Q
What are Wende Correctional Facility's visiting days?
Wednesdays, Saturdays, Sundays and holidays, open to every family on a first-come, first-served basis with no DIN or surname split, from 9:00 AM to 3:30 PM.
Visitation
Updated September 28, 2026
Verified from official government sources
Wende Correctional Facility, NY
Physical Address
3040 Wende Road, Alden, NY 14004-1187
A maximum security prison for men on Wende Road in the Town of Alden, Erie County, about half an hour east of Buffalo. It opens Wednesdays, weekends and holidays to every family with no split and no limit on visits, it is served by the free visitor bus, and it houses a Regional Medical Unit with visiting rules of its own.
Wende Correctional Facility
City
Alden
County
Erie County
State
NY
Facility Type
state prison
Gender
Adult male
Custody Levels
Maximum
Operator
New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision
Address
3040 Wende Road, Alden, NY 14004-1187
Phone
716-937-4000
Inmate Locator
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Quick Facts
Open to All, Three Days a Week
- 1 Wednesdays, Saturdays, Sundays and holidays.
- 2 First come, first served, with no DIN or name split.
- 3 Unlimited visits on visiting days.
- 4 In effect since 7 September 2026.
Hours
- 1 Visiting runs 9:00 AM to 3:30 PM.
- 2 Three visitors plus one child under five.
- 3 Served by the free state visitor bus.
- 4 About half an hour east of Buffalo.
The Regional Medical Unit
- 1 Wende houses a Regional Medical Unit.
- 2 RMU patients visit in the A and B rooms.
- 3 Weekday visits only if medically cleared to leave the RMU.
- 4 Ask before planning a Wednesday visit.
3040 Wende Road
- 1 Letters go to 3040 Wende Road, Alden, NY 14004-1187.
- 2 Wende publishes no P.O. Box.
- 3 Keep the full ZIP, 14004-1187.
- 4 Full name and DIN on the envelope, your address in the top left.
Alden, Erie County
- 1 Wende is in the Town of Alden.
- 2 It is in Erie County, not Wyoming County.
- 3 Many people search for it as the Alden prison.
- 4 It is maximum security, for men.
Calls Cost Nothing
- 1 Free from every New York state prison since August 1, 2025.
- 2 Three calls of up to fifteen minutes a week, credited Saturdays.
- 3 Calling window 7:00 AM to 11:00 PM.
- 4 Fifteen approved numbers, added from the inside.
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Articles for This Facility
Visitation
Wednesdays, Weekends and Holidays, Open to All
No split, no limit, and the medical unit exception.
View Article Mail & Photos
3040 Wende Road, No Box
The street address letters go to, with the full ZIP.
View Article Inmate Search
Inmate Lookup for Wende, the Alden Prison
Search by name or DIN, free.
View Article Send Money
Six Routes, and Only Two Are Free
A slip and a money order cost nothing. The quick ones carry a fee.
View Article Phone Calls
Nothing to Fund, Nothing to Open
Calls went free across New York in August 2025 and need no account.
View ArticleWhat You Need to Know
Verified from NYSDOCCS: Wende Correctional Facility
See our sources ›
Visits run 9:00 AM to 3:30 PM on Wednesdays, Saturdays, Sundays and holidays, first come, first served, with no DIN or surname split and no limit on visits. Regional Medical Unit patients visit on weekdays only if medically cleared. The free visitor bus serves Wende.
See the full breakdown Verified from NYSDOCCS: Wende Correctional Facility
See our sources ›
Letters go to 3040 Wende Road, Alden, NY 14004-1187. Wende publishes no post box, so the street address with the full ZIP is the whole address. Mail is opened and inspected at the prison and the paper is handed over.
See the full breakdown Verified from the NYSDOCCS incarcerated lookup
See our sources ›
One statewide tool covers every New York state prison and takes a DIN or a last name and first name. There is no public list of everyone at Wende, and Erie County's jails run their own rosters outside the state search.
See the full breakdown Verified from NYSDOCCS account deposits
See our sources ›
Six routes in, and the two free ones are a money order by post and the visitor lockbox at the prison. Online, the JPay app and the phone all carry a fee and post faster. Every deposit is matched to the DIN, so a move into the medical unit never affects the money.
See the full breakdown Verified from NYSDOCCS telephone calls
See our sources ›
Free since August 1, 2025, with no account for a family to open or fund. Three calls of up to fifteen minutes credited every Saturday, thirty minutes on anything after that, between 7:00 AM and 11:00 PM, across fifteen numbers the person inside manages.
See the full breakdownFamilies Also Ask
6 of 8 questions
Q
Can I visit someone in the medical unit at Wende?
Yes, with limits. Wende's Regional Medical Unit patients are visited in the A and B rooms, and on weekdays only if they are medically cleared to leave the RMU.
Visitation
Q
What is the mailing address?
3040 Wende Road, Alden, NY 14004-1187, with the person's full name and DIN on the first line and your return address in the top left corner. Wende publishes no P.O. Box.
Mail & Photos
Q
Where is Wende Correctional Facility?
In the Town of Alden, Erie County, about half an hour east of Buffalo, at 3040 Wende Road.
Inmate Search
Q
Is Wende maximum security?
Yes. NYSDOCCS lists Wende as a maximum security facility for men.
Inmate Search
Q
Is there a free bus to Wende?
Yes. Wende is one of the 18 prisons served by the free state visitor bus programme run with NYSDOCCS.
Visitation
Q
How much do phone calls cost?
Nothing. New York made every call from a state prison free to families on August 1, 2025. Three calls of up to fifteen minutes are credited each Saturday, calls after those run to thirty minutes, and the window is 7:00 AM to 11:00 PM across fifteen approved numbers.
Phone Calls
Q
Where does money go?
To the JPay lockbox at PO Box 531190, Miami, Florida 33153, with a deposit slip, free by post and capped at $999.99 per money order. There is also a visitor lockbox at the prison taking up to $50 cash a day in total. Money never goes in the envelope.
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All information on this page comes directly from official government and facility sources. How we verify information › Last verified September 28, 2026. Official source: doccs.ny.gov/location/wende-correctional-facility ›