How To Get 9/11 Museum Tickets
Getting 9/11 Museum tickets is easier than you can imagine. This post will highlight the various options available.
9/11 Museum and Memorial is one of the most popular attractions in New York.
As you may already know, I was in New York on 9/11. Back then I worked at the United Nations, in the headquarters building in 1 UN Plaza. That was a very sad day for New York in fact, for the world. And one that should never be forgotten.
New York got back on its feet soon after the attacks the World Trade Center has been rebuilt and where the Twin Towers once stood, there now is the 9/11 Museum and Memorial, where you can learn more about the history of those horrible days, honor the many victims, and be warned about the terrible things humans can at times do.
This post will tell you what to expect when visiting 9/11 Memorial and Museum, and how to get tickets.
Get A Museum Membership
There are various levels of membership to the 9/11 Museum, and they all include free admission for at least one adult for the entire year.
The base level of membership is $75 and in addition to the free admission for the cardholder, it also includes two complimentary passes for guests accompanied by a member.
/11 Memorial + 9/11 Museum + Observatory
If you are a bunch of adults, or if your kids are old enough to manage around five hours of exploration, we highly recommend this combo.
During the guided tour, you pay your respects to the fallen heroes of the terrorist attack at the 9/11 Memorial.
Then you skip the lines to enter the 11 September Museum and explore yourself.
During the last leg, you visit One World Observatory, the highest observation deck in the world, in Freedom Tower.
Ticket price
Adult ticket : $109Kids ticket : $99Infant ticket : Free entry
Tip: If you are on a budget holiday but want to see all three attractions in the complex, we suggest you purchase the standard Memorial and Museum ticket and get the One World Observatory ticket separately. You will save approximately $40 for every adult.
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Where Is The 9/11 Museum
The National September 11 Memorial Museum is located at 180 Greenwich Street, inside the World Trade Center in Lower Manhattan’s Financial District.
There are many ways to get here, but regardless, we recommend using this link for directions to the 9/11 Museum.
It is easily accessible by many train lines of the New York City subway system.
If you are new to riding the subway, check out our posts on navigating the subway and how to buy a subway MetroCard.
Stations within walking distance are:
- A, C, 1, 2, 3 to Chambers Street
- A, C, J, Z, 2, 3, 4, or 5 to Fulton Street
- 2 or 3 to Park Place
- E to World Trade Center
- 1 or R to Rector Street
- R to Cortlandt Street
Alternatively, if youre planning to use a hop-on-hop-off bus, most services offer a stop very close to the World Trade Center.
You can also take a public bus to get here if need be.
Facts And History Of Ground Zero And 9/11 Memorials
Though many tourists might be familiar with the events of September 11th, some may not know these important facts about Ground Zero and the 9/11 museum, thanks to the official 9/11 Memorial website.
- Before the Twin Towers fell they were both over 1,300 feet in height. The North Tower was 1,368 feet high while the South Tower reached 1,362 feet.
- The buildings took roughly ten seconds to collapse to the ground bringing with them about 300,000 tons of steel.
- Almost 3,000 people died in the 9/11 attacks .
- To create the 9/11 Memorial there was an international competition that took place In 2003. The following year, architect Michael Arad and landscape architect Peter Walker were announced the winners with their design titled Reflecting Absence which featured the two pools and white oak trees we see today.
- The Memorial Pools are about the size of one acre each and took ten years to build. The 9/11 Museum later opened its doors three years after.
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Way N : Take A Guided Tour Of The Statue Of Liberty And 9/11 Memorial And Museum
Another cool tour is the one that goes to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island, where you visit the Immigration Museum. After that, you go to the 9/11 Memorial and Museum.
This guided tour costs $104 and lasts 5.5 hours it includes the ferry from Battery Park to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island and back from there you will walk around 800 meters to the Memorial tickets for the 9/11 Museum and Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island National Park fees. You can opt for an upgrade if you want to access the Pedestal at the Statue of Liberty. You can buy the tour here.
Where To Eat In The 9/11 Memorial And Museum Area
Being in the middle of the Financial District, there are not too many restaurants in the 9/11 Memorial and Museum area, but there are a couple of places worth visiting:
- Delmonico’s – A relatively expensive steakhouse but has a pretty high rating on TripAdvisor.
- Leo’s Bagels – A place where you’ll find the typical New York Bagel that I recommend to everyone I know who travels to New York.
- If you’re looking for something quick, The Oculus has plenty of restaurants and fast food chains : Starbucks, Dunkin Donuts, Eataly, Shake Shack….
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What To Expect When Visiting 9/11 Museum And Memorial
The 9/11 Museum and Memorial will leave a strong impression on you. This is a museum most people visit in silence, in awe at a part of history most of us remember, yet we still know little about. You will be overwhelmed with sadness and anger at some point.
