Angel Island, California travel guide: things to do, food & where to stay

Overview

Angel Island is a historic immigration station and military post turned state park in the San Francisco Bay. Sometimes considered the Ellis Island of the west coast, Angel Island was for decades the first place that many immigrants to the United States arrived, especially coming from East Asia. Nowadays it makes an interesting day trip by ferry from San Francisco or Marin County, for hiking and a look around the immigration museums.

4 sights

Updated from Wikivoyage on 1 October 2026 · Something wrong or missing? Improve it on Wikivoyage

Best things about Angel Island

Angel Island Immigration Museum

Rotating exhibits about the history of U.S. immigration policy and the Angel Island immigration station, housed in what was once the station's hospital.

Detention Barracks Museum

Batteries

Old military batteries concentrated at the southwest corner of the island. Trails go near them, so you can wander around and go inside if you're interested.

Camp Reynolds

A former military fort, now sometimes home to a living history museum.

Plan your trip

Best time to visit & weather

Most comfortable: Mar–Nov. Summer highs reach about 72°F; winter lows dip to about 44°F. Wettest: Dec and Jan. (climate data from nearby San Francisco)

Blue bars: average daily high and low (°F). Purple columns: average monthly rain and melted snow (inches).

Getting there

From you: to see whether to drive or fly, and how long it takes.
OAK Oakland San Francisco Bay Airport, Oakland — 15 mi away (major hub). Directions
SFO San Francisco International Airport, San Francisco — 17 mi away (major hub). Directions

From the Embarcadero in San Francisco Golden Gate ferries serve Angel Island a few times a day. Pay with a Clipper card or buy tickets at the ticket office. Tickets are not sold on Angel Island, so make sure you have a round-trip ticket or enough money on your Clipper card to go both ways. As of 2025, tickets are $15.50 each way or $9.50 if you pay by Clipper card; children 4 and under are free.

Full “Get in” guide ↓

Budget & where to stay

No prices are listed for this place yet. See the Sleep guide ↓ for options.

Sample 1-day itinerary

Day 1

Morning Angel Island Immigration Museum, Detention Barracks Museum
Afternoon Batteries, Camp Reynolds

Stops are grouped by area so each day needs little backtracking. Check opening hours before you go.

Food for you

The café near the ferry landing sells sandwiches and various snacks and drinks, and food may be available on the ferry. Other than that you should bring whatever you need.

Please keep the wildlife wild – don't feed coyotes or birds, and try not to leave crumbs behind you. They can make the wild animals lose their natural fear of humans and become dependent on visitors instead of finding food the way they naturally do.

What to ask about, for your diet

Diet labels come from each listing's description and cuisine; “likely” means the cuisine usually has good choices, not a promise. Check with the restaurant. Open the food finder

Photos

Map

Every listing with a location. Tap a pin for its Google Maps link.

Understand

The entire island is a state park, reachable only by boat (ferry or sailboat).

Place Visitor Center

Has a small museum of the island's history and wildlife.

Checked Apr 2025

Maps Website

History

For many centuries, Angel Island was a seasonal hunting ground for the Miwok people, who lived in Tiburon and elsewhere in Marin County. After colonization, it was used as a United States military fort for decades, and from 1910 to 1940 it was an immigration station. The "Ellis Island" of the west coast, it was used to inspect and detain many tens of thousands of immigrants, mainly but not exclusively from China, Japan, and other Asian countries. Many immigrants were detained, sometimes for months, while authorities decided whether to allow them into the country, and some of their possessions and messages now form interesting exhibits in the island's museums. In 1955, Angel Island became a state park.

Landscape

A hilly island, typical of the landscapes you'll find in other parts of the Bay Area including the rest of Marin County nearby. It's close to Tiburon, and until the end of the last ice age, Angel Island wasn't an island at all: it was connected to the Tiburon peninsula until rising sea levels cut it off.

Flora and fauna

Wildlife is similar to the rest of Marin. Raccoons, seals, sea lions, and a variety of birds live on and around the island. Deer were introduced in the early 20th century by the US army. Coyotes were absent until around 2017 when they seem to have started swimming over from Tiburon.

