New York Tourist Sites: Statue of Liberty & Ellis Island

The recently refurbished Ellis Island joins the Statue of Liberty as stop number two from a Circle Line cruise boat that departs from Castle Clinton each day from 9:00 am to 6:00 pm every 30 minutes. Castle Clinton is found at the South West base of Manhattan in Battery Park.

The NYC Department of Parks and Recreation staff has inadvertently created a scenario that enables visitors to share the frustration that the original immigrants, those arriving in New York via Ellis Island from 1892 until 1954 must have felt. Long lines, security stations, and mobs of people give you a glimpse of what 20th century immigrants faced. On a beautiful day in June, the short jaunt across the Hudson that is scheduled to take 20 minutes, took two hours, so you know.

The Statue of Liberty is beautiful, and historic, and the views of Manhattan from the water are spectacular. Ellis Island is a masterful renovation of a National Monument.

If you are short on time however, Ellis Island, might best be seen from the Manhattan shoreline, and visited in the beautiful book Ellis Island: Ghosts of Freedom, with photographs by Stephen Wilkes, an introduction by Bill Bradley, in an elegant presentation by SamataMason, published 2006.

What cannot be captured in a book, or from the comfort of your home are New York’s fabulous neighborhoods. My advice is to get lost in Chinatown, the Lower East Side, or Little Italy. From there, it is a short walk to Battery Park, where you can enjoy the beauty of the Statue of Liberty, and the promise of Ellis Island, without the inconvenience of the lines, the wait, or the crowds.