Statue of Liberty & Ellis Island: Ferry & Bus from Times Square

1/5

Duration6h 30m

GroupUp to 55

LanguagesEN

Times Square to Liberty Island in One Morning: Ferry, History & a Pastry

You board a climate-controlled bus at Times Square and ride straight to Battery Park, where ferry tickets are waiting. You cross to Liberty Island for close views of the statue, then continue to Ellis Island to walk through the immigration halls where millions of arrivals were processed. The ferry returns you to Battery Park, and the bus takes you back to Midtown. Breakfast with pastry and coffee is optional. No pedestal or crown access is included—this is the full island experience, not the climb.

6h 30m

Step-by-step itinerary

Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island visit

Meet at Times Square
Board express bus to Battery Park
Receive ferry tickets from guide
Take ferry to Liberty Island
Explore Statue of Liberty
Take ferry to Ellis Island
Visit Ellis Island Immigration Museum
Return ferry to Battery Park
Bus back to Times Square

The Experience

What if the Statue of Liberty ticket line ate your whole morning? That's the problem this tour solves. You start at Times Square—no hunting for the right subway, no standing in the wrong queue at Battery Park. A climate-controlled express bus picks you up and takes you straight to the ferry departure point, where a guide hands you your tickets and you're on the water within minutes. If you want it, there's a classic New York pastry and coffee waiting before you board, which sounds small until you're standing on the deck watching the skyline shrink behind you.

The ferry ride itself is the thing most people don't expect to enjoy as much as they do. You get close enough to the Statue of Liberty to see the detail—the torch, the broken chains at her feet—without the crowds that come with climbing inside. After that, the ferry takes you to Ellis Island, where over 12 million immigrants landed when they arrived in America. You walk through the halls where families were processed, where names got changed, where people's whole lives pivoted in a single afternoon. It's quieter than Liberty Island, and the weight of it sits different when you're standing there.

The whole thing loops back to Battery Park, and then the bus returns you to Midtown. If you're short on time, there's also a 60-minute express cruise option that circles Liberty Island from the water—you don't set foot on the island itself, but you get the views and you're back in Manhattan before lunch. The choice depends on whether you want the full Ellis Island story or just the iconic moment. Either way, you're not negotiating ferries or transfers or figuring out which ticket booth is open. The guide handles it.

What’s included

Your day includes roundtrip bus transfer from Times Square to Battery Park and back, ferry tickets to Liberty Island and Ellis Island (standard option), a scenic ferry ride with views of the Statue of Liberty and Roosevelt Island, and time to explore both islands.
If you add the breakfast option, you'll receive a classic New York pastry with coffee or tea before departure.
The express cruise option substitutes a 60-minute water-based viewing of Liberty Island for the island stops.
Service animals are welcome, and the bus is climate-controlled throughout.

Operated by Statue of Liberty Bus

Is this one for you?Pick this if you're staying in Midtown and don't want to navigate the subway, ferry queues, or ticket booths yourself—the bus pickup and included ferry tickets mean you walk on at Battery Park instead of spending an hour figuring out how to get there.