Prisons unlock new tourist attractions
USA Today Friday 18th May, 2012
Old prisons, from famous ones such as Alcatraz to less-known small state facilities, are becoming tourist attractions and drawing a growing number of visitors, operators say. "We've been shocked by the interest and continue to work on expanding our operation," said Steve Picker, director of the Jefferson City, Mo., Convention and Visitors Bureau, which has seen visitors through the shuttered Missouri State Penitentiary increase from 3,290 visitors in its first tour year in 2009 to 17,200 last year. "We've been growing by double-digit percentages every year for the past 10 years," added Sean Kelley, director of public programming at the Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia, which now draws more than 250,000 visitors a year. Operators say their visitors are made up of curious people, history buffs and increasingly, ghost hunters.
Comments
No comments yet for this story