New York City, baby! The city of dreams, especially for those who passed through Ellis Island between 1892 and 1954. Just a quick ferry ride from Battery Park in Manhattan, families journeyed to Ellis Island from Europe to start a new life in the United States, which meant passing by the Statue of Liberty -- a universal symbol of freedom and opportunity.
We’ll ignore the fact that the Statue of Liberty is technically in Jersey.
The Statue of Liberty is on a lot of people’s NYC to-do lists, since it’s such a hallmark of history and one of the most prominent icons of the U.S. That being said, planning a trip to Lady Liberty is no small feat. Statue Cruises, the only official provider of ferry tickets to Liberty and Ellis Islands, is planted in Battery Park, which is typically flooded with bodies looking to get on a ferry. Unless you’ve been touched by the hand of God, you’re standing in line long enough to ride Space Mountain at Disney World three times.
Pro tip: Booking online in advance doesn’t do much except put you in a “faster” line, but it does feel good passing all the peasants in the standby line.
Pro pro tip: You can also get on the ferry from Liberty State Park in New Jersey. Godspeed.
The last thing you want to do once you’re on a ferry is spend any more time just standing around. Any ferry you get on from Battery Park will pass by Liberty Island, stop to let people off and then continue on to Ellis Island. That’s where this advice comes in. Hear me out: don’t stop at the Statue of Liberty.
I know, it sounds wacky. But there are only so many trips around the islands these ferries take, and you don’t want to make the mistake my family did and spend so much time eking out what little there is to see on Liberty Island, feeling like we owed it to America, and then not make it to Ellis Island.
Just seeing Lady Liberty is enough, I promise. For one thing, you’ll get better photos from the top deck of the ferry than you will standing directly under her. I had to lay on the cold ground to get this photo and still cut the torch off. Plus, you’re basically staring up her skirt the whole time, which just kind of feels wrong.
For another, the only thing to do while you're there is climb the 200-something steps up the statue's interior. But, surprise, you’re going to pay some extra money to climb past the pedestal to the crown (access to her torch was suspended in 1916 due to the Black Tom explosion). Sure, you can toddle around their excuse for a museum, which includes some information on design and creation of the statue, if you’re into that sort of thing, but it’s mediocre at best.
The most impressive thing I gleaned from Liberty Island were city views, since the New York skyline is at its best from out there. But even still, you can get those shots from the ferry.
Seeing the Statue of Liberty is important, but it’s more important to remember what she actually stands for -- and that can be found on Ellis Island. About 12 million immigrants entered the country through inspection in the Registry Room of the building, and you can explore the corridors and holding rooms where families stood awaiting their entrance into America.
This is where most of your time should be spent. The restored building itself is massive, with exhibit halls depending on which aspect of history you’re most interested in and original photographs and audio recordings of Europeans winding their way through Ellis Island. There’s also the option to join a Hard Hat tour, which leads through the never-been-refurbished hospital wings.
What’s also great about Ellis Island is that they have the capability to allow you to search through records for any relatives you may have that passed through their doors. You can quite literally flip through history within their walls, something that Liberty Island just barely tries to pass off.
Note: If you don't care about Lady Liberty or the history of Ellis Island and just want the pic of the statue, hop on the Staten Island ferry (for free!) and swing on by.