was very well informed and timing was great. Only wished we had seen more of the inside. Will be getting the extended tour next time :) Heads up: even if show on time and check in- if you go to the bathroom (there's only one in the entrance). Tour will start and leave without you ???? no refunds or time change. We drove 2 hours there and all had to pee so we missed a bit of the beginning but found the group not much later.

Tia Allison

A very educational tour of KP. The time flew by and our guide new her facts. It was interesting hearing from retired Correctional guards about their job. Well worth the money.

EXOTIC

very good staff. very knowledgable. only thing i can say to the 1h30min tour is longggg! really fun to do with a partner or friend.

Mary Buynak

This was a fantastic tour and I've recommended it to many friends and family. I loved that former prison guards are now providing the tours with stories from their time working at the Kingston Penitentiary. I'd love to visit again for another tour.

irene thomas

It was such a great experience visiting the King Pen and we had a very amazing tourist guide Karleigh. It’s a must to go to place when you are visiting Kingston. Full of history!!

Ashley Purvis

Great experience. Great covid protocols, amazing history being shared by the talented volunteers. Love it

Mike Al-Abiad

This is a place worth a visit because of the remarkable information provided by the tour. Booking a reservation was simple and parking was provided.

Brad Hall

Great tour. Lots of information. Safe and practice social distancing very well.

S G

Did this tour the first year it was opened to the public and it was amazing. Just did the tour again -the extended version- and it was just as good as the first time. Knowledgeable guides combined with former corrections officers is a perfect way to present this historic place. Highly recommend to anyone visiting Kingston.

Francesco Ferrara

Worth the tour We took the basic tour of the grounds, it was amazing as our tour guide was very knowledgeable. You are guided around the grounds and make stops in key areas where staff (past employees of Canada's penitentiary system) share stories and explain the importance of the section you are in. These staff members were very kind and were able to share unique stories from their time in their careers. Overall the experience was great and my group learned alot. I can see this being great for all ages as the tour was never scary or traumatic.

Amanda Huang

Had an awesome time here! It's sort of pricey but definitely worth a visit! I did the 1.5 hour standard tour and Dave shared information about KingPen (the building layout and how things ran) and stories about the riots and prison escapes. There were 3 other speakers, all of which use to work at KP, who shared their experiences. All the staff were friendly and knowledgeable. I've learned a lot from this trip and as a criminology/sociolegal studies graduate, I was very happy with the experience of the tour. The tour had indoor and outdoor portions so dress appropriately and wear comfortable shoes. Rain or shine, tour proceeds.

Brook Glinski

Easy to find, took the tour and it was really cool being able to go in and out of cells and other areas. The iconic circular range was breathtaking. You walk in and can feel the history. I recommend this tour to anyone and everyone. The gift shop was really awesome too.

Jim Thibault

One time the Kingston Penitentiary used to be our Max Security Penitentiary. Very old and very historic. The tour tells you why it was shut down history and stories. You need to book in advance, but it is worth the trouble

Bob E

Tour was fascinating and educational. What made this tour totally awesome was our guide, Calvin. Calvin not only led us around and presented all the interesting items and facts but he did it with wit and a great sense of humour. Thank you Calvin for making this visit so much more fun ????

Amanda O'Brien

We took the extended tour and it was so worth it. Calvin was amazing. Literally the best tour guide we could have asked for. His knowledge of the facilities and the additional personal research he provided showed he truly appreciated his job and it was a passion for him...which made our experience so much more fulfilling. Great job Calvin, you made our day! We're looking forward to coming back again with the kids! Thank you

Colin Deans

Had the opportunity to take the extended tour and it was outstanding. The personal insights that you get from the tour guides, which include previous guards of the plants, is invaluable. It was a great insight to what life would be in Kingston Pen. Look forward to going back again, one day.

Brianna

Amazing! I did the standard tour which was an hour and half and really informative. The guide was knowledgeable and the staff were so friendly. The gift shop is small but has cool items for sale. Highly recommend going here if you're in the area for a very surreal, very unique experience!

Kathleen Kalpakis

Took a day trip to Kingston and did the tour. Really interesting. I had know idea about the history and was just amazed. It was certainly worth the money and the drive. I'd certainly go again.

Shash Anand

Awesome experience! Julia is hilarious and very knowledgeable! Learned a lot!

Andrew Weir

What a place to go. When we visit we get out. The tour was intresting and informative. Will go back and do the longer 3 hour tour.

Ian Totman

Great tour. Knowledgeable tour guide plus informative short talks from retired employees at a number of locations. Recommend getting tickets in advance.

