Author: Irina
The Statue of Liberty in New York is visible from everywhere, but observing from a distance is still not the case, relatives and friends will not understand.
For the fifth time in the city, I decided to shell out $ 25 - close the "tick" and write an article for the blog. I will tell you how to avoid long lines and what unexpected bonuses and discoveries are included in visiting the Statue of Liberty. For example, her real color is NOT GREEN!
A brief history and description of the Statue of Liberty
I'll introduce you to history.
Once upon a time there was a creative person named Bartholdi, who admired freedom and democracy. And he decided to immortalize these values in the form of a statue and donate it to the United States for the 100th anniversary of their victory in the struggle for independence. But with the agreement that the French will collect the gold on the statue, and the Americans on the pedestal.
I thought about it, sketched out the options (see the photo below, they do not look like the resulting statue at all!), And when I made the “that very” model, I was puzzled by the question - how to implement THIS?
I had to involve Gustave Eiffel (then he had not yet had time to build the Paris tower), use the metal-plastic technique and stretch the creation of the Statue of Liberty for many years. It took nine years from the anniversary of independence in 1876 to the departure of the dismantled statue from France to the United States. For another year, it was delivered, assembled and solemnly presented to the world in its integrity in 1886.
Now the formidable green lady is a symbol of America, part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site, an observation deck and a valuable shot in the phone gallery of any tourist in New York. Oh wait, I told you she's not green!
Yes, imagine, originally the Statue of Liberty was red, copper in color.
But the fact is that copper - which is what the statue is made of - oxidizes and takes on a menthol hue over time. For me and my followers on Instagram, this was the discovery of the year. I associate this effect of surprise with the lack of early photographs - color photography appeared so late that the statue managed to turn green (if I'm not mistaken, it took 30 years).
Where is the Statue of Liberty located?
The most venerable landmark in New York City is located on its small island, Liberty Island, 20 minutes from Manhattan. In addition to the statue, Liberty has:
- Museum of the Statue of Liberty - small, but terribly interesting,
- square with a flagpole,
- well, and where without a souvenir shop, cafe and bookstore.
The island can be walked in ten minutes. I must say that the view of the statue is objectively better from the ferry - it does not fit into the frame at close range (here 0.5 camera will save).
How to get to the Statue of Liberty? Ticket prices and visit times
In general, the ticket price for the Statue of Liberty is ... zero. The island is free to visit. But the catch is how to get to the Statue of Liberty. You can get there exclusively by ferry - but you have to pay for it.
- The cost of a ferry ticket to the Statue of Liberty: $ 25.5 for adults, $ 14 for children under 12 years old.
- Visit time: first sail at 9:30 and then every half hour until 15:30.
- Where to buy: I took it on GetYourGuide.
Why GetYourGuide? Firstly, because it is a well-known and proven service for excursions and admission tickets. Secondly, in the US, everyone buys everything online. And thirdly, the queues at the box office are such that you don't want to waste an hour in New York for waiting. For you to understand, there was even a pandemic in April 2021! By the way, there are tourists stubbornly ignoring online.
Tariffs with access to the crown of the statue are currently suspended due to covid. But even at the best of times, many did without a visit to this part - because they had to book a few months or six months in advance. Interesting, of course, but the view from the World Trade Center or any other skyscraper observation deck in New York would be better.
By the way, I'm writing a text about the statue, and Igor made a video for our channel on YouTube:
Where does the ferry come from?
- From New York from Battery Park in Manhattan.
- From New Jersey from Liberty State Park.
On the site, you choose one of the points, while the cost is the same.
What is included in a standard ticket?
1. Visit to Liberty Island - visual inspection of the statue and entrance to the museum.
2. Visit to Ellis Island - entrance to the Immigration Museum.
That is, the ferry follows the route: Battery Park / Liberty Park → Liberty Island → Ellis Island → Battery Park / Liberty Park.
For the entire cruise - from Battery and back - I spent 2 hours. And this is with a hasty inspection of museums. Book three to four hours if you are determined to take the tour thoughtfully and slowly.
What if I don't know English?
It doesn't matter, on every island and in the museum you can take audio guides in Russian, they are included in the ticket price.
