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The Statue of Liberty is the most recognisable icon of New York. She stands on Liberty Island in New York Harbour.
It was a gift from the French government for the 100th birthday of America's Independence.
At the time of our visit to New York, you were not able to go inside the statue, so instead we caught the (free) Staten Island Ferry, which passes close by. It has since been open to the public, book tickets at: www.statuereservations.com
It was a little difficult to take photos, but so exciting to see her, especially with the sun setting in the back ground.
It gave me shivers.....though that could have had something to do with the cold night air!! Leave a Comment Phone: 1-866-STATUE-4Directions: South Ferry at Battery Park - Take the #5 train to Bowling Green or #1 to South Ferry Catch the ferry to Liberty Island or Staten IslandWebsite: http://www.nps.gov/stli/
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 "why doesn't anyone ever
answer my question"? by heitzenrater,
3 more photos
It tells you more than you need to know. To go to the statue you need to ride the ferry (unless you are like a really good swimmer). You can get your ticket at Battery Park. If you plan on going in the lady (where few have gone) you need to book a ticket. They have time slots. This can be done on the Internet. You can do this by going to this site. www.statuereservations.com
There are two tours you can take. The first tour is the PROMENADE TOUR - This option takes visitors through the monument lobby, past the original torch to the Statue of Liberty Exhibit for a 20-30 minute Ranger-guided tour. Visitors will then proceed outdoors on the lower promenade and Fort Wood for a brief talk with great views of the Statue of Liberty and New York Harbor. The second tour is the OBSERVATORY TOUR - This option incorporates the promenade tour plus a visit to the pedestal observation platform for an interesting new experience allowing visitors to view the Statue's interior framework through a new glass ceiling portal and taking part in a ranger-guided program learning about the Statue's design.
Take the second tour its better, and it does everything the fist one does. These tours are free, you just have to register for them and purchase your ferry trip (nothing like the smell of diesel smoke from a boats engine).
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 View of the Statue of Liberty
from the Ferry by travelfrosch, 4 more photos
Boats depart from Whitehall Ferry Terminal (co-located with the South Ferry subway stops) 24 hours per day, 365 days per year. Departures range from every 15 minutes weekdays, to every 30 minutes weekends, to every hour late nights (midnight to 6 AM Monday- Saturday, midnight to 9 AM Sunday). Travel time is approximately 25 minutes. You are allowed to make an immediate return trip, but you are required to exit the ferry and re-enter from the end of the line of those waiting at Staten Island (so there's a slight possibility you'll need to wait for the next ferry if the boat is full). Passage in both directions is free. Address: 1 Ferry Terminal Drive, Staten Island NY 10301Directions: Take the 1, R, or W Train to South Ferry (UPDATE: The new station just opened, allowing exit from all 1 Train subway cars and free transfer to the R and W trains). You can also use the Bowling Green station (4,5)Website: http://www.nyc.gov/html/dot/html/ferrybus/statfery.shtml
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The Weather Lady said it was going to be a beautiful day, so we went to the Statue of Liberty.
For many visitors to New York, going to Liberty Island is a required event. While there are a few boats that provide service to the island, the one sanctioned by the National Park Service is Statue Cruises. Ferries depart to Liberty Island and Ellis Island from the Battery Park area of Manhattan, as well as Liberty State Park in New Jersey. Be aware the lines will be extremely long, especially during peak season. Your best bet to avoid a long wait are to visit off-season and early in the morning. Be aware security measures are very tight, and you will be required to pass through an airport-style metal detector before boarding the ferry.
Round-trip fare from Manhattan or New Jersey is $12. Limited "appointment" tickets are available online, but these only save you the time waiting at the ticket window; you still need to go through the metal detector.
As for entering the statue itself, a limited number of free "monument passes" are given to ticket holders on a first-come, first-served basis. While entry to the monument is free, there is an extremely long wait time (up to 2 hours) to get through yet another security checkpoint and enter the statue (NOTE: while you can procure a "monument pass" in advance online, you still must stand in the lengthy security line with everyone else). Note also backpacks are not allowed; free lockers are provided at the entry to the security line. Once inside the pedestal, you can see a modest museum and are allowed to climb to the top of the base. You are not allowed to climb inside the statue, however. Personally, I didn't think it was worth the 90 minutes we waited to get through security. UPDATE: Visitors are once again allowed to climb up to the statue's crown. Advance reservations are required to climb the long, narrow staircase (no elevator); cost is $3 per person.
Food and beverages are available on Liberty Island, but the food is rather expensive and the quality is mediocre at best. I choked down a greasy and cold burger that cost $8. Your best bet is probably to buy a snack on the boat (hot dog $3, nachos $5). Address: Liberty Island, New York NYPhone: +1 (212) 363-3200Directions: Closest Subway stations to the Manhattan ferry dock are South Ferry / Whitehall (1, R, and W Trains) and Bowling Green (4,5). Ferries also depart from Liberty State Park, Jersey City, New Jersey.Website: http://www.nps.gov/stli Other Contact: http://www.statuecruises.com
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Liberty State Park includes the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, and the Central Railroad of New Jersey Train Terminal. The train station isn't featured very often, but we found it an interesting way to approach the city. We drove in from the New Jersey side...plenty of parking..viewed the train station, and boarded a ferry to Ellis Island. We later returned by water taxi from a stop which is close to Ground Zero.
