For those who were worried about the comment on the first review stating that they thought it was too expensive please know that it is not expensive. For an adult it is $9. If you have the city pass card it is free. I just had to address that because if I read that it would scare me from even considering it.

The sub itself is absolutely amazing. Wondering through it will have you speechless. It is literally frozen in time. The red control room will really make you feel like you are part of the action. That was my favorite as far as atmosphere goes.

There is one area that gave me chills and I urge you to not pass too quickly. There is a little plexiglass enclosed area that has a tiny desk and a typewriter. Please take a moment to actually pay attention to it. On the shelf you will see an actual newspaper from St Louis with a headline about war being declared following the attack on Pearl Harbor. There is also a telegram on the wall hanging over and to the right of the typewriter. I asked one of the workers and it is a real communication from during that time. Just standing there reading all of it will cause the hair on your arms to stand on end.

I would definitely recommend to anyone to take this tour. It is more than worth it and you will burn the batteries in your camera up taking pictures. It will also give you even more appreciation for the conditions that our service men and women live in taking care of us.

On my first visit to San Francisco I didn't go on the USS Pampanito as it looked too expensive to go on a small sub. However when I re-visited in June 2007 the people I was with really wanted to go on and what a surprise I had. The audio tour was great and the sub was so much bigger inside than I expected. We spent about 45-60 minutes all together and everyone really enjoyed it.

I took the tour of the USS Pampanito on a recent trip to San Francisco and had a GREAT time. You can get down into a real WWII era submarine and the audio tour is narrated by actual former sailors that were aboard for the war. It was incredible listening to their stories while in the cramped quarters of a real submarine. I like WWII history but this would be a good tour even for people that are not buffs and the kids will love it. It is located a couple of piers (I think it is Pier 44)away from Fishermans Wharf.

I have been attempting to visit all the GATO/BALAO class subs left in existence. Have already seen the COD, the CAVALLA, and the DRUM. Just traveled to San Fran to add the PAMPANITO to my list and was not disappointed. Especially liked the "rigged for red" control room. It was also cool to feel the wave action on the sub as she sat moored in San Francisco Bay.