Battery Park to Statue of Liberty

[maryandmarge]

We are doing a cruise on NCL Dawn in October and are doing ship excursions because of the $50/ea per port credits we received.    Can anyone tell me how far the Statue of Liberty is from Battery Park as far as getting a picture of it?    There is an excursion that stops at Battery Park and it says that you can see the Statue in the Distance.   I'm thinking "in the distance" is not close enough for good pictures.    As we will be arriving that morning to dock at 7 AM I'm thinking we would not be able to get a good picture if the ship passes on the way to Manhattan Port.   I'm thinking we should take the 4 hour excursion that  has the harbor cruise that goes up close but does not stop at the Statue (which is fine with me since I would just like some nice pictures).   We are thinking that maybe we can pick up a short tour from the port excursion  in the afternoon that will take us to see the 911 or other sites that we will miss.    None of the ships excursions seem to cover everything.   Any advise will be greatly appreciated.  

[138east]

Honestly most of the questions we answer involve folks doing stuff in Manhattan on their own.  Could you post the exact description of the harbor cruise excursion and the excursion that stops at Battery Park as well as any other tour options?

 

[mjkacmom]

How many hours do you have? 

[maryandmarge]

We are in port overnight on the ship.   Fly out the next morning.   That was why I was thinking we would be able to take a second short tour after the ships excursion returns us back to the pier.    I'm assuming because we are in port until the next morning that private tour companies will be out all day long selling excursions.    Or if we have time we might get off ship early and see if we can book something for later in the afternoon before we leave  do the NCL one.      The 4 hour excursion leaves at 9:45 and goes thru Lower Manhattan area.  It includes Greenwich Village, Financial District and other neighborhoods on the way to the Seaport where we get on the harbor cruise for a 60 minute boat ride of New York skyline and Ellis Island & the Statue of Liberty.   They have a 6 hour tour that takes you to Ellis Island & Museum and also Statue (outside grounds only) but I'm not really into the history and museums - I'm into taking pictures of things I've never seen before.    The 7 hour excursion in all over New York City but doesn't include seeing the Statue.   We're in our 60's & 70's and not into doing things on our own.    We like having the guide that will tell us what we are looking at and not just walking or driving by and wondering what it is.  Right now we are leaning towards the 4 hour New York Land and Sea.     Thanks for any suggestions.....

[138east]

I hear that you don’t like doing things on your own, but once you’re done with the land and sea tour, it sounds like you will be in lower Manhattan. Rather than going all the way back to the ship, it would make sense to leave the tour at that point and walk to the 911 Memorial.  If you’re not into museums, then paying to go into the 911 museum is probably not for you.  The Freedom Tower is right there if you want to spend some time up there to take pictures.  Take a cab back to the ship or to Times Square or Rockefeller Center and then back to the ship. I don’t know if you can find a tour to just walk around the 911 Memorial area and you certainly don’t need a tour guide to ride the elevator to the top of the Freedom tower.  Same goes for Times Square and Rockefeller Center - just take pictures and absorb the experience.

Edited May 12, 2019 by 138east

[mjkacmom]

1 hour ago, 138east said:

I hear that you don’t like doing things on your own, but once you’re done with the land and sea tour, it sounds like you will be in lower Manhattan. Rather than going all the way back to the ship, it would make sense to leave the tour at that point and walk to the 911 Memorial.  If you’re not into museums, then paying to go into the 911 museum is probably not for you.  The Freedom Tower is right there if you want to spend some time up there to take pictures.  Take a cab back to the ship or to Times Square or Rockefeller Center and then back to the ship. I don’t know if you can find a tour to just walk around the 911 Memorial area and you certainly don’t need a tour guide to ride the elevator to the top of the Freedom tower.  Same goes for Times Square and Rockefeller Center - just take pictures and absorb the experience.

There are 9/11 Memorial tours you can book online.

[maryandmarge]

Thanks so much - I'll check into these and see what we can find....

[Medic5emt]

I have visited the 911 site several times. You can visit with out a tour, and use the free information provided on site. I'm not sure if how far North the pier is from the 911 site. There is a big mall along the river, and a big mall with transportation hub just east of the 911 site. With no experience we did the subway to Time square. Give your self room for delays with subway travel. I found GOOGLE maps on my phone unreliable. Most likely due to tall building. You can see a lot just by walking around the area. It was an adventure and a lot to see for us Central Ohio people.

Enjoy your trip.

Edited May 13, 2019 by Medic5emt

[Nitemare]

From battery park if you are looking at the statue and stick your arm out as far as you can reach and raise your thumb you can easily hide the statue behind your thumb.

 

Take the (free) Staten Island ferry from near Battery Park to S.I. and back and you will get much closer to the SoL.    Not tour quality close, but if you just want a decent and free view that's the way to do it.  Or watch from your ship as you go by

[maryandmarge]

Thanks so much for the extra suggestions.    And thanks to Nitemare for the comment about reaching out with your thumb and hiding the Statue of Liberty.    That's what I was afraid of.   It looks close on the map but figured it was further than it looked.  Time to talk to my sister and decide what we want to do.    

[Turtles06]

On 5/11/2019 at 6:40 PM, maryandmarge said:

As we will be arriving that morning to dock at 7 AM I'm thinking we would not be able to get a good picture if the ship passes on the way to Manhattan Port.   

 

Especially since you enjoy photography, and regardless of what you may decide to do later that day, I would still encourage you to get up early to see your ship approach and pass under the Verrazzano Narrows Bridge, and sail past the Statue of Liberty.   Even if it's dark, and assuming it's not pouring rain, you should be able to get some good photos.  (Even though you are scheduled to dock at 7am, you might arrive earlier.   The day prior, ask on the ship what time they expect to be at the Verrazzano, which will be about an hour or so before you arrive at the pier. They have this information.)

 

 

 

(photos by turtles06)

[Got2Cruise]

I think the idea of taking the harbor tour is your best bet. I’ve taken a harbor sail and they get you lined up for excellent photo ops of the Statue of Liberty. 

 

You don't really need a tour guide to see the 9/11 Memorial. I think everyone knows the reason why they were created, no explanation necessary. It is easy getting an uber to and from. 

[maryandmarge]

Thanks for the extra advice on this.     And Turtles06 - your pictures were awesome - so I'm putting in my notes to make plans to be up and out on deck for the sail by the bridge and also the statue.    Safe travels to everyone and as always cruise critic is where to go to ask for suggestions....

[jamacka]

Its quite far from Battery Park.  If you want to go there arrive early.  Last spring we visited NYC and arrived late and couldn't get tickets for the Statue of Liberty.  You can, however take the ferry to Staten Island.  Its free and goes pretty close to the statue.  Here's a shot.  It is zoomed in but we still weren't too far.

[mking8288]

We're coming back to NYC on the Norwegian Escape and knew the ship would be arriving early in the pre-dawn hours, and set our alarm accordingly ... sure enough, just step onto our port side balcony - grab my smartphone & just took pictures, like these - with the Staten Island ferry crossing the harbor (ditto on take a free round-trip ride & back, total time is about 1 hour, you can walk OFF and right back onto the ferry - stake out a good spot for those Kodak shots.)  

 

 

Edited May 29, 2019 by mking8288