This train station was built in 1889 and became the greatest concentration of freight and commuter rail services in the New York Harbor area. Tens of thousands of daily commuters were transported on more than a hundred ferry boat crossings to and from the terminal. Ellis Island increased the traffic by several thousand each day. It was the Gateway to America for all who came during the massive migration at the turn of the century.
When the tunnels and bridges opened, it hastened the decline of the New Jersey railroads. They declared bankruptcy in 1967, and the terminal closed its doors until it was purchased and restored as a cornerstone of Liberty State Park.
It's a beautiful structure...and one can imagine the hustle and bustle as the thousands of immigrants passed through.
When the immigrants were getting ready to leave Ellis Island, many were boarding trains for various parts of the country. The clock tower was probably a very welcome sight to these men and women as they boarded the train heading for their new life. Leave a Comment Directions: South Ferry at Battery Park - Take the #5 train to Bowling Green or #1 to South Ferry
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Ellis Island takes its name from Samuel Ellis, a colonial New Yorker, possibly from Wales, who owned the island during the late 1700s and kept a tavern, serving sailors and local fishermen. Samuel Ellis was a local farmer and merchant. The Ellis Island Immigrant Station was designed by architects Edward Lippincott Tilton and William Boring. They received a gold medal at the 1900 Paris Exposition for the building's design.
The federal immigration station opened on January 1, 1892 and was closed in November 12, 1954, but not before 12 million immigrants, were inspected there by the US Bureau of Immigration (Immigration and Naturalization Service) There are unsubstantiated estimates for immigrants processed there as high as 20 million. In the 35 years before Ellis Island opened, over 8 million immigrants had been processed locally by New York State officials at Castle Garden Immigration Depot in Manhattan. Entrance to the museum. Ellis Island was the first stop for most immigrants from Europe.
The first immigrant to pass through Ellis Island was Annie Moore, a 15-year-old girl from County Cork, Ireland, on January 1, 1892. She and her two brothers were coming to America to meet their parents, who had moved to New York two years prior. She received a greeting from officials and a $10.00 gold piece. The last person to pass through Ellis Island was a Norwegian merchant seaman by the name of Arne Peterssen in 1954. After 1924 when the National Origins Act was passed, the only immigrants to pass through there were displaced persons or war refugees. Today, over 100 million Americans can trace their ancestry to the immigrants who first arrived in America through the island before dispersing to points all over the country.
Ellis Island was one of 30 processing stations opened by the federal government. It was the major processing station for third class/steerage immigrants entering the United States in 1892; it processed 70% of all immigrants at the time. Address: Battery Park & Liberty Island, NY, NY 10017-3851Phone: (212) 363-3200.Directions: South Ferry at Battery Park - Take the #5 train to Bowling Green or #1 to South FerryWebsite: www.nps.gov/elis Other Contact: TTY: 212 363-3211.
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 Land of the free ? by sourbugger
The American part of my family managed in true Sourbugger style to avoid the place completely by first being forced by nefarious events to live on a plantation in Cuba, before they upped sticks and moved to Alaska.
Three things I found surprising about Ellis Island were :
1) It may be the land of the free, and despite what it says on the statue if liberty, the First and Second Class passengers avoided the place completely because they were processed on board ship before arriving.
2) The Stairs up from the boarding points were cleverly used to give an early indication of those who were not fit enough to start a new life. Rather ironically many of their descendants now probably can't make the stairs due to being too obese.
3) Much of the complex is still unrenovated from it's days as a a mental asylum. An excellent report about this can be read at :
www.pacpubserver.com/.../ ellisisland.html
Entry is free, alough the ferry to the site is around ten dollars - details on the website Leave a Comment Directions: South Ferry at Battery Park - Take the #5 train to Bowling Green or #1 to South FerryWebsite: www.ellisisland.com
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Located in New York, at 151 feet (46 meters) tall (305 feet including base and pedestal), the Statue of Liberty symbolizes freedom throughout the world. Its formal name is Liberty Enlightening the World. The Statue was actually a gift from the people of France.
The statue, made of copper sheets with an iron framework, depicts a woman escaping the chains of tyranny, which lie at her feet. Her right hand holds aloft a burning torch that represents liberty. Her left hand holds a tablet inscribed with the date "July 4, 1776" (in Roman numerals), the day the United States declared its independence from England. She is wearing flowing robes and the seven rays of her spiked crown symbolize the seven seas and continents.
