My wife and I will be driving through New York City on I-95 and wonder whether it would be possible to divert down to lower Manhatten, park, and visit Ellis Island (my wife's name is on the wall)and then go back to I-95 to continue our trip. We can do this either on November 2d (a Sunday) or November 5th (a Wednesday). Thanks for any information.

There are 2 places to get near the Ellis Island ferries. In NYC (Copied from a website)

By car, take the East Side Drive (FDR Drive) south to Battery Park and State Street or the West Side Highway/West Street/Route 9A south to Battery Place.

Parking: Privately operated parking along West street & South St beneath the FDR Drive.

You might also check iconparking.com-this is a website that offers discount parking around NYC.

OR from the New Jersey side

take the New Jersey Turnpike to exit 14B. There is ample parking available in Liberty State park for a fee.

I'd suggest a Wed, when it's less crowded but check for hours on their website.

I have no help to offer you, but I just want to say that I just about melted at Ellis Island. It is a very moving museum. If your wife's name is on the wall, all I can say is go -- no matter how difficult, how long it takes, or what you have to do to get there. Enjoy.

More accurate directions can be provided if you indicate if you are going north or South on I 95

Rob:

On November 2d we will be going from Virginia to Connecticut - on November 5th returning to Virginia.

FORGET ABOUT COMING INTO NYC ON NOV. 2 --- NYC MARATHON.

So that means you must do it on Nov 5. I'm not looking at a map. Since I assume you'd be taking the NJ Turnpike down to Va., I'd suggest making the extra effort to park on the NJ side. Go to mapquest.com & get directions from I 95 to Liberty State Park in NJ. From there you can continue on to Va.

I was at Ellis Island this past Monday. I had tried to visit twice before using the Manhattan and Staten Island ferries, traffic was so bad we left no parking, etc. This trip we used the Jersey City Ferry, parking was a breeze, however the first lot is quite a walk from the terminal, you can park almost at the terminal if you go into the second parking area. We weren't charged to park here either. But, you do go thru a metal detector, twice, before boarding the boat. Enjoy.

In the years I lived in New York and in all my visits before and after, I never made it to Ellis Island. But I'm going this time, on Nov 1. My paternal grandparents entered the US there, almost a hundred years ago, with my 10 month old father. I found their names on the passenger manifests and even saw a photo of the ship they sailed on. For those of you who are interested, go to www.ellisisland.org.

I never thought of doing this, my Dad's mother came over from Germany as a child just before WWI, she was aabout 10 y/o, she would have been 100 this year! I will look her up, thanks much.