Review: Statue of Liberty

Tell me: What’s this place all about?
The United States’ most celebrated monument, the Statue of Liberty was gifted by the French as a sign of goodwill and friendship in honor of the U.S. centennial of independence. The Statue was unveiled on a reportedly wet and foggy day in 1886 in front of one million New Yorkers; last year, a record 4.4 million tourists visited Liberty Island, the 14-acre swath of land one mile south of lower Manhattan upon which the Statue rests. While there is no fee to visit Liberty Island, you do have to pay for a round-trip ferry ride via Statue Cruises. The ferry also stops on Ellis Island, part of the national park, and is famous for processing more than 12 million immigrant steamship passengers through its federal immigration station from 1892 to 1954. The island now houses the Ellis Island National Museum of Immigration, where visitors can search digital images of ship manifests for the immigration records of their relatives.

What’s it like being there?
Historical awe.

Is there a guide involved?
Ranger-guided tours of Liberty Island are available most days (weather and staff-level permitting). Audio tours of the island’s grounds and the Statue of Liberty Museum are available every day. The Ellis Island National Museum of Immigration offers free ranger-guided and audio tours that are laden with historical facts and personal histories. If you plan to visit the Statue’s pedestal or crown, plan ahead: There are a limited number of tickets available each day and they sell out weeks, if not months, in advance. Before you book, know that there’s no elevator access from the top of the pedestal to the crown; you’ll have to climb 162 steps on a confined spiral staircase for those panoramic views of New York City.

Who comes here?
Committed tourists. It takes at least six hours to properly visit the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island, so if that doesn't sound doable to you, don’t go.

Did it meet expectations?
The Statue of Liberty is a bucket-list item; check it off, but chances are you won’t return for round two.

So, then, what, or who, do you think it’s best for?
If you’re tight on time, take the ferry to Liberty Island, walk around, snap a selfie with Lady Lib, and leave feeling plenty satisfied. Those who are crowd-averse should take it all in from a distance at Battery Park or the Brooklyn Promenade, or hop on the free ferry to Staten Island to catch views of the Statue and the New York Harbor.