Rob Neilly

Well, we'll worth the admission. Sombre, sobering, but fascinating. Knowledgeable tour guide (thanks, Shawna!), plus retired guards, keepers and wardens who talk about their time and careers. For the sensitive visitor: you are going to *feel* this...

Jason Whelan

What an epic tour. This was very well organized during the re opening after the lockdown. Putting all of yourselves at risk so the rest of us can have some fun I will never forget. Our guide was awesome. It was nice to talk some guards who use to work at KP. The stories we were told, its as if we were right there.....way to go KP staff

Jake Wiebe

Loved the tour! Very informative and interesting!

Katherine Howett

Excellent tour, well worth the trip to check this out! Full 1.5hour tour just flies by with all of information and sights on the tour. Our tour guide, Gareth, was engaging and truly made the place come alive with stories about specific spots and plenty of information about the prison from the building itself to events that happened within. Certain points have information told from former employees of the penitentiary who can tell about what things were like working and can answer plenty of questions. The tour flew by and even with some inclement weather they made sure to make it a great time!

Luke Kumar

Kingston Pen tours was amazing! Lots of history.

Annie Murray

Super interesting place to visit. We really enjoyed hearing the stories from the retired prison guards.

Jessica Paige

Ill first start this post in a positive way. The architecture of the building is stunning. I thoroughly enjoyed walking through the buildings- the gloomy rainy day gave it some spooky vibes, which was cool since halloween is approaching. Our tour guide was Shawna. She was very energetic and projected her voice nicely so everyone in the group could hear her, she didn't waste time and kept us moving around the facility. We went on the 2 hour tour which came highly recommended by friends/coworkers - Once the tour was done I was kinda underwhelmed (to be completely honest) I know and understand that the staff of the Kingston Pen are limited by the Privacy act (therefore they cannot share confidential information about specific prisoners etc) However, I felt that the stories shared from ex-correctional officers, along with the stories shared by our tour guide were very generic and almost robotic. I really wish they were able to share moments that they personally experienced they had while working at the jail, or share stories that had been passed along to them during their tenure at Kingston Pen.... to make the tour feel more personalized. Spending over $70 per ticket should leave you with more stories of its history...rather than what the prisoners did "day to day"

Andrew

Just to walk around this place was awesome. We did the 2.5hrs tour. Our guide, Hanna, was fantastic and informative! My only complaint is that the place had been gutted. Would have been nice to see it more of how it was and of course more of it. Other than that, we had a great time!

Edgard Rodriguez

Very unique visit to a maximum security jail. The guide was very nice (Emma) and the different stops with former employees were really interesting. Worth your time. Hope they continue these tours.

Amy Schroter

An informative tour of the Old KP is well worth the admissions fee. Proceeds are donated to charity and the tour members are knowledgeable and friendly. Vern was a particular favourite of mine recounting memories of the riot at the institution. This is an absolute part of Canadian history - and an excellent insight into what prisoner life looked like up until 2013. A must do!

Mike Green

Well worth the money for the tour. My family loved our kind, thoughtful tour guide. I never knew the penitentiary grounds were this expansive. My view of the place is forever changed.

Karen Wilson

Very interesting and informative tour. Learned many new things.

Trotts Tw

I took the extended tour. Which was 2.5 hrs. Which was 1hr to long. I found alot of the rooms we were shown were just empty rooms. No access to the guard turrets. I found it pretty boring. No fault of the tour guide.

Joe Buturajac

Loved the tour. We did the 90 minute tour. Very educational. Highly recommend the visit.

Kanishk Noel

Great tour, albeit a bit rushed

Kathleen Décosse

Very detailed tour with real retired guards giving stories and information!

Ashly Baldwin

Great time, on the extended tour well worth the money , Shawna was an excellent tour guide very knowledgeable and fun ! 100,% will do this again

Creasy

Booked the extended tour on a Saturday months in advance. Tours book up fast and only run from May to the first weekend in September. The pro of the extended tour was a smaller group (15 people), however I felt it dragged on and could have been shorter. I personally wouldn’t recommend the extended tour. The regular tour is a larger group of 30 people. Definitely a must to do in the Kingston area.

Larry

Nice place to visit.... Tour was a little long considering many items were taken out of the jail. Tour took us into many rooms that were empty with leaving us with our own imagination and their vague description of what the rooms were for. I still recommend a visit if you haven't been.... But maybe just a regular tour... No need to up grade.

