Statue of Liberty Tickets

Which ticket to buy, and when to book it

For most first-time visitors, the best Statue of Liberty ticket is the Pedestal Reserve from Statue City Cruises: $26.30 per adult, 30 cents more than the basic ferry. Book it as soon as your dates are fixed, because pedestal slots sell out weeks ahead in summer and over Christmas week. If the crown is the point of your trip, book the Crown Reserve three to four months out. The operator says crown tickets sell out about 90 days ahead.

Prices checked November 7, 2026, on statuecitycruises.com, the only ferry operator authorized by the National Park Service. All prices are in US dollars and include the round-trip ferry, both islands, both museums and the audio tour.

Current Ticket Prices (November 2026)

The ferry is the only thing you pay for. The National Park Service charges no entrance fee for the islands or the museums, and the pedestal and crown add 30 cents to the ferry price.

Prices checked November 7, 2026. Military ID holders pay the senior rate on the first three tickets. The Hard Hat Tour is for ages 13 and up and doesn't include the pedestal or crown. America the Beautiful park passes don't cover the ferry. The park's own fee page still lists the child ticket at $17.00, 30 cents under the operator's price, so expect $17.30 at checkout.

Opening Hours

Ferries run every day except Thanksgiving (November 26, 2026) and December 25. The timetable posted for October 13 to November 20, 2026, has the first ferry at 9:00 AM and the last at 3:30 PM from both Battery Park and Liberty State Park. The last boat back leaves Ellis Island at 5:15 PM. Summer runs to a 5:00 PM last departure.

Hours checked November 7, 2026. The winter timetable from November 21 isn't posted yet; the operator publishes each season's schedule a few weeks ahead and says hours are shorter in winter. The harbor can close in storms. See full timings.

Note: Liberty Island is closed on December 25 and on Thanksgiving. December 24 is a short day, with the last monument entry at 1:30 PM, and the New Jersey ferry usually pauses from early January to early March. The operator calls the week between Christmas and New Year its busiest of the year, so if that's your week, book the first boat now. Holiday hours.

Choose Your Ticket

There are three official tickets, and they cost almost the same. They differ in how far into the monument you can go: the grounds, the pedestal balcony, or the crown. All three include the ferry, Ellis Island, both museums and the audio tour. The time on the ticket is when you join the security line, not a boat time, and no ticket skips that line.

Our pick: Pedestal Reserve for almost everyone, because the balcony costs 30 cents more than the ferry alone and the museum is free either way.

Skip it if: you're buying the crown for the view. The balcony looks over the same harbor, and the crown is a small room reached by 162 narrow steps. Buy the crown for the climb and the room, not the scenery.

Cheapest

1. General Admission

Adult: $26.00 | Child (4-12): $17.30 | Senior (62+): $23.00 | Under 4: free, ticket required

• Time needed: 3 to 4 hours for Liberty Island, 5 to 6 hours with Ellis Island
• Includes: the round-trip ferry, the Liberty Island grounds, the Statue of Liberty Museum, Ellis Island and its museum, and audio tours in 12 languages
• Best for: anyone who missed the pedestal, groups with strollers, and visitors who want the museum and the walk around the island

This is the ticket you'll be offered once the pedestal is gone. It's still a good day: the museum, its roof deck and the path around the island need no reservation.

from

$26.00

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Our pick

2. Pedestal Reserve

Adult: $26.30 | Child (4-12): $17.30 | Senior (62+): $23.30 | Under 4: free, ticket required

• Time needed: add 30 to 45 minutes to General Admission for the second screening and the climb
• Includes: everything in General Admission, plus the pedestal: 215 steps or an elevator to the balcony at the statue's feet, with a view down the harbor
• Best for: most first visits, families with kids under 42 inches, and anyone who wants inside the monument without the crown stairs

For two adults with kids aged 9 and 14, this ticket comes to $96.20, against $95.30 for General Admission. Last entry is 3:30 PM in winter and 5:00 PM in summer. No bags go inside, so bring quarters for the 25-cent lockers. Wheelchair users reach the top level by elevator and lift, but the official site says the outdoor balcony isn't accessible.

from

$26.30

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Sells out first

3. Crown Reserve

Adult: $26.30 | Child (4-12): $17.30 | Senior (62+): $23.30 | Under 4: not allowed

• Time needed: add about an hour to General Admission for pickup, two screenings and the climb
• Includes: everything in Pedestal Reserve, plus 162 steps up a spiral stair with no elevator and about 10 minutes inside the crown. From the ground it's 377 steps in all.
• Best for: visitors who want to stand inside the statue and are fine on tight stairs, booking three to four months ahead

Note: four tickets per order, and one crown booking per cardholder every six months. Tickets can't be emailed: the buyer collects them at Will Call with photo ID and the card, then checks in at a kiosk in Castle Clinton. Everyone must be at least 42 inches tall and climb unaided. Nothing goes up but a phone, a camera, medicine and a plastic water bottle. The park advises against the climb for anyone with heart, breathing or mobility conditions.

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If Official Tickets Are Sold Out

The official site runs out of crown dates first, then pedestal slots, and last the ferry itself on summer weekends. You still have ways in:

1. Keep checking. Cancellations go back on sale, because the operator refunds in full up to 24 hours before departure. There's no waitlist, so check your date every day or two.
2. Drop to the pedestal, or to General Admission. The balcony looks over the same harbor as the crown, and General Admission still gets you the museum and the original torch.
3. Try the New Jersey departure. Battery Park and Liberty State Park sell separate slots for the same islands. The New Jersey boat runs every 40 minutes in fall and stops at Ellis Island first.
4. Ask at the ticket office, early. The National Park Service says same-day pedestal tickets may be available at the Castle Clinton and Liberty State Park windows, in very small numbers. Never from a seller on the sidewalk.
5. Book a guided package. Resellers such as GetYourGuide sell ferry-plus-guide tours for more than the $26 official ticket. Useful when the ferry date is sold out; not a route to pedestal or crown access.
6. Over the holidays, aim for the morning. Christmas week is the operator's busiest, the last ferry out is 3:30 PM, and December 24 ends at 1:30 PM inside the monument. The 9:00 AM boats still have room when the afternoon is gone.

If your dates are set, book today. Crown tickets go about 90 days out, the pedestal goes next, and the 9:00 AM ferries fill first in summer and holiday weeks.

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Tips Before You Visit the Statue of Liberty

• Book the pedestal the day you fix your dates. It sells out weeks ahead in summer and over Christmas week. For the crown, set a reminder four months out, because the operator says those tickets are gone about 90 days ahead.
• Treat the ticket time as a line time. It's when you may join security, not a departure, and you can't join more than 30 minutes early.
• Buy from statuecitycruises.com only. The National Park Service warns of "aggressive, unauthorized ticket sellers" around the Battery. The only walk-up window in Manhattan is inside Castle Clinton.
• Bring quarters and leave the big bag at the hotel. Bags must fit the X-ray opening to board, there's no storage at the docks, and nothing but a phone, camera, medicine and water goes inside the monument. Lockers there take a 25-cent deposit.
• Take a boat before 2:00 PM for both islands. The operator says a later entry doesn't leave enough time for Ellis Island.
• Measure the kids before you book the crown. Everyone needs to be 42 inches tall and climb 162 steps alone. Children under 4 can't go up.

Frequently Asked Questions