Sleepover in the slammer

In Jefferson City, Missouri, officials offered a special open house of their new $31 million Cole County Jail. But it wasn't your average open house. On July 15th and 16th they held "Bed, Breakfast, and Bars," a $30-a-night fund-raiser that lured 90 people to play prisoner ("It's something different to do. Something to talk about at a cocktail party."). When they "turned themselves in," the volunteer inmates surrendered their personal belongings, including jewelry and cell phones ("It was [my wife's] idea."). They were booked and had their mug shots taken. They were then escorted by deputies to their cells, which were equipped with bunks, mattresses with built-in pillows, and en suite toilets and showers ("Leave your privacy at the door! Each cell has a window and the stalls are right out there in the open."). Later, dinner was served: navy beans, turkey noodle casserole, cole slaw, bread pudding, and cornbread ("I wouldn't pay for it in a restaurant, but you won't die trying to eat it."). After the meal, they were given a tour of the state of the art facility. After a few hours of sleep with the lights on, they were awakened at 5:30am and treated to a room-temperature morning meal, which some found lacking ("I don't think I’ve ever had bologna for breakfast."). The prisoners were sprung at 8am.

Check-out times at the world's prison hotels are a bit later, if you decide to pursue privately-run institutional lodging. Accommodations range from luxurious (Boston's 4-star Charles Street Jail) to austere (a former KGB prison in Latvia billed as “unfriendly, unheated, uncomfortable and open all year round”). If you would like to become your own prison hotelier, just wait for one of the existing facilities to go on the market.