A D'Silva

Heard a lot but was fully booked. Book Online to avoid disappointment

mike cowan

Great tour! Very informative and interesting. The prison is actually older than Canada! Tour guide was funny, and full of knowledge.

Tracy Pearson

Great tour! Wished the weather was warmer but overall, great information given. The guides answered questions and were very informative. Pretty crazy seeing inside the penn where some of the most notorious men in Canada were doing time. Worth the money to go check it out!!

donovan cherryholme

Great place awesome tour and the tour guide Emma was awesome ..keep Canadian history alive

Joel Myers

Very interesting architecture and history! The guide was very knowledgeable. Highly recommended.

John Cartmel

Great tour with lots of historical stories.

Fat and Funny

Go to jail! Kingston penitentiary was an active prison until about 15 years ago. Take a tour and see how prisoners lived. Hear about escape attempts and what prison life was like for staff as well. You’ll even have the opportunity to speak to guards who worked there. Great tour.

Joe Wright

Had a great tour and time. Our Guide was very knowledgeable and very nice. Would definitely recommend going on the extended tour.

Adam Franklin

This was a great tour, we did the short tour and I wish now we had done the long one instead. The guides are knowledgeable about the site and answered all the questions our group had.

Ahmad Khodaparast

That was awesome trip to see historical place and our guide Melina she was the best and also who was working there the correctional officers they were retired so explaining lots of things about this place for us I really enjoyed.

Kenneth Kissmann

This is a must experience for anyone and everyone old enough to understand right from wrong. The personal experiences expressed by the retired Prison Guards who worked at this historical site was great. walking the buildings and the grounds really made me think of both the victims of the people sent here and the people in care of their care. Being able to see how the buildings changed purpose as society moved from punishment only to rehabilitation.

Kattannia Kate

It was an amazing tour thanks to our tour guide AUSTIN!!! ❤️

David Hopkinson

Very cool tour and awesome that they had retired wardens there to tell some of their stories. Really really fascinating. There were unfortunately a few areas that we didn't get to see due to a film crew working there. And I'm not sure how much the privacy laws they say prevent them from talking about specific prisoners really apply like they say they do but I guess better safe than sorry. Still a very cool place to visit while in Kingston.

Karen Charles

We did the extended tour yesterday. The weather was hot but the breeze was nice. They had hydrating stations all over the prison which made it bearable. It was amazing to get first hand accounts of the daily life at Kingston Pen from former employees. Calvin was amazing!! So funny and very informative. We throughly enjoyed our tour!! Thank you Calvin for the great tour!! We highly recommend this tour if you are in the area!!

Andrew McCutcheon

Great tour. The tour guides were awesome even though we weren't allowed into the facilities. Looking forward to going back when we can go through the buildings.

Sheila Anne Dunwoodie

We did the 90 minute tour and it was excellent. Very informative, and our guide Austin answered our many questions with aplomb. The retired guards/wardens etc who animate parts of the tour are fantastic as well. Highly recommend visiting KP when you're in Kingston. Dress for the weather, as a good portion of the tour is outside.

Brent R

Great museum tour with so much history! Retired CSC officers are part of the tour and tell you really interesting things, along the way.

H Henson

This is a rare gem. When you see inside it, it so much different than what you may have imagined. The guides also give you a great overview of a complex history.

J Beechu

The staff were very good to my Mom and offered her a wheelchair when she got tired walking. We went last summer and it was a hot day. Good personal stories from past employees and interesting history. I purchased a book in their little gift shop - Who Killed Ty Conn which made for a very interesting read about the last guy to escape. Excellent tour!

joe serson

It was the best tour I have ever been on. The feeling you get when you walk in is amazing. I couldn't keep track of how many times all my hair stud up and the air got really cold then it passes. So many gost in there I could feel them. It would have got 5 stars but the tour only went through half of the penitentiary all and all its awesome.

iman s.sarraf

Amazing place. We (my wife and I) took the architecture tour (a bit more than 1.5 hours) and it was great. Our tour guide was amazing and we learnt many things about the Kingston pen. What great stories. I would strongly recommend you to visit this place. It will be a different experience for you.

Scott Richardson

Very cool and interesting tour, so much history and so many events to consider

Ryan Adelson

Amazing adventure through history. Was a great experience that I highly recommend to anyone looking for something to do in Kingston. Our tour guide was a big part of the reason or experience was so good.

Anne McLean

Great tour of the Penn and lots of interesting info

Margie

It was great tour. Very knowledgeable staff. Talks with retired guards.

Lucie Ferland

Excellent tour guide at 13h For our kingston pen visit If you can reserve it we took the extended tour ! Awesome ????