It is a large statue that was presented to the United States by France in 1886. It stands at Liberty Island, New York in New York Harbor as a welcome to all visitors, immigrants, and returning Americans. The copper-clad statue, dedicated on October 28, 1886, commemorates the centennial of the United States and is a gesture of friendship from France to America. The sculptor was Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi, and Alexandre Gustave Eiffel, the designer of the Eiffel Tower, engineered the internal structure.
Worldwide, the Statue of Liberty is one of the most recognizable icons of the United States,[and, more generally, represents liberty and escape from oppression. The Statue of Liberty was, from 1886 until the jet age, often one of the first glimpses of the United States for millions of immigrants after ocean voyages from Europe. Visually, the Statue of Liberty appears to draw inspiration from il Sancarlone or the Colossus of Rhodes.
The statue is a central part of Statue of Liberty National Monument, administered by the National Park Service. Address: Liberty Island, NY, NY 10004Phone: (212) 363-3200.Directions: South Ferry at Battery Park - Take the #5 train to Bowling Green or #1 to South Ferry National Park Service, Statue of Liberty National Monument, Liberty Island, NY, NY 10004.Website: www.nps.gov/stl Other Contact: Ferry Tickets & Time Pass Reserv
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The Statue of Liberty is possibly the iconic sight of New York, though the competition for that role is tough. Built in 1886 she became the symbol of the United States, welcoming immigrants from the old world to the new. A famous poem, “The New Colossus” (written by Emma Lazarus in 1883) captures the statue’s significance:
“Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"
The full name of the statue, rarely used, is “Liberty Enlightening the World". It was a gift from the people of France to commemorate the first centennial of the War of Independence and the friendship that had been formed between the two countries at that time. Because of this, the tablet in her left hand reads (in Roman numerals) "July 4th 1776", the date of American Independence.
When we last visited New York, in 1982, we were able to ascend right up to the crown of this venerable old lady for an amazing view of the harbour. Sadly these days this is not allowed; concerns about terrorism closed the whole island for a while, and although visitors are now allowed back, the top of the pedestal is the highest point you can reach. You must be quick off the mark even to get a ticket for this – numbers are limited and when we arrived at Castle Clinton in Battery Park to purchase our tickets at around 11.00 AM, all of these “Monument Access” passes for the day had been sold. This didn’t worry us, as we’d already decided to visit only from the outside on this occasion, but if you want to go inside you should plan to go first thing in the morning, just in case, or buy in advance online.
A Monument Access pass will also allow you to go inside to see the exhibition, which includes the original torch and full scale replicas of the Statue's face and foot (a great way to appreciate the scale of the statue). The exhibition also tells the history of the statue from conception to the present day.
Outside, take the time to make a complete circuit of the statue as she looks different from every angle (as my photos show). On the far side of the island from where the ferry docks you will get a spectacular view back across the water to Lower Manhattan. There are plenty of places to sit and admire the views and the statue itself, and also a café and snack bar where we bought a couple of sandwiches and some cold drinks for a light lunch.
NB There is no entrance fee to enter the Statue of Liberty or Ellis Island, you pay only for the ferry: $12.00 for ages 13+, $10.00 for Senior Citizens (62 and over and $5.00 for children 4-12. As National Park Passes only apply to entrance fees, pass holders will have to pay the full amount.
For more about the ferry and ticketing arrangements please see my separate Transportation tip. Directions: The ferry leaves from Battery Park. Nearest subway stations are South Ferry (line 1), Whitehall St (line W) or Bowling Green (lines 4 & 5)Website: http://www.nps.gov/stli/
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While still in Arizona, I decided to buy advance tickets for the Liberty Statue and Ellis Island tours -- I did this through the official site and I decided to buy the FLEX plan where I can go anytime from 3 days on the date I put on the tickets. I also got the one that had additional entry into the Liberty Science Center -- something that ended up about $25 per adult and about $15 for the kids.
Thank God I reserved tickets because the line was sooooo long on that Sunday! We passed the ticket booth and went directly to fall in light into this building which was like an airport security check. The guards were very good in egging people to move along -- of course the jumping family moved fast....we were excited! Security check lasted about 25 minutes for us...no cell phone or camera use inside. And there are several understandable restrictions – like no big luggage (see website of Statue of Liberty for further details).
The boat we had was Miss Circle Line (there is a Miss New York, Miss New Jersey and other Misses)...It is a 3 level boat and we just opted for the second level because my wife wanted a little shade, and I wanted the sun! Beautiful Day!
The Liberty does satisfy once more...it has changed since I last saw it 16 years ago. Now I was not able to go up the more than 300 steps inside to go to the crown...you need to buy MONUMENT passes to get inside, but it was sold out online and I did not want to fall in line anymore...
But just walking around the Statue is awesome and we got a lot of pictures. Ellis Island can be reached by riding the ferry again and as always, it's nice to see this place where the immigrants started their journey into the USA.
However, the Liberty Science Center is on NJ according to the guard and we did not want to go on another ferry and just wanted to go straight back to NY. Leave a Comment Directions: South Ferry at Battery Park - Take the #5 train to Bowling Green or #1 to South Ferry
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