Liberty at Night

To kick-off the National Park Service and the National Park Foundation’s cel­e­bra­tion of the national parks on September 26 — National Public Lands Day — the Statue of Liberty National Monument and Ellis Island will for the first time, open to the pub­lic for a spe­cial evening tour and pro­gram event on September 24 and 25, 2009. As part of the fes­tiv­i­ties, atten­dees will expe­ri­ence a sneak pre­view of Ken Burns’s new doc­u­men­tary The National Parks: America’s Best Idea pre­mier­ing on PBS the fol­low­ing evening.

“This is a tremen­dous oppor­tu­nity for peo­ple to expe­ri­ence these iconic mon­u­ments in a new set­ting,” said Dave Luchsinger, Superintendent of the Statue of Liberty National Monument and Ellis Island. “We hope that these two spe­cial events will help to illus­trate how unique our National Park sys­tem is.”

Ellis Island will be open on Thursday, September 24 and Liberty Island open on Friday, September 25. Both nights board­ing will take place at Statue Cruises’ board­ing loca­tions in Liberty State Park in Jersey City and Battery Park in Manhattan at 6:00 PM. Vessels will return at 9:00 PM.

Tickets are $29 per indi­vid­ual and include a voucher for a meal on the island. Meals will be dis­trib­uted at each islands’ din­ing facil­i­ties. Vegetarian options will be avail­able. Tickets can be pur­chased at www.statuecruises.com/night-tour.html or by call­ing 877-LADY TIX (877–523-9849).

The Great Hall on Ellis Island will be open for vis­i­tors who would like to explore the exhibits. On Liberty Island the Pedestal, Museum and Statue will not be open, but rangers will be sta­tioned around the island pro­vid­ing inter­pre­ta­tion and answer­ing questions.

The spe­cial evening events on Ellis and Liberty Islands will kick-off a nation­wide day of ser­vice and cel­e­bra­tion on September 26th, National Public Lands Day. Together, the National Park Service and the National Park Foundation are invit­ing the pub­lic across the coun­try to help make America’s Best Idea – the national parks – even bet­ter. Together, the national parks will wel­come vis­i­tors and vol­un­teers for this spe­cial day, and as thanks, present as sneak pre­view of Ken Burns’s new film, The National Parks: America’s Best Idea. A full list­ing of park events – updated daily – is online at www.nps.gov/september26.

Statue Cruises is the con­ces­sioner autho­rized by the National Park Service, Department of the Interior, to serve the pub­lic at the Statue of Liberty National Monument and Ellis Island. Over 3.5 mil­lion annual vis­i­tors from around the world visit these two icons of free­dom and hope. In addi­tion to pro­vid­ing daily ferry ser­vice, Statue Cruises also oper­ates spe­cial event cruises, pri­vate char­ters and the nar­rated Liberty Harbor Cruise – a 75-minute tour of the New York Harbor. For more infor­ma­tion visit: www.statuecruises.com.

The National Park Foundation is an inde­pen­dent char­i­ta­ble orga­ni­za­tion char­tered by Congress in 1967 to strengthen the con­nec­tion between the American peo­ple and their national parks. As the offi­cial national non-profit part­ner of America’s National Parks, the Foundation raises pri­vate funds, makes strate­gic grants, cre­ates inno­v­a­tive part­ner­ships and increases pub­lic aware­ness about the need and oppor­tu­nity for park phil­an­thropy. In its 2008 fis­cal year, the National Park Foundation dis­trib­uted grants and pro­gram sup­port of $27.3M. To learn more, visit www.nationalparks.org

Related posts:

1. Statue of Liberty Crown Reopens to Public
2. National Parks of New York Harbor Video Tours
3. Celebrating Shrimp and Grits on Jekyll Island, Georgia
4. Maine Set to Host United States’ Largest Open Lighthouse Day
5. Plan Your Visit to America’s Best Idea: National Park Service Launches Fall-to-Spring Trip-Planning Website