Ashley Leeman

Interesting tour with some cool info

Ed Mark

Such an interesting place with a lot of history behind it.

Jessie Cee

The tour is great. The guides are funny, friendly and informative. We loved the opportunity to speak with ex-guards and staff of the facility. The staff were very accommodating to myself and my support dog. They offer water, places to sit and always offered to help me up any stairs. The grounds were very clean. We had a great time and would defiantly visit again if we are in the area again. We would love to do the extended tour if given the chance. If you're on the fence, just do it. You will not regret it.

Dave Swinkels

Had a great tour guide. Very informative former staff that share stories. Surreal experience.

Clara F

Really glad we did this tour. Julia, our guide, was funny and very knowledgeable. The retired staff that talked to us throughout the tour had interesting stories and added the perfect touch. Would definitely recommend.

Sydney Weaver

Throughly enjoyed my tour. I went on the extended tour it ABSOLUTELY worth the additional fee. Staff was super friendly. As person with a disability I was pleasantly surprised by the accessibility of Kingston Pennitentry. There is one area that is not accessible. But, the staff are able to accommodate this. If you enjoy Canadian history, or criminal law history this place is a must visit!

Derek Stoppels

Awesome tour! Knowledgeable and friendly staff. Great facility and awesome stories. Would be cool if the tour could be self guided with staff in costume p role playing the life of a prisoner but I love that they left a lot of the art work up on the walls!

Corelia Greau

The best visit I ever got, the story is fascinating and the buildings are splendidly made! A place to-visit at your Kingston vacation

Becca H

We did the extended tour with Calvin, I 100% recommend it and if you can get Calvin as your guide you are in luck. He is so knowledgeable and funny. Hearing the retired guards speak was definitely an added bonus, loved hearing their stories and experiences.

Arlene Provost

The extended tour is so informative and interesting. Awesome stories. Highly recommended!

Greg “GregTheTurk” Turcotte

Our tour guide was great! Was very neat to see and learn about the history of the building. I’d recommend the longer tour if you a bit more interested in the penitentiary. I was left wanting to seen more after the tour.

Cathy T (Heartcat)

I wasn't particularly interested in touring the Kingston Penitentiary during our stop in Kingston, but my husband was, so we bought tickets. I am so glad that we did! It was interesting and informative. If you are unsure whether or not to go, do it! Well worth the price! I felt a myriad of emotions during the tour. It was somewhat surreal imagining the place during its time of use, and thinking about some of the more infamous prisoners who had been incarcerated there. There are some lovely interior spaces, which I did not expect. The guides at the different stopping points had formerly worked at the penitentiary and offered personal insight. I remember the 1971 riot being in the news when I was a child. Standing in that central spot, with the corridors that housed the prisoners, seeing the guard house, and hearing a recount of the riot was somewhat unsettling but quite an experience. You can take photos but no video or audio. And because of the Privacy Act they will not share information about individual prisoners who were at the Kingston Pen. So don't go expecting to get details about any of the previous inmates. It was a fabulous experience though and I highly recommend it.

Elizabeth Coulas

Shawna was an awesome tour guide! I went to school for criminology so I was very interested in this tour but was unsure that my mom would have any interest but Shawna kept the whole group interested with stories and encouraged guests to ask questions and kept everyone engaged. Tours during Covid have a max number of 15 guests with social distancing guidelines outlined in the beginning however could be encouraged more throughout tour. We did the 1.5 hour regular tour and I felt it was enough but would be interested to hear more stories from retired guards. Kingston Pen was definitely worth the stop between our Toronto-Ottawa drive!

Lesley B

A must do tour. I have done twice and both times were a little different and very informative.

Frank Legros

Great walk through, very educational. Clearly an eye opener on the life of an inmate. Worth the price of entry.

Hayley Scanlan

Took the standard tour. The guide and former Correction employees provided historical information but only from the Corrections point of view. Insight from inmates point of view would make the tour a more balanced and enlightening experience.

Kevin Meloche

It's one if those places you've heard stories about. It's an amazing perspective on a part of society that we fortunately don't experience. Absolutely worth the time to see it.

Marcus H!!

The Kingston pen has an eerie feel to it and that is a part of the charm. Be sure to catch the seasonal tours in summer.

Steve Corbell

A very interesting and informative tour of a true piece of Canadian History. Nice touch having former staffers contribute to the tour as well. Allow a good 2 hours at least.

