Admission to the Historic Site is via the Visitors Centre from the car park, alternatively via the dirt track next to one of the car parks. Parking at the site is free. There are several levels of entry available:
* Bronze Pass, including single day entry, a half hour introductory tour on arrival, and a 30 minute harbour cruise ($28 adult, $23 concession, $14 child, $62 Family)
* Silver Pass, including single day entry, the introductory tour and harbour cruise, a tour of one of Isle of the Dead Cemetery or Point Puer Boys' Prison, an audio tour and lunch ($66 adult, $61 concession, $48 child)
* Gold Pass, including two days' entry, the introductory tour and harbour cruise, tours of both Isle of the Dead and Point Puer, the audio tour, lunch and morning and afternoon tea ($98 adult, $93 concession, $76 child)
* After Dark Pass, including late afternoon entry, a two course dinner and the Ghost Tour ($57 Adult, $49 Child)
Family tickets include 2 adults and up to 6 children.
There are no tickets granting entry only. Tours of the Isle of the Dead and of Point Puer may be purchased with a Bronze Pass at the Visitors Centre or bought on the ferry: each tour is $12 adults, $8 children and $34 family.
The Historic Site is open every day of the year from 8:30AM. Visitors may tour the site until dusk, and those on a Ghost Tour remain until the conclusion of their tour in the late evening.
Some of the Site is ruined, less from neglect and more as a consequence of several severe bushfires in the 1890s. Ruins are partially restored but the Site does not intend to reconstruct them completely. The major points of interest inside the Historic Site are:
* The ruins of the Penitentiary. This is the best known ruin on the site and one of the largest. It is located around the bay from the Visitors Centre. It opened as a flour mill in 1843 with convicts in chains driving the wheels to mill the flour. This was never successful and it was converted into a prison housing the convicts from 1857.
* The Commandant's Residence past the Penitentiary. The house was built in 1833 and extended several times. It is not ruined, and has rooms reconstructed using furnishings of the time, illustrating both the daily lives of the Commandant and his family, and the house's later use as a hotel and boarding house from 1877 to the 1930s.
* The Government Gardens leading up the hill to the ruins of the Church. The Gardens are a reconstruction of the 19th century gardens from seed analysis and descriptions from the time. In the 19th century, they were designed as a retreat for the ladies of the colony.
* The Isle of the Dead. The colony's cemetery was placed on a small island about 200 metres into the bay from the colony proper. The Isle can only be visited on an escorted tour (see [wiki=fffe930296f39b102da092837a665dd5]#Get in|Get in[/wiki]). The tour takes about 1 hour and runs several times a day except on Christmas Day.
* The Point Puer Boys' Prison. The Boys' Prison, located on the other side of the bay from the main colony, housed boys between 1834 and 1849 and was established under the reformatory impulse that young offenders might do better separately from adult prisoners. It was renowned for harsh discipline. Point Puer can only be visited on an escorted tour (see [wiki=fffe930296f39b102da092837a665dd5]#Get in|Get in[/wiki]). The tour begins at 11:30AM, takes about 2 hours and is available from September to July each year, excepting Christmas Day.
* The Memorial Garden for those killed in the 1996 massacre. The Garden is on the walk between the Visitors Centre and the ferry terminal. It contains a native garden, a pool and a large cross underneath which flowers are placed for those who died (please see the [wiki=bc9a86dbfa5a4ee6cf084312b54c5347]#Respect|Respect[/wiki] section below regarding visiting the Memorial Garden)
* The Lottery of Life gallery inside the Visitors Centre. All visitors will receive a playing card on admission: their card corresponds to a particular convict whose life they can follow as they proceed through the gallery. Lottery of Life is a good introduction to the site for children, but is not likely to be interesting for its own sake for adults, especially compared to the ruins themselves.