The 9/11 Museum is not recommended for children below the age of 10. The exhibit may not be best suited for such a young audience. Furthermore, younger kids may end up getting bored in a place that is so quiet. If you are set on visiting, you may want to find a babysitter to take care of your children while youre at the museum.
Finally, continue reading to discover how to get 9/11 Museum tickets.
Skip The Queues At The 9/11 Museum
The most convenient and economical way to access the 9/11 Museum is to purchase these tickets online and in advance.
One thing you should know before you go to Ground Zero is that the 9/11 Memorial and the 9/11 Museum are different things. The 9/11 Memorial is a memorial located on the foundations of what used to be the Twin Towers, and the 9/11 Museum is an underground facility underneath Ground Zero that houses an exhibit about the 9/11 attacks and their aftermath.
To visit the 9/11 Museum, all you need to do is purchase this ticket. When booking your tickets, you will need to select a time slot in which to visit the Museum, which is usually about two and a half hours from opening time.
With the Museum’s APP, as well as accessing interactive parts of the exhibition that you cannot see in any other way, you will be able to listen to a complete audio guide in Spanish so that you don’t miss anything. Once you have booked your ticket, you will receive it by email and you just need to show it on your mobile phone at the entrance and go through the security checkpoint to enter the Museum.
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Exhibitions In The 9/11 Museum
Two exhibitions are shown in the 9/11 Museum. The exhibitions demonstrate the story of 9/11 through displays, archives, photos and actual objects. The Historical Exhibition explains the history of September 11th 2001. The exhibition is built in chronological order: it starts with the beginning of the day and finishes with how the day ended.
The Memorial Exhibition commemorates the victims. You can find a Wall of Faces where photos of all the victims are shown. Behind each individual photo, you can find more information about that person. These archives were completed by their relatives.
What To See At The 9/11 Memorial
The World Trade Center is now a park of oak trees in the centre of which stand the twin fountains that make up the 9/11 Memorial, where water cascades down in a waterfall. In tribute to the victims of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, the names of those who lost their lives that day are engraved on the outer edges of the fountains.
The fountains and the names of the victims are illuminated at night, giving the place a special atmosphere. If you book your tickets for the 9/11 Museum and Memorial, you can get an in-depth look at the details of what happened on that day.
If you prefer to complete your tour with an expert guide to help you contextualise everything you see, I recommend this 9/11 Memorial and Ground Zero Tour, which also includes optional admission to the National 9/11 Museum.
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Practical Information For Your Visit
- Try to get to Ground Zero as early as possible, to avoid the crowds and have a more personal and peaceful experience. The place deserves it. Alternatively, you can visit the Memorial at night to experience a more secluded atmosphere.
- Visiting the Memorial is always free, but you can also enter the Museum for free on Thursdays from 17:00.
- You can take photos both at the Memorial and in the Museum.
Alex’s Traveller Tip
You can delve deeper into your visit to the 9/11 Museum with the augmented reality app ‘Explore 9/11’.
/11 Tribute Museum Tickets
The 9/11 Tribute Museum aims to help visitors understand the events surrounding the USAs largest emergency response and recovery effort.
Visitors can see personals stories of the victims displayed at the exhibitions.
The operating hours are from 10 am to 6 pm. The last entry takes place 30 minutes before closing.
You will need around 45 minutes to explore this Museum.
The Tribute Museum is 500 meters from the 9/11 Memorial.
The 9/11 Tribute Museum tickets cost $15 for adults, $10 for senior citizens and students with valid IDs, and $5 for children below three years.
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What The Museum Exhibits Are Like
The museum’s two main exhibitions are In Memoriam, which pays tribute to the victims of the 2001 terrorist attacks and those of the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, and , a minute-by-minute chronology of what happened on that day and a reflection on how the world we live in today has been shaped by the attacks on the Twin Towers.
Throughout the museum, you will find a collection of 60,000 objects salvaged from the rubble of the Twin Towers that tell the story of 9/11 through various perspectives, including first-person accounts, documents, and belongings.
Our Guide To Guided 9/11 Memorial Tour With Museum Tickets
Join your expert local guide and explore not just the 9/11 Memorial & Museum, but the areas and landmarks around the World Trade Center that featured so poignantly in news reports after the attacks.
Youll start out at St. Peters Church from where you walk over to St. Pauls Chapel with a more personal insight into the drama that unfolded here. This was where families and friends came to pray, offer support and await news in the immediate aftermath of the attacks as testified by the hand-drawn cards and memorials, personal memorabilia and photographs that still hang here.
See the stainless steel memorial cross, the stunning 9/11 Memorial Pools, each one built in the footprint of one of the twin towers, and inscribed with the names of all those who perished in the attack. Your guide will take this time to give you a more personal account of the tragedy that unfolded here, taking you to the Firemans Memorial and the Survivor Tree to tell you the incredible stories of courage and loss that unfolded right where you stand.