Matt Andison

Pretty cool place to visit tour guide was good at explaining things and answering questions there's even 2 ex prison guards there that tell you a short story

Magenta Colour

I'm glad I went. Learned a lot. Hope to go again sometime.

Ben Deeke

Interesting and historic, staff are informative. Lots of parking and easy to get to.

Tom Uzi

What a giant space that is now a tourist attraction. For the age of this place it does not look run down. It was really cool but not sure if it was worth $35 per person. I say this because I know I could have seen more. The retired staff was excellent and well versed. Tom and Cindy were very nice and approachable. We saw a raccoon and a fox on the campus. The parking is free out front. We got tickets online and they scanned my phone screen when I got there. Bring an umbrella if its raining, you go from building to building.

Carlo Franco

Excellent tour and history of the penitentiary. Great place for instagrammable shots. Highly recommend booking well in advance as the tours fill up quickly.

Carl weng

Cameron was very knowledgeable! Very informative tour to understand the judicial and jail system in Canada. Practiced Social distance while enjoying the tour. It also had water breaks in between. Be able to chat with previous employee was a highlight. ???????? well organized.

Victoria Fawcett Bice

Went to a concert here. Rockin The Big House. Best concert of my life so far. Amazing venue. Very chilling grounds. Would love to take a tour. Everything that happened there didn't escape me despite having a great time. Even from the outside the pen is polarizing.

Shanda Pinpoint

My husband and I visited this penitentiary in August 2020 and it was great. We came here after a few days of our wedding day and the service was amazing, and the man at the door gave us a little gift to congrats us. The guides are nice and explained us everything clearly and made us laugh a lot. I recommend that people come and visit this place and you will not be disappointed. Call in advanced as tickets sale quickly. Here are just a few pictures.

Jenna Berlett

Fun tour of the penitentiary. Knowledgeable tour guide and great stories from former employees.

Alicia B

The extended tour was fantastic. Each of the former guards were fantastic story tellers. We saw a fox and it was super cute. I really liked the escape stories too.

Dan McIntosh

We completely enjoyed our tour of Kingston Pen! Our guide, Dave, told some great stories, making it both fun and informative. If you're visiting Kingston, this tour should top your list of things to do!

John Mitchell

Awesome tour! Didn't know what to expect (haven't toured any historical sites). Took the extended tour and it was just right for length. Very interesting throughout. Enjoyed stories from tour guide and first-hand accounts from retirees.

Evgeny Melyushchuk

Great tour. Premium tour is well worth it. Guard's stories are the best. Also since you are already there check out Canadian Penitentiary Museum across the street (entrance by donation).

Catherine Steranka

Calvin was a great tour guide...former warden and correctional officers had great stories!

Charlene Gibb

Wow! My hubby and I took the 'Film Tour' and it blew us away! The tour guides are extremely knowledgeable, some are even prior guards and employees. Highly recommend! I'd give it 10 stars, if I could.

Neb Boulianne

Very cool stop for the family

Kendra Thibert

We loved visiting the Kingston Penitentiary! We took the extended tour and they were shooting a show at the penitentiary while we were there so we received complementary gift certificates for the shop there. The tour was informative and our guide was very friendly and knew a lot. Would recommend for anyone going to Kingston

Malcolm Peralty

Our tour guide Austin did a great job. He was a fast talker, but easy to understand, he was informative and funny. I enjoyed our experience and only wish we could have stayed longer.

Dave Merritt

Great tour showing clearly why no one should do anything to land themselves in prison. Recommended.

Nikki K (nikkitheknack)

I took the standard 1.5-hour guided tour and really enjoyed it! The guide takes you around the grounds as well as inside the penitentiary; you stop at a number of significant spots, where the tour is turned over to former employees who share their stories and wealth of knowledge about the place. The tour guides - main and specialized - were very knowledgeable and happy to answer questions. I'd gladly go back for the extended tour!

Brad Fraser

A wonderful experience. The stories from the former guards make the tour....

Mark Phipps

What an enjoyable experience! Good customer service, a parking lot with free parking, knowledgable tour guide with stops along the way so people could rest. It was like visiting a city inside is a city. Highly recommended!

Marilyn Yeo

This place is full of history and interesting stories! It sells out quickly online—so make sure to book your tickets in advance. We did the film tour, but we'll definitely be back to do the regular history tour!

Colleen Dow

Had Austin as our tour guide. He was excellent, as were the other guides stationed throughout the penitentiary. Very informative and friendly! Highly recommend!

