Visit to the top of the Statue of Liberty
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Oct 2012
Posts: 120
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Visit to the top of the Statue of Liberty
Hi Fodorites, visiting New York in September and want to climb to the top of the Statue of Liberty. Are bookings available in advance? Any idea how long it takes to do this? Any suggestion of the best tour operator to use. Thanks in advance
#2
Join Date: Jul 2013
Posts: 369
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
We just bought tickets through Statue Cruises. The ferry goes to both the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. Other ferries may make the same trip, but I've always used Statue Cruises. We got tickets to go up to the top of the Statue of Liberty and they were $21 each for adults. Definitely buy in advance so you can reserve a time. It's a pretty cool experience. Ellis Osland is particularly inspiring.
#3
Join Date: Oct 2003
Posts: 57,890
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
SoL is a national park operated by the park services. Th only ferries that are allowed to land are those from statuecruises.com. You must get your tickets there. Do buy them as soon as you have a date since there are few tickets for the crown and they can sell out months in advance.
The ticket will give you a specific ferry time and you must arrive at least 30 minutes in advance even with a ticket since there is airline type security to get on board (not large backpacks or packages and your bag will be scanned and searched).
If you just do the SoL the trip, including ferries to and fro Manhattan will take about 3 hours. If you decide to also visit the Ellis Island museum it will take about 5 hours.
For more details about climbing the steps to the crown, including people who are recommended not to do so (27 flights) go to the web site above and check out the info. (Small children are not allowed and it is not recommended if you have significant breathing problems or are not fit enough to climb stairs - there is NO elevator).
The ticket will give you a specific ferry time and you must arrive at least 30 minutes in advance even with a ticket since there is airline type security to get on board (not large backpacks or packages and your bag will be scanned and searched).
If you just do the SoL the trip, including ferries to and fro Manhattan will take about 3 hours. If you decide to also visit the Ellis Island museum it will take about 5 hours.
For more details about climbing the steps to the crown, including people who are recommended not to do so (27 flights) go to the web site above and check out the info. (Small children are not allowed and it is not recommended if you have significant breathing problems or are not fit enough to climb stairs - there is NO elevator).
#4
Join Date: Jun 2004
Posts: 10,210
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
There's only one company, and you need to make your reservation very far in advance ... as in months. I'm not sure how early you can do this, but the StatueCruises web site will give you that information.
The whole process takes a minimum of 3 or 4 hours. It's less of course if you don't plan to visit the museum on Ellis Island, though that is the most worthy part of the entire experience (much more, I have to say, than climbing to the crown, where you can't really see much). It's a bucket list photo op but nothing more.
The whole process takes a minimum of 3 or 4 hours. It's less of course if you don't plan to visit the museum on Ellis Island, though that is the most worthy part of the entire experience (much more, I have to say, than climbing to the crown, where you can't really see much). It's a bucket list photo op but nothing more.