Museums are a topic for another conversation, they are extremely fascinating. It takes a long time to paint, so below I will show in photographs why they are worth a visit no less than the statue itself.
My photos of the Statue of Liberty in New York
The tour to the Statue of Liberty in New York starts from Battery Park - and this is our ferry. It is three-storey and roomy, but, of course, everyone wants to take the open space above. I suggest: the statue will be on the right side of the ferry.
Statue of Liberty and New York City View - Lower Manhattan and the World Trade Center, the tallest building in the city. Oddly enough, the best photos of "me and the statue" come from the ferry. This lady is hard to fit right at the foot of the shot.
If you walk straight from the pier (note the back queue!), You will find yourself in the center of the island in a square with a flagpole. And if you turn right from the pier, without going through the gate, you will come out to the statue.
The Statue of Liberty Museum is located on the square, and this view opens from its roof. With the sun shining in my eyes, I could not understand for a long time whether there was a statue in front of me or ... But all the same, or.
I went down to the museum. Compact and informative.
There are several expositions: about ideas and how the statue might look; how it was created and what techniques were used; how the pedestal was made; and stands dedicated to the opening in 1886 and the statue's rise as a symbol of America. The foot in the photo is huge, life-size.
How the statue looks from the inside and the ear. Also of real size.
Oh, who is this here ...
The height of the Statue of Liberty is 93 meters, like three nine-storey buildings. In this case, one "nine-story building" falls on the pedestal.
We saw the statue, I stand in line for half an hour for the ferry to Ellis Island.
By the way, Ellis and Liberty State Park in New Jersey are connected by a pedestrian bridge. Therefore, you can swim with Ellis only to the starting point - so that there is no temptation to drop by the statue for free :)
I didn't know what was waiting for me there, but it turned out ...
This is a cool American Immigration Museum! As a person absolutely indifferent to museums, I was interested. Ellis Island has long been the "gateway" to the United States - at a time when people moved around the world by swimming. The photo shows the luggage room and the check-in hall. The first thing that immigrants saw, and where their fate was decided.
The museum has 3 halls:
- settling America,
- peak immigration through Ellis Island,
- modern immigration.
Most of all I was carried away by the second: here is the layout of the ships that delivered potential migrants from, for example, Australia to the United States; statistics on which states people are dispersed in (in 1903, many settled in NY, many followed to Hawaii, and for some reason they do not like California); advertising posters of shipping companies operating on the Europe-USA route (like an illustration for “Night in Lisbon).
In a word, the Statue of Liberty in New York is not just a swim-up-look-take a picture, but also a powerful immersion in history. 10 points out of 10 for this excursion, highly recommend!
What else have I visited in New York?
There is a lot to watch in New York for free and even more that for money. But you and I do not print rubles and dollars, but earn money.
Therefore, if I had to choose, I would recommend this list of paid attractions in addition to the Statue of Liberty:
- The Top of The Rock lookout is, in my opinion, the best, because you can see EVERYTHING from here (and Central Park completely!); $ 42 per person
- The Natural History Museum - the one where Night at the Museum was filmed; $ 23 per person
- The Metropolitan Museum is one of the most famous art museums in the world; $ 25 per person
- Museum 9/11 - very emotional; $ 28 per person
All other places in New York I have collected in my separate city guide - I wrote it under the impression of the first time and since then I update it with every trip.
About city pass in New York
And a little life hack for the track. How to see the most important things in New York (including the statue) and pay less.
The Statue of Liberty is included in the so-called tourist passes (city passes) of New York - these are tickets for various attractions of the city. The whole point is that the price of the pass is lower than if you add up the cost of tickets to each seat separately.
- Of all the passes, my favorite is Go City New York. With it, a set of 4 viewing points + a statue + a MOMA museum costs $ 136 versus $ 222 separately.
Go City is not tied to the number of days in the city (like others), but to the number of places, and does not impose strict restrictions on the type of attraction.
For example, with Go City I can see all 4 viewing points of New York, and with New York City Pass only 2. At the same time, they cost the same - $ 136 (for 6 attractions and 60 days for a visit from the first or 6 attractions and 9 days from the second) ...