The last stop on our tour is one well let you manage on your own. The 9/11 Museum is a very well curated space, with artifacts salvaged from the event on display, alongside countless personal stories. Its a very moving visit, best taken in at your own pace in silence. We still have one last perk though weve pre-reserved your museum tickets, so youll skip long lines to gain immediate access.
Departs
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Way N : Buy The New York City Pass
If you plan on visiting a number of attractions, getting the New York City Pass may be a good way of saving *some* money.
Unless you plan on visiting 5 attractions on the same day , you really dont end up saving that much. You also have to book entrance to all attractions separately.
These are the best New York City Passes:
- Youth between the age of 13 and 17: $20.00
- Children between the age of 6 and 12: $15.00
There is an additional $2 USD fee for tickets bought online.
Children up to 6 years and US Military can visit for free.
The 9/11 Memorial is free to visit.
About The 9/11 Museum
The 9/11 Museum was planned and designed to be the preeminent institution in the United States for honoring and remembering those who were lost on September 11, 2001, as well as the bombing of the World Trade Center in 1993.
The museum weaves together individual stories about those who lost their lives on 9/11, as well as stories from those who escaped, those who lost a loved one, and those who risked their lives to aid in the rescue efforts.
The Museums 110,000 square feet of exhibit space includes a Historical Exhibition, detailing the facts and chronology of the events of 9/11, as well as the 1993 World Trade Center bombing.
The Wall of Faces displays pictures of nearly every victim of these two events.
There are also interactive exhibits where individuals are honored through stories, additional photographs, personal artifacts, and audio recordings.
Worth noting is that the primary exhibition space is located below the ground. Seven stories below ground, to be exact. The reasoning is unique.
In the aftermath of 9/11, what remained of the original World Trade Center achieved federal landmark status.
The 9/11 Memorial Foundation is legally required to preserve what remains of the original Trade Center and make it accessible to the public.
The remaining elements are the foundation slabs of the original Twin Towers, parts of the exterior box columns of the Twin Towers, and the retaining wall that was built during the original construction.
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One World Trade Center: Hours Tickets And Directions
One World Trade Center remembers those who lost their lives in the 9/11 terrorist attacks. It is not only the tallest building in the World Trade Center Complex but also in the nation. Its an impressive sight to view from the outside at 1,776 feet high. However, the inside is also something to see. Here, youll find the Oculus subway, Westfield Shops, and restaurants.
While here, check out One World Observatory. It sits at the top of One World Trade Center boasting city views at 102 stories high. And you can try an interactive tour and food from the restaurant and bar.
Admission fee to One World Trade Center: There is no fee to enter the World Trade Center Westfield Shops or Oculus.
Hours: Westfield Shops at the Oculus are open daily, Monday-Saturday from 10:00 am to 7:00 pm. Sunday hours are from 11:00 am-6:00 pm.
Admission fee to the One World Observatory: General admission starts at $38 per person.
Hours: The Observatory is currently open Thursday through Monday from 10:00 am 8:00 pm.
Directions: Get here by subway taking the 1 to WTC Cortlandt, the E to World Trade Center, or the R W to Cortlandt. One World Trade Center will be less than a 5-minute walk from the subway station.
Address: 50 Church Street, New York
Official 9/11 Museum Tours
In addition to all the 9/11 Memorial tours you can take, there are also official tours offered by the 9/11 Museum.
Some of them arent cheap, but you will undoubtedly learn a lot about the history of this location with the help of their wonderful and knowledgeable docents.
Check their tour page for more information.
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Revealed: The Hunt For Bin Laden
Revealed: The Hunt for Bin Laden takes visitors on the fascinating search of Osama Bin Laden, terrorist organization Al Qaedas leader.
The story begins with efforts to track bin Ladens whereabouts and ascertain his plans before 2001 and concludes with the U.S. Navy SEAL operation on his hideout in Abbottabad, Pakistan.
The Hunt for Bin Laden is a critical and compelling account of how the U.S. intelligence community, military, and federal law enforcement agencies came together after 9/11 to bring one man to justice.
Way N : Take A Guided Tour Of The Memorial Museum And World Trade Center Observatory
Another great way of getting tickets that is inclusive of all the most significant places linked to the 9/11 terrorist attacks is a guided tour that also goes to the World Trade Center Observatory and the Memorial.
During the tour, you also go the World Trade Center Observatory, on the 100th, 101st and 102nd floors of the Freedom Tower the tallest building in the USA with its 417 meters .
Tours are available on Saturdays and Sundays at 10:30 am they last 5 hours and cost $109. You can buy yours here.
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