http://blog.sfgate.com/culture/2014/06/20/tourist-trapped-san-francisco-dungeon-at-fishermans-wharf/

Set to open June 26, the San Francisco Dungeon is the newest and spookiest addition to Fisherman’s Wharf. The San Francisco Dungeon fills the space formerly used by the Wax Museum. We popped in for a preview tour on Wednesday, and I’ll admit it: I screamed bloody murder.

The dungeon is a guided tour of San Francisco’s creepy past, beginning with the Gold Rush era and ending in 1907 with an actual murder on Alcatraz. Seven European cities feature “Dungeons,” and San Francisco is host to the first one stateside, perhaps in part due to our shady history.

San Francisco Dungeon employs 36 live actors, all of whom bring a Broadway-esque level of enthusiasm to their performance. Each dungeon experience lasts about 50 minutes and involves a collection of costumed characters leading a group of about 30 in and out of various rooms, through spooky hallways, into a sexy saloon and onto an actual underground mechanical boat ride that is meant to simulate being “Shanghai’d.” The press preview I was on didn’t get to go on the boat ride. Instead, we got a San Francisco Dungeon water bottle.

My favorite part of the dungeon was the Alcatraz section. It gets a little claustrophobic and hot down there, and this portion of the tour allowed us to sit for an extended and dramatic history lesson. For the lazy theater nerd, the Alcatraz ghost story segment is ideal. The show does a fantastic job of using lighting and over-the-top acting to tease and terrify. The best part of being scared-on-purpose is the post-scream belly laugh. San Francisco Dungeon definitely delivers.

The dungeon is recommended for guests ages 10 and older, although I’d give the show a solid PG-13 rating. You can take your tween, provided they’re not extra skittish. Be warned, however, there’s some faux-looking blood and guts, and a few working girls scattered throughout. I’m a big chicken, and the small dark spaces got to me a bit, but really, those small dark spaces added to the suspense. I stuck toward the back of the group and was never our first line of defense when a salty sailor ghost popped out of the shadows.

Tickets are $26 for adults, and $20 for kids, though there are some promotional deals to be found online. Eventually, the San Francisco Dungeon plans to offer a joint ticket with Madame Tussaud’s, primed to open (also on June 26) right next door.

Beth Spotswood writes for the Culture Blog and her site Slow News Day, in addition to  numerous nerdy internet projects. Winner of the 1986 City of Mill Valley Fire Prevention Poster Contest, Beth can be found on Twitter, and in the real world, where she also exists.