Prisons are not usually tourist sites worth visiting, but some of these prisons are world famous, as they were in the past places where criminals or anti-state prisoners of war are being held, and today it has ceased to be a place of detention for tourist sites with distinction of historical importance. Follow with us the most famous prisons that turned into prominent tourist sites and put them on your list of upcoming trips.
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Alcatraz
Alcatraz prison is the most famous prison in the United States, where it was the seat of a group of the most famous convictions, such as Al Capone. Alcatraz is located on a rocky island surrounded by cold water of the Bay of San Francisco to prevent any attempt until 36 people tried to escape and no one was spared. Today, the prison has turned into one of the most popular tourist sites in the US city of San Francisco.
London Tower
Before London Tower or the Tower of London became the seat of today for the British Royal Crown jewelry and one of the most visited sites in England, it was imprisoned from 1100 until the mid-twentieth century. Among the most famous inmates of the prison are King Henry VI and Catherine Yen, wife of King Henry VIII, Sir Thomas More and others … There are many accounts of the prison and what was going on inside it, but all of that ended today, and the tower must be within your visit to London.
Chateau Dave
Chateau d’If is known in the city of Marseille, France, especially through the book “The Count of Monte Cristo”, written by Alexander Douma. From 1634 until the nineteenth century, the palace was the site of a prison for religious and political figures, and was famous for distinguishing between rich and poor prisoners. Since 1890 the prison’s role has ended and it has become a tourist headquarters that receives tens of thousands of visitors annually.
Robin Island
Robin Island is located near the coast of Cape Town in South Africa. The island was the seat of a famous prison in the country, hosting a large number of prisoners, the most famous of whom is the late leader Nelson Mandela, who later became president. Today, Robben Island is a prominent tourist site that can be reached by train from Cape Town.
Hua Lu Prison
Hoa Lo prison in Vietnam was once a French prison and then named “Hanoi Felton” of the American prisoners who entered it during the Vietnam War. Among the most famous ex-prisoners is the current US Senator John McCain and many other leaders of Vietnam’s independence. The place currently hosts several exhibitions and shows the condition of former prisoners there, and it has become a tourist site that narrates a part of the country’s history and war in it.
Inside Hao Lo Prison
Inside the Chateau d’If
From the Alcatraz prison website
Hao Lo prison now
Robin Island Prison website
From Robin Island.
From Chateau d’If
Alcatraz Prison Island
London Tower
Tourists during a tour of the Alcatraz
Tourists in the Tower of London
Chateau Dave is currently
The Tower of London from the inside