What To See At The 9/11 Memorial
The World Trade Center is now a park of oak trees at the center of which are 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.
Way N : Take A Guided Tour Of 9/11 Memorial And Museum
Guided tours are the best way to enjoy a place of historical and cultural significance such as the National September 11 Museum. Your tour guide will share important information about what you are seeing, and in the case of 9/11 Museum, most guides have a specific personal connection to the events.
Guided tours are obviously more expensive, but generally worth it.
The guided tours below all include 9/11 Museum tickets and a guided visit to the Memorial.
- Ground Zero 9/11 Memorial Tour & Optional 9/11 Museum Entry if you select the option inclusive of the museum tickets, this tour costs $69. It lasts between 2 and 5 hours. Your guide will walk you through the most important landmarks of the memorial, and at the end you are handed a ticket to visit the museum.
- New York: 9/11 Memorial, Ground Zero & Optional Museum Entry a similar option to the one above, it costs $89.99 but the group is much smaller, allowing only up to 10 participants.
- 9/11 Memorial and Museum private tour this is the most expensive option, but the tour is probably the best you could hope for.
For a great selection of 9/11 Memorial and Museum tours, click here.
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.
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How To Visit The 9/11 Museum
You will enter the 9/11 Museum through a pavilion located in the Memorial. You will descend into the subway facility where the first thing you will see is Virgil’s quote, “No day shall erase you from the memory of time” in the room known as Memorial Hall.
As you proceed through the space beneath the World Trade Center, you will pass into Foundation Hall, the Museum’s main hall, whose most prominent feature is the ‘Last Column’. This was the last piece of the building to be removed in the World Trade Center rubble removal effort, and is covered with inscriptions and signatures of those who participated in the recovery effort at Ground Zero.
Top Things To See At Or Near The 9/11 Memorial In Nyc
Carissa ChesanekLast Updated: April 21, 2022
The National September 11 Memorial Museum is a monumental landmark at the World Trade Center.But perhaps you want to know what else there is to see nearbybefore you visit the 9/11 museum and memorials. There are plenty of other activities and attractions around the memorial and Financial District, and weve included our favorites here. Explore our guide below for the top things to see at or near the 9/11 Memorial in New York City.
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How Much Time Do You Need
Although a quick trip can take anywhere from 15-30 minutes, some guests may want to set aside a little more time to experience the memorial.
There are also several additional monuments nearby that are directly related to the events of 9/11, so you may want to ensure that you have at least 1 hour to see everything.
This is the exact time it will take you to complete our audio walking tour of the memorial and surrounding area.
The 9/11 Museum is located right between the two monuments and you will require tickets for entry.
This location includes several exhibits covering the history before, during, and after the events of September 11th.
For more information, make sure to read our post about visiting the 9/11 Museum.
If you want to take things a step further, you should also consider visiting One World Trade Center.
Located right across the street from the 9/11 Memorial, this is one of the tallest buildings in the world and it has observation decks providing some of the best views in New York City.
Read our post about the Freedom Tower for more details.
Anyone who is considering a trip to the memorial, the museum, and the One World Observatory should set aside at least 5-6 hours for the entire trip.
Youll also want to purchase tickets in advance to make sure that you can get in when you want and avoid having to wait in line.
If youre planning on spending the day in this area, consider dropping into Brookfield Place to grab a bite to eat.
When You Have Already Bought The Tickets
When you buy 9/11 Museum tickets online, you get to pick your time slot.
On the day of your visit, all you have to do is reach the Museum 15 minutes before the time mentioned on your tickets.
Since you already have the tickets, you can skip the line at the ticketing counter .
Look for time-based entry lines where everyone with tickets gets to stand.
At the time mentioned on your ticket, you will be allowed to enter the Museum. Yes, no waiting!
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How To Get To 9/11 Museum And Memorial
The National September 11 Memorial Museum is located at 180 Greenwich Street, in the Financial District in Lower Manhattan.
There are 4 entrances to the building:
The easiest way to get there is by public transportation.
Lines 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and A, C, J, Z will take you all the way to Lower Manhattan. You can also take trains E and R. The best stations to get off are Chambers Street Station or Fulton Street Station, Park Place, World Trade Center, Rector Street or Cortland Street Station.
You can get to the Financial District by bus from other places in Manhattan. You will likely need to take a bus that is southbound. The buses that stop nearby are the M55 the M20 and the M22 . If you are taking the M55 Northbound get off at Trinity Place and Rector Street.