Rony Sikder

A fantastic place to take a tour of a Prison in Canada. The tour guide was very knowledgeable and as you go into different areas, they introduce people that actually used to work in the prison! Very interesting story to listened to while strolling through different parts of the penitentiary. Free parking on site

Regan Smith

Interesting but never really gets to the parts you want to hear about.

Charmaine Naomi

I was so impressed with the extended tour!!! I was absolutely blown away. Mary was our tour guide, and she made the experience even better. She wasn’t boring at all and presented the information very well. I’d highly recommend that you do the extended tour as you get to see other areas of the penitentiary that the standard tour doesn’t cover.

Everett Hilts

Cool experience seeing it, I wouldn't want to live there.

Alan H. Asgari (TrggrNoMNoM)

Cool place, lots of history. A popular filming location with lots of public tours. Go check it out.

J J

Great experience. Very informative.

Rebecca Stenabaugh

Excellent tour and history lesson. Tour guides are extremely knowledgeable and most have worked there with lots of stories

Leanne Beatty

It was a great tour..seeing the movie and show sets was cool

Tomas Burget

Our tour guide Garth made this a memorable experience! Well done to all of the retired officers that share their stories and detailed history of Kingston Pen.

Stephanie Wong

Had a great time on the standard tour learning about the history of the Kingston Pen. Our tour guide, Sarah, was enthusiastic and made our experience a memorable one! Would recommend.

Carmine Diodati

Julia was our guide, she was great, knowledgeable and funny. We went with teenage kids and they enjoyed the tour as well. Also some good stories from ex correctional officers. We visited October 2021

Elia Skarda

I took the tour with my parents on August 23rd and it was an absolutely fascinating tour. The architecture was gorgeous, the history was horrifying, and the tour guides couldn't have been nicer. Maude was lovely. Highly recommended.

John McCullough

Excellent tour by guide Calvin. He is very familiar with the history of the institution and adds humour to his presentation.

Nadia Larouche

I highly recommend this tour (followed by a quick trip to the museum across the street). The tour is highly informative of the penal system in Canada - which differs from the American system we are so often subjected to in films and documentaries. I truly appreciated that some of the guides at different spots in the prison were once Kingston Pen guards. Their input and personal experience makes the stories they tell that much more unique and authentic. Great learning opportunity that I’m glad I took part of. You won’t regret it!

sean taylor

Excellent place to visit not stay. Very interesting was a great time

Eric Byers

AMAZING! ???? Would love to do a more in depth tour and see a lot more of the prison. The tour we did was great and great people doing the tours with lot of information. The guards that used to work there had great stories to tell and I'm sure they have more then what time allowed. I will definitely be back here!!???????????????? the tour guide Gareth was great, very understanding, knowledgeable and funny.

Wayne Cronier

It wasn't a bad tour for the price, our tour guide was pretty funny guy. It was a little hard to hear when they were telling stories about the place. Over all I would go again on an extended tour.

Dave Norton

Great experience.had a blast.tried to lock wife in cell but they let her out.good times for all.

Yousuf N

It was a great experience overall. The waiver form and the restrictions are a bit too much but they do not really interfere with your prison experience. The best part is hearing from the retirees about the riots and how the prison system changed. Getting to know about their experiences firsthand is great. It is a great one-time experience.

Thomas Dowrick

Very interesting, our guide was so good, informative and great to listen to. Well worth a visit

William Garrett

Really cool tour of this facility. I liked that they had a variety of staff that actually worked in the penitentiary. The stories and locations are fascinating and we'll worth the money!

Dolores Langille

Found the tour very interesting was worth the fee Tour guides were former employees for the most part and were very informative with their stories

Sa Gr

We were in 1st day after they opened due to COVID. Ben gave a great tour. It was interesting seeing the inside.

Douglas Thorlakson

Excellent tour, great experience (definitelybetter than the real inmateshad). Makes one appreciate freedom and simple things you take for granted.

Tracy Greer

It was something I really wanted to visit for a long time. I was not disappointed. The retired guards were telling us some great stories about the inmates that were in there. Very informative. Our guide was very patient and answered all our questions. Highly recommended to visit

Richard Saucier

Great tour. Learned a lot about life on the inside. Nice old buildings.

Gregory G

We did not take part in the tour for the Kingston Penitentiary but if we were to go to Kingston again I would definitely take a tour! We did spend some time walking around the outside grounds which are pretty interesting! We also got a great view of the penitentiary from the water during our Thousand Island cruise!

