This was a wonderful tour! Julia really knows her history, and introduced us to Boise while…read moreentertaining us with a mixture of historical facts, anecdotes, and cool information. There was a 10K race going on, which blocked a main road, so she had to improvise and give the tour taking some alternate roads and looping back. There was only one other couple besides us, so it was luxurious, and she was open to questions. She really inspired me to learn more Boise history. She even dropped us off by our car, because it was " on the way". It was supposed to be 90 minutes, but it was 2 hours packed with all sorts of information! Thanks for the great intro, Julia!

Fantastic tour of Boise, really in-depth information of the city. Well worth the time to get the…read morehistory and lay of the land.

Tour guide Rob was fantastic! It only took us 12+ years to visit Boise Depot. Don't wait to take an…read moreengaging free tour and hear the fascinating history of railways in Boise dating back to 1887 (in current location since 1925). We had a small group at noon on March 22, 2026 and Rob was great about answering our many questions and curiosities! His next tour at 1:30pm was huge so we were lucky to have a more intimate gathering! Now I need to figure out a reason to have a party there and rent the space. So cool.

The Boise Depot is a historic Spanish-style structure operated by the Boise Parks & Recreation…read moreDepartment as a public ceremonial or meeting space & historic site. It was designed by NY architects & opened in 1925. However it was closed when we arrived Monday at 10:30 we came back in the afternoon and walked inside. We took the elevator up to the bell tower for city views. The Great Hall is a 3,542-sq ft multi-story atrium that once was the stations waiting room. Ten original benches line the walls of the Great Hall holding 300 standing & 165 seated people.. hours are limited because this venue is rented out The original 1925 Barkalow Brothers Newsstand is featured on the west wall. The newsstand has been slightly restored but remains in its' original form. This area is great for a buffet or display. The Great Halls' ceiling is lined with Spanish trusses, each imprinted with antique locomotives. The famous Platt Gardens are here.

I'll start by saying that you really can't beat the price for this tour. Any other type of tour in…read morethis city is likely going to cost you at least twice as much, so if you're looking to just get a quick look at parts of downtown on a dime, this is the tour for you. As mentioned, this is meant to be a fairly quick (1.5 hours) walking tour of part of downtown Boise to just get a brief sense of the city's history and culture. Our tour guide focused a lot of time and information on the Basque region and culture, and the rest of the time on some of the architecture and brief history of how the certain buildings came to be. The first half or so of the tour was very engaging and I definitely learned some interesting facts. But during the last half of the tour, I found my attention wandering off more than a few times as the guide shared stories that in my opinion ate up too much time, and weren't always related to Boise, which was a bit confusing. Don't get me wrong, it was an extremely friendly, upbeat, and clearly knowledgeable tour guide--I just would have liked learn a broader sense of Boise's downtown history rather than focusing in on facts and stories that don't necessarily help you appreciate the city. But with our guide we also got access to areas you might not otherwise see if you're only in town briefly, like a special Basque sports club and the Egyptian Theater. He also shared lots of valuable opinions on other places to go and things to experience. Overall, you can't beat the price, it's a leisurely walking tour, and you might learn some interesting history (perhaps more than you even care to learn!). It'd be a great tour for those who are unsure of what to do or where to go, and regardless, downtown Boise is a beautiful and entertaining area that you'll enjoy experiencing on foot.

This is an excellent tour of downtown Boise. I've lived in Boise for 3 years now and it was fun…read moreseeing/learning about buildings that I had not noticed before. It was a perfect compliment to our morning at the downtown market. I will definitely take my parents when they come to visit.

I went to Boise with friends, and pretty much did what the group wanted to do, because I had no…read moreclue what to do on my own. I had no expectations, well I wasn't really expecting much. I have to say I really enjoyed touring around here! I'm sure it's a lot more beautiful then when it was in operation. I loved reading the stories of the inmates, though a lot were sad stories. I spent a lot more time here than I was expecting to!

This was my first time ever visiting a penitentiary and it was one heck of an experience! As…read moretranquil, peaceful and even beautiful as it is, you can't help but feel eary and even emotional as you walk through the various cell blocks. It was built in the late 1800's and was operation through the 1970's! How wild is that?! I was even able to go inside of several solitary confinement rooms and have the door closed behind me. And the only light was a hole in the ceiling. According to the audio guide and plackards on the wall, some inmates were thrown in there for months at a time, some for even up to a year. The worst part was, they weren't even told beforehand how much time it would be. Even just for a few seconds, if felt pretty surreal hearing the door close. We spent several hours walking through the various cell block and yards, and probably an hour at least walking through the armory collection. The collection was quite vast and spanned by WW1 and WW2. All in all, for only $8, it's definitly a must-do when visiting Boise for the first time.