We found the museum really interesting and regretted that we hadn’t allowed a bit more time for the visit. The museum is engaging with information being presented in a variety of ways. I had no idea about the scale of migration to NY, an eye opener.

After taking the ferry to see the Statue of Liberty, we travelled across to Ellis Island. I thought we would be there max 30 minutes but the teens actually enjoyed it. In particular, they were captivated by the Through America’s Gate exhibit on the second floor. It showed via photos and artefacts the step by step process that immigrants were taken through to qualify for citizenship or be deemed an “undesirable alien” and face deportation. This included a medical examination, legal examination and potentially a hearing of special inquiry. The exhibit highlighted the living conditions, and the raw emotion of the immigrants in a very vulnerable time of their lives. The teens also enjoyed the Research Center where we found the immigration records for a great grandfather who landed on Ellis Island in 1914. Ellis Island captures the beautiful diversity of ethnicity and culture of immigrants entering NY whilst also acknowledging mistakes of the past. A must see.

I love Ellis Island and I never get fed up of going there to take in all the history. WARNING when we were getting on the ferry to go over to the island you have to go through the security and they asked us to take off our watches. As we were about to board I went to look at the time and screamed omg my watch I left it at the security. It was an expensive RADO watch. I rushed back and said I left my watch and they pulled out a large bag of watches so obviously a lot of people do it. I said its an expesive gold and white gold rado and I just this minuet left it here it will not ne in that bag, with that an officer pulled my watch out of his top pocket and said is this it? they are onto a good thing believe me. You have to put it into a dish as you do at the airports and with the hussle of moving you along to fill up all the gaps etc its quite easy to forget. I dont know why you have to remove your watches as they didnt ask for the removal of any other jewerly so please be careful. Ellis Island though is a must visit if in NY. I LOVE IT

It's occured 15 years ago, but I still dream to return. During these 15 years, I became myself an immigrant to Canada, and in this way I familiarized with certain difficulties of immigration. So' I guess you can understand it better with your immigration experience. In spite of the fact that the Ellis Island is saturated with ideology, which I detest as a phenomenon, I love it. And I'll come back soon, with my children.

We had tickets that took us to both the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. The real winner here was Ellis Island. So many fabulous things to see! We did the free audio tour and really enjoyed it. Spent a lot more time here than we thought we would and it was well worth it.

I thoroughly enjoyed the Hard Hat Tour, which takes you around the abandoned Ellis Island hospital, otherwise not open to the public. Cheryl, our tour guide, was great, and clearly has an enthusiasm for this unique place. There are very few sites like this left in New York, so it’s rare to find something not restored, knocked down or developed. The buildings are fairly vast and it’s easy to imagine the stories of the patients here. There are old photographs projected onto the walls as part of an art installation, and this, together with information from Cheryl, really helped to bring this forgotten place to life again. Highly recommended!

The exhibits are totally informative from the beginnings of immigration from Europe to the modern day immigration from around the world and their challenges and pushback from Americans. The hall upstairs looks pretty iconic too even though it is not actively in use, it still looks pretty grand to me! A lot of people only go to Liberty Island and only see Ellis Island as an afterthought, but it in itself is New York's iconic sites as well!

I cannot recommend the ferry experience, which was absolutely horrible (reviewed at Statue City Cruises) however, Ellis Island is well worth it - if only there were some other way of getting. The exhibits are well done and interesting. The arrival building has been stunningly restored - so impressive. There are beautiful views of the Statue of Liberty and and Manhattan from the waterfront behind the museum.

Nice place to visit and hang out. Spent time int he facility and exhibits but also enjoyed having a bite to eat and resting in the park like setting. Facility should get 5 stars. Excellent. Prepare to spend alot of time waiting on the ferries. Not enough running and you will spend much of your day in line. Ferries get 1 star.

Great experience, very educational. 2 hours just fly by. So much to observe. As We are facing immigration issues today, we can all revisit here Ellis island to see how our country was formed and know what your great grand parents experienced. Be educated, be smart and compassionate. My 18 years old daughter spend much time just learning how USA formed by immigrants from all over the world. She says what she learned in school finally connected, and able to deepen her understanding of this country. After visit here, you can go back to Manhattan with fresh pair of eyes to see everyone’s life and being. Wished cafeteria offers different types of food, commemorate different ethnic foods.