Kris N

We did the 2.5 hour extended tour yesterday with Amelia. She was very knowledgeable and shared history and information about the penitentiary as if it were a story rather than just throwing out disconnected facts at us. The storytelling brought the infoshe shared with us to life. It was super hot yesterday and started to rain during the last few minutes of our tour. Wear sunscreen, bring an umbrella, come with water (there were plenty of cold water coolers "water stations" at stops throughout our tour to refill bottles or get a drink with provided disposable cups) ...dress for the weather. When we stopped for our guide to share info with us, she made sure that there were opportunities for us to stand or sit in the shade when we had to be outdoors. My partner and I both loved the tour. At certain stops along our journey, she turned it over to ex-guards who used to work in the penitentiary for us to hear first hand stories of their experiences during their shift as well as stories of the riot and routines. Was awesome to talk one on one with these guards during transitioning to the next tour stop. I think they were among our favourite moments and if possible it would be great to add 5 minutes or so into the end of their presentations for visitors to wander in the space and have more intimate conversations with the guards. Over all it was a great experience. And well worth the time and money.

Paul Carr

Wonderful tour with people that used to work there nice hearing the story's. Well worth the price.

Rich Pinkerton

Book a tour now! The guides are excellent and several stops have former guards talking about their time at the pen. And if you are a movie or Canadian tv series enthusiast, you will see some familiar places!

DrIrfanJ

An absolute must-visit for a rich lesson in history and to learn how inmates were living in prisons. It’s a 90 minute tour and our guide Julia was amazingly knowledgeable and witty during the trip. Plus get your chance to take mug-shots or behind bars pictures too!

Margarita PB

Definitely worth visiting especially if you are into architecture and history. We had an excellent tour guide named Austin - he provided a lot information in a fun and engaging manner.

Vincent McKie

The tour was interesting and informative. The tour guide, Amelia, was knowledgeable and funny. The Penitentiary appears deceptively small from the outside but is actually quite large. One could easily get lost if you stray from your tour group. Hearing from the former guards about their experiences there was definitely a highlight. A lot to see. I took over 100 pictures. ????

Toon Leetoon

I was on the extend tours and it is worth every penny!!. It was a mindblowing facts and experiences of a life time!. Informative stuff and our guide she was friendly and funny! Makes the tour more enjoyable and memorable. I would like all the to say THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE to all the stuff and the correction officer -who are guides in this tour-. I enjoyed my time and gained a lot of knowledge thank you!!.

A B

Awesome tour. Very informative guides and former workers.

Dave Williams

Extended tour was great and informative. Parking was available. Much walking and numerous stairs. Worth the time and money.

Caroline Laviolette

The tour guide was extremely knowledgeable and the tour was very informative. Several covid measures in place to help keep everyone safe. Bring your own water bottle and comfortable shoes - lots of walking on uneven ground.

Steve Carr

A very interesting and informative visit. We took the standard tour, and there was so much to take in that we may go back again. Calvin was a great tour guide and made for a really entertaining time (terrible puns and dad jokes included). Be forewarned, there is a lot of walking both indoors and out. The tour is accessible but some of the ramps outside of the buildings are not quite level to the ground and be can a little challenging if you're pushing someone in a wheelchair as I was. And you will encounter hills and fine gravel outside. Just make sure you arrive about 20 mins before your scheduled tour. There was a line up outside when we arrived and we ended up being about 10-15 minutes late for our tour. The gift shop at the end of the tour was very sparsely stocked, but it is a prison not an amusement park. All in all, a very educational and eye opening experience. Well worth the trip.

Agustina Alcantara

Good tour and interesting stories. Previous employees, guards, nurses share stories of how it was when they worked there.

Jasmine Jackman

Standard tour: worthwhile but pricey. $40.00 per person. Interesting history.

Dave Neugebauer

Our first time to KP. Our tour guide Calvin was exceptional. We enjoyed the stories from the retired guards. We did the standard 1.5 hr tour. Definitely worth seeing! Side note, too bad the museum across the road is not open due to covid.. we will have to come back once it is open.

Tanya Knight

This was so eye opening. I had no idea how they operated. Not that I ever want to know first hand. Lol. The tour guide David was amazing. Would def recommend. If/when we come back, I think we will do the extended your.

Natalie M

Loved this tour. The stories and information given was great. Very fun and informative experience !

Lisa Weaver

Amazing to learn of history...great architecture...a must visit for everyone

Larry Bender

Very excellent tour. Interesting and informative. A must do in Kingston.

Ian Jones

I did the extended tour which was 2 1/2 hours long. The tour was so interesting that when the tour guide said we had 15 minutes left and one more place to see I was surprised. The time just flew by. The tour guide was very knowledgeable and answered all the questions. It is a very informative tour with each area also having a past employee tell you about the area. I would recommend this to anyone.

