{"id":37791,"date":"2025-08-22T13:39:24","date_gmt":"2025-08-22T13:39:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.exp1.com\/blog\/?p=37791"},"modified":"2025-08-27T14:08:25","modified_gmt":"2025-08-27T14:08:25","slug":"dont-get-scammed-trying-to-get-to-the-statue-of-liberty","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.exp1.com\/blog\/dont-get-scammed-trying-to-get-to-the-statue-of-liberty\/","title":{"rendered":"Don\u2019t Get Scammed Trying To Get To the Statue of Liberty"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

As a New Yorker who enthusiastically welcomes visitors to the city and also makes a living as a licensed tour guide, I\u2019m frustrated and alarmed by the unscrupulous vendors who target tourists with various scams. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nowhere do you see this more than in Lower Manhattan as people head to the Statue of Liberty. And ongoing construction inside the park where you buy statue tickets and board the statue-bound ferries has made visitors even more vulnerable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here\u2019s what you need to know about avoiding these scams so you can get to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island safely.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Only one authorized ferry to the Statue of Liberty <\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"Statue<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The National Park Service oversees the Statue of Liberty National Monument, which encompasses Liberty Island and Ellis Island, and Castle Clinton National Monument. Castle Clinton is located in The Battery in Lower Manhattan and is also where you can find the box office to purchase ferry tickets to those islands.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The only ferry service authorized by the National Park Service to bring visitors to Liberty Island and Ellis Island is Statue City Cruises<\/a>. No other vendor or service is allowed to transport you to either island. (When you buy a Statue of Liberty tour ticket<\/a> from us, we include your ferry ticket as well as your local guide.) Any other ferry company claiming to take you to see the Statue of Liberty is misleading you. At best, that boat may pass near the island to give you a look from the water.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On a related note, you may have heard that taking the Staten Island Ferry<\/a> is a way to see the Statue of Liberty for free. This is technically true \u2014 but only from a distance. The commuter ferry doesn\u2019t actually go to Liberty Island itself or get very close to the statue at all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Stay aware at The Battery<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"Castle<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

To board the ferry, you\u2019ll need to go through The Battery, aka Battery Park<\/a>, and either purchase tickets at Castle Clinton or go straight to the ferry security checkpoint if you\u2019ve bought tickets in advance (like you can with us<\/a>).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The trouble is, major construction at The Battery has created some challenges.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

First, barricades and walls have shuttered several paths, complicating access to both Castle Clinton and the screening area to board the ferry. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Boarding<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Secondly, that boarding zone is no longer adjacent to Castle Clinton \u2014 it\u2019s now 300 yards south<\/a>, near a restaurant called The View. The National Park Service has put up signs to help visitors, but the vendors are nonetheless exploiting the confusion. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The video below shows how you should follow the signs to navigate around the barricades and reach Castle Clinton, where tickets to the ferry are sold. (This is also the meeting point for our tour. Your guide has your roundtrip ferry ticket, so no need to worry about that if you booked with us.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n