Among the main things to do on a trip to New York, at the top of the list is a trip on the famous Staten Island Ferry. Transportation is free and allows you to enjoy one of the best views of the Manhattan skyline and the Statue of Liberty.
The Staten Island Ferry is a ferry service between the island of Manhattan and the Staten Island neighborhood, operated by the New York City Department of Transportation. The service has been active since 1905 and every year the service carries 23 million passengers.
The ferry was of great importance to the tourist sector of the city. It went from being a means of public transport to connect the 2 districts of New York separated by the Hudson River, to become almost an icon of New York, with repeated appearances in films and television series.
Itinerary
Staten Island Ferry