Another convenient way of getting there is by hop-on hop-off bus. You can get your pass here.
FROM NEW JERSEY: If you are traveling from New Jersey, you can get to the World Trade Center Terminal by PATH Train.
Where To Eat In The 9/11 Memorial And Museum Area
Being in the middle of the Financial District, there aren’t too many restaurants in the 9/11 Memorial and Museum area, but there are a couple of worthwhile places:
- 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 are looking for something quick, in The Oculus you will find a lot of restaurants and fast food chains : Starbucks, Dunkin Donuts, Eataly, Shake Shack…
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The National September 11th Memorial Museum
Unlike the Memorial, you must purchase tickets to enter the Museum.
Through interactive technology, archives, narratives, and a collection of artifacts, the Museum recounts the events of 9/11.
To see a preview of what your visit will be like, here is a virtual tour of the museum.
Hours: Daily from 9 am to 8 pm. The last entry time is at 7 pm.
Tickets: Tickets are “timed-entry” meaning you must select a specific date and time when you make your purchase. Tickets can be purchased up to three months in advance.
You can purchase tickets by clicking here.
Several tour companies combine a walking tour of the 9/11 Memorial and Ground Zero with tickets to the 9/11 Museum. Learn more.
TIP: Admission to the museum is included for free with the purchase of either the New York Pass, the Explorer Pass or the CityPass booklet. Read our post comparing the different tourist attractions passes in NYC.
Prices:
- $28 Adults
Free Tuesdays
Free admission will be available for all visitors every Tuesday, from 5 pm to 8 pm .
A limited number of advance tickets for these free Tuesdays will be available online, starting two weeks in advance of each Tuesday.
A limited number of tickets are available every Tuesday on a first-come, first-served basis.
Get more detail on this cost-saving opportunity at our post – Free Admission 911 Museum.
Join us for our Tuesday World Trade Center and 911 Memorial Tour from 1 pm till 3 pm, after which you can pick up tickets for free entry.
Should You Bring The Kids
While children are welcome inside the 9/11 Memorial and Museum, the museum exhibitions may not be appropriate for children under the age of 10. It may also be difficult to properly explain the events of 9/11 and their impact to young children. The 9/11 Memorial and Museum provides a guide for children, and staff is available to help answer questions. It’s recommended that you allow yourself at least three to four hours to fully embrace the memorial and the contents of the museum, as the experience is very emotional. Some find the museum to be overwhelming however, many have attested that its deep impact is part of what makes the museum and memorial so necessary. Finding the right tone when creating a museum around a day so tragic is difficult, but many feel that the museum appropriately creates an informative and touching experience that pays tribute to the victims and the emotions the nation felt on that day, the days following, and even now.
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/11 Museum: What Youll Find Here
Opened to the public in 2014, the September 11 Museum is located 70 feet above ground. Here youll find artifacts from the tragic events of 9/11, including recordings of 911 calls and survivors stories, objects that were found in the ruins, pieces from the buildings and more.
The museum features 2 core exhibitions and other rotating, time-limited exhibitions, plus a couple of other activities. Lets see them in detail.
Image by kmiragayavia DepositPhotos
The Historical Exhibition: September 11, 2001 tells the story of 9/11. Its divided in three parts: Events of the Day, where youll learn about the Twin Towers and the attacks to the pentagon and Flight 93, Before 9/11 that talks about the events that led to the attacks, and After 9/11.
The Memorial Exhibition: In Memoriams goal is to honor all the people who lost their lives. Visitors can learn about each victims life by using some touchscreen tables, and youll also find some personal objects that described the victims lives. This part of the museum really helps giving the victims a face, and it makes it more personal.
The temporary exhibitions change every few months. Currently at the time of writing this post, the two exhibitions you can see are Revealed: The Hunt for Bin Laden, an exhibition about the intelligence work that led to finding Osama Bin Laden, and K-9 Courage, that tells the story of the hundreds of dogs that helped after the attacks.
Image by kmiragayavia DepositPhotos
A Bit Of History: September 11 2011
I can hardly forget that Tuesday in September when, having returned home from school with my brother, we turned on the television as usual to play the video game console, but never got around to changing the channel: we were engrossed in watching the images of the Twin Towers collapsing in a cloud of black smoke, which the news repeated over and over again.
