Salazar Welcomes First Visitors to Tour Re-Opened Crown of Statue of Liberty

NEW YORK, NY — Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar today was joined by Governors David Paterson, Jon Corzine, Senator Robert Menendez, Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Congressmen Gregory Meeks and Anthony Weiner to celebrate the Fourth of July by welcoming the first visitors to tour the crown of the Statue of Liberty since it was closed following the 9/11 attacks for safety and security reasons. The first thirty visitors, from all over the world, climbed the 354 steps to the crown accompanied by National Park Service rangers.

“Once again, Americans can climb to Lady Liberty's crown and gaze out over New York harbor, where so many of our ancestors first saw the New World and first breathed the fresh air of freedom,” Salazar said at a ceremony marking the re-opening. “This is a celebration of America and the joy of being an American.”

For safety considerations, the National Park Service will limit the number of visitors to the crown to groups of no more than 10 visitors at a time. With approximately three groups ascending the crown per hour, an average of 240 crown will be able to climb to the crown each day. All visitors must be able to climb and descend the stairs without assistance and should be aware that the statue is cramped and can often be much hotter than the outside temperature.

Over the past few months, NPS had made safety upgrades to the Statue of Liberty, including adding an additional handrail to the double helix staircase. The Statue of Liberty will be open for the next two years, then it will be closed again for work on a long-term solution that will further improve safety and security.

Crown tickets may be reserved up to one year prior to the day of the visit. (Example: Tickets for travel on September 1, 2010 will become available on-line or by phone starting at 10:00 a.m. EST on September 1, 2009). Reservations are made through the Statue Cruises Web site at www.statuecruises.com or by phone at 877- LADY-TIX (877-523-9849).

Crown tickets will cost an additional $3 and will be combined with reserved ferry tickets, which are currently $12 for adults, $10 for seniors and $5 for children. The maximum number of tickets that can be reserved per customer is 4, with only one reservation allowed during any 6 month period. Children must be at least four feet tall to visit the crown.