Baten Unit Visiting Hours, Visit Lengths, and How the Weekly Cycle Works
Planning a visit to the Baten Unit? The schedule makes sense once you understand three things: weekend visiting hours, two-hour visit lengths, and how TDCJ's Monday–Sunday visiting cycle limits how often regular visits can happen.
Regular visitation happens on Saturday and Sunday, from 8:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. That's a wide window to work with when you're planning travel, check-in, and time together.
Each regular visit lasts two hours. The clock starts when both you and the incarcerated person are present - not when you arrive at the unit. How quickly staff bring everyone together affects your actual time.
TDCJ runs on a weekly "visiting cycle" that starts Monday and ends the following Sunday. Eligible inmates get one regular visit per cycle. That means you can't stack multiple regular visits in the same Monday–Sunday week, even if you're free both weekend days. Think of it this way: one cycle, one visit. If you visit Saturday, that counts for the current cycle - visiting again Sunday won't give you a second regular visit. Traveling from far away? Plan around the cycle itself, not just the calendar weekend. Otherwise you might show up expecting an extra visit that isn't available.
Tip: If you want to visit as often as the rules allow, plan around the Monday–Sunday cycle. In practice, that often means spacing trips so each visit falls in a different weekly cycle.
Visit frequency can also depend on custody level. Inmates classified G1, J1, or J2 are eligible for one contact visit per week. Classification changes over time, so if you're getting conflicting information about how often visits are allowed, check the custody level first.
Visitation is a privilege, and it can be temporarily restricted or canceled. Rule violations by an inmate or visitor can trigger this, as can security concerns. Visits also stop during lockdowns, escapes, disturbances, or health emergencies. If you're traveling a long way, build in some flexibility - these interruptions happen even when you've done everything right.
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