We had not long returned to Madrid after living in New York for nearly seven years, so those images came from the place we still considered home.
Chances are, if you are reading this, you also have a story to tell about 9/11. If you weren’t in New York, you were most likely caught at home, watching the news in complete shock like me. If you lived in New York, your story will be very different, and it is precisely this story that is told at the 9/11 Memorial and Museum in New York.
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A Few Tips For Visiting The 9/11 Memorial And Museum
Security: Security is tight at the 9/11 Museum. Expect airport-like security checks at the entrance, which might mean longer queues during high season. Allow some extra time to go through security.
before your visit. This free app will guide you through the space, and also features extra content and stories told by first responders and residents.
Skip the Lines If you dont buy an online ticket prior to your visit, youll have to queue to buy the ticket, queue to enter the museum, and queue for security. Depending on when you visit, queues can get very long .
I strongly suggest buying your tickets online to avoid wasting time when I did, I saved at least 20 minutes by avoiding the queue at the ticket counter. You can buy your skip the line tickets here.
Accessibility: The 9/11 Museum is fully accessible for wheelchair users.
Fdny Memorial Wall: If you still have time, take a 10 minutes to check out the FDNY Memorial Wall that is dedicated to the 343 firefighters and volunteer firefighters who lost their lives on 9/11. You can find this wall at the FDNY Engine 10 Ladder 10 station, located across the street from the World Trade Center.
Can You Walk Around Ground Zero
How long is the tour? Our guided tour of Ground Zero is 90 minutes. If you choose an experience with entry to the 9/11 Museum or the One World Observatory or both youll want to allow additional time for those attractions.
Can you bring bags into 911 Museum? Security screening is mandatory for all visitors that wish to enter the Memorial Museum, and will include screening of all bags, equipment, and belongings. Permissible baggage, handbags, backpacks, shopping bags, equipment, and belongings for visitors is limited to 8 x 17 x 19 per item.
How much does it cost to see the 9/11 memorial? The 9/11 Memorial is free and open to the public seven days a week, 10 a.m.5 p.m. Museum tickets can be purchased up to six months in advance and include entry to all available exhibitions.
Can you tour the Twin Towers? If you plan on visiting the One World Trade Centers 9/11 Memorial & Museum you can visit between 9am-8pm daily. To visit the One World Observatory, it is open 9am-9pm 7 days a week with last admission 8.15pm .
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What Will You See
Visiting the 911 Memorial Museum is both sobering and uplifting. Youll hear stories of tragedy and heroism, leaving you both sad and hopeful. Some of the sites include:
- Historical exhibits that talk about the days before and after 911. Its not advisable for kids under 10 years, because of the potential emotional impact.
- In Memoriam, a tribute to the fallen.
- Daily feature films in Museum Pavilion L2, the museums auditorium.
- The Survivor Tree, a Callery Pear which lived through the disaster, was rehabilitated, and replanted at Ground Zero. Seedlings from this tree are annually donated to three communities that have survived tragedies of their own.
- Twin Reflecting Pools drop into the largest man-made waterfall in the US. The pools lie in what would have been the shadow of the Twin Towers, and measure nearly an acre each. At the edge of the pools, there are bronze engravings naming everyone we lost. The pools are 10m metres deep .
- The Sphere, which was originally positioned between the Twin Towers, survived the attack and now has an eternal flame as a tribute.
- The Observatory includes a pre-show, 3 floors to explore , a pod elevator ride, and See Forever Theatre.
Can You Go In The World Trade Center
If you plan on visiting the One World Trade Centers 9/11 Memorial & Museum you can visit between 9am-8pm daily. To visit the One World Observatory, it is open 9am-9pm 7 days a week with last admission 8.15pm .
What happened to Gary Box?
Gary was a loving son, brother, uncle, cousin and father. He was an FDNY Firefighter with Squad One in Brooklyn NY. Garys life was ended suddenly and violently on September 11th, 2001 at the World Trade Center.
How many workers died building twin towers?
In all, 60 workers were killed in construction accidents while the World Trade Center was being built. The topping out ceremony of the North Tower took place on December 23, 1970, while the South Tower s ceremony occurred on July 19, 1971.
How long is ground zero tour? Our guided tour is 90 minutes. You can also add on a visit to the 9/11 Museum, which takes about two hours, and the One World Observatory at Freedom Tower, which takes about an hour.
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