Cassidy Conway

Extended tour included personal stories and tales rich in history. Would give 5/5 if investments were made to mock-up old classrooms, fill empty workshops, maintain buildings, etc. I hope this unique program continues to awe and educate for many years to come.

paul fortuna

Very cool tour! Learned a lot about the history of Kingston penitentiary.

Shirley Danielson

Wonderful tour. Tour guide was well informed.

Akhearix Archer

Great trip. My kids were brats so it was hard to learn, but the staff was great and understanding. Would do again

Lauri Jane

Gareth was a FANTASTIC tour guide. It was worth the money for the extended tour. Wear comfort clothes and shoes..bring water

Janet

Great history tour but some guides could have shown a little more interest.

Kiara Verde

Such an awesome tour with Emma! She’s so funny and has plenty of knowledge and stories! The prison is so cool to walk around, I’ll definitely be back. I heard they want to tear the prison down to build condos. Keep the Canadian history alive!!

Denise MacKenzie

Loved this. Pricey but it was really cool. Wear good shoes, lots of walking. I had no idea prisoners inside had a carpertry shop, mattress shop (and other shops) and had a contract with Canada post.

debbie offord

Absolutely interesting!! And our tour guide Charlotte was fabulous covered lots of history. ????

Ronald Laurie

Sobering visit. It makes you realize all Canadians are not nice. The tour guide (a former guard) was articulate and knowledgable. Since we were told only one successfully escaped, it must have been effective prison.

Alan Baker

Took the standard tour - very informative - lasted about 2 hrs. Normally the tour is led by a student guide with former prison guards providing detailed explanations about specific areas (like the dissociation unit - the 'hole'). Our group was led by a prison guard for the entire tour - I think we may have missed out on some of the more general information about the prison. What I really liked about the tour was that the prison was left in it's natural state - when we visited the cell block it felt like it was still occupied. $35 - very good value.

Tom Kerr

Great tour of a historic site. Tour guide was very knowledgeable and the special guides on the extended tour were great.

Becky P

Loved it! Our tour guide Shawna was excellent and all the former employees of the pen had very interesting stories. Great tour highly recommend.

Annette Cote

What a great tour! Just long enough to see what life was like for the inmates and guards. Highly recommend.

Loy Sequeira

Fun tour!!

Valerie Fox

What a place totally awesome great tour very informative staff. You got to see this at least once

M

Really cool experience. Great tour and lots of neat information. Will likely go again and do the extended tour next time!

S S

Really interesting and informative tour. It was cool to hear some stories and the history behind the prison. The building has some neat architecture and designs as well.

Tyler Chapman

Great tour but felt like it left something to desire, should have done the extended but all in all very informative

Natasha Bidinost

Great experience! Very knowledgeable tour guides!

Jeannie Coderre

Awesome experience. Highly recommend. Done the 2.5 hour extended tour. I would do it again for sure.

Stephen Courtney

The only thing criminal about this tour was the price. I expected more of a museum. How about having actors playing roles of prisoners and tell stories.Was hard to hear the former guards, and everything was rushed. Plus our guide was pretty unapproachable and not at all friendly, shouting at someone because they forgot to wear their mask was a bit much.

marvin stapleton

Paid for the upgraded tour. Imelia the guide was phenomenal, well spoken, very knowledgeable and enthusiastic. Lots to see and learn. Thank you!

Penny Needham

Wowza!! What a tour! This made for an amazing day!! What lives were lived behind those walls!!

Shannon Allen

Very interesting and educational. Dress for the weather as about half the tour is outside. Wear comfy shoes because there is a lot of walking. Splurge on the extended it’s definitely a great afternoon:)

Rusty O

I found the tour informative but I would have liked to see more of the jail only got to see a few of the cells most of the tour is the corridors and the yard.

Alan Young

Awesome tour. Highly recommended. Tour guide,Emilia,was very good. The retired guards at each station were very interesting. Wish I could have spent more time there.

Rob Istead

Former workers help with the tour, its a must do if you are in town.

Sue Voigtlander

Very informative. Appreciated the personal stories of former guards, nurses and even a Warden

Candace Mac Innis

I’ve been twice and each time was great. It’s awesome that you can get stories from retired guards. Although very informative and interesting to finally see inside such a place. It has become a commercialized tour, some of the cells are staged. It’s starting to loose it’s authentic appeal. I would love to be able to access other wings of the jail I.e the kitchen, the hospital, wardens office, etc…