The island is covered with forests of native and introduced trees, and in the spring there are beautiful wildflowers in yellow, purple, and orange.

Angel Island is notable for having its own subspecies of mole, but you're unlikely to see it except in exhibits at the visitor center.

Climate

Cool, rainy winters and dry, warm summers. Like in the rest of the Bay Area, temperatures can vary significantly over the course of the day, so dress in layers. Despite how close it is to San Francisco, the Bay Area's microclimates mean that the temperature can be different from the city.

Get in

From Tiburon (in Marin County), the Angel Island Ferry has service Wednesday–Sunday. This ferry does not accept Clipper cards. As of 2025, round-trip tickets are $18 for adults, $16 for seniors, $15 for children age 6–12, $6 for children age 3–5, and free for toddlers 2 and under. $1 extra to bring a bicycle. Book in advance.

If you're coming from other parts of the Bay Area, your best option will likely be to take BART to Embarcadero station for the San Francisco ferry or drive to Tiburon for that ferry.

Private sailboats can also dock at Angel Island, near the ferry landing.

Dogs are not allowed on the island.

Fees and permits

For ferry passengers, your entry fee is included in the ticket. If you're coming on your own boat, you'll have to pay some fees; see the park website for details.

Get around

Hiking or biking are the main options; the island is crisscrossed by hiking trails (some of which allow bikes) and is circled by the Perimeter Road which is used by park service vehicles but is also perfectly fine to walk or bike on. Bikes can be brought on the ferry, or if you don't have one, you can rent one near the landing ($16 per hour for mountain bikes, $26 per hour for ebikes, as of 2025).

It's about 1.5 km (1 mile) from the ferry landing to the museums, and about 9 km (5 miles) around the whole Perimeter Road.

If you'd rather skip the physical exertion, shuttles to the museums leave from the cafe near the landing, $5 one way or $10 round trip, and one-hour shuttle tours of the island's historical sites are $18 ($17 for seniors, $12 for children 4–12).

See

The buildings at the historic immigration station have been converted into two interesting museums, and the circumference of the island is dotted with historic sites of military interest. Other than that, the main things to see are nature and excellent views around the bay.

See Angel Island Immigration Museum

Rotating exhibits about the history of U.S. immigration policy and the Angel Island immigration station, housed in what was once the station's hospital.

🕒 Wed–Sun 11AM–2:30PM💲 FreeChecked Apr 2025

Maps

See Detention Barracks Museum

Where immigrants were held, sometimes for weeks or months, while authorities decided whether to allow them into the United States. The highlights of this museum are the numerous artifacts belonging to detainees and the poems in Chinese that some of them scratched into the walls (interpretive signs provide translations).

🕒 Wed–Sun 11AM–2:30PM💲 $5 for adults, $3 for youth 5–17Checked Apr 2025

Maps

See Batteries

Old military batteries concentrated at the southwest corner of the island. Trails go near them, so you can wander around and go inside if you're interested.

Checked Apr 2025

Maps

See Camp Reynolds

A former military fort, now sometimes home to a living history museum.

Checked Apr 2025

Maps

Do

Hiking. Angel Island's trails have great views of lots of landmarks around the bay: going clockwise, you can see iconic skyline of San Francisco with Alcatraz in front of it, the Golden Gate Bridge, the Marin Headlands and the hills of Sausalito, the mansions of Tiburon and nearby Belvedere Island, the San Rafael–Richmond Bridge in the distance, the industrial landscapes and sprawling hills of the East Bay, the skyscrapers of downtown Oakland, and the Bay Bridge via hilly Yerba Buena Island and flat Treasure Island.

Buy

Good souvenirs are sold at the small Angel Island Conservancy store, where all proceeds support the state park. The café (see below) also sells some merchandise and basic outdoor supplies.

Eat

The café near the ferry landing sells sandwiches and various snacks and drinks, and food may be available on the ferry. Other than that you should bring whatever you need.

Drink

Water fountains are scattered around the Perimeter Road, but you should definitely bring a water bottle or two if you're planning to do any hiking. The café has some drinks for sale.

Sleep

Camping is possible. Otherwise, your lodging options are back in San Francisco or Tiburon. If you're not planning to camp, make sure you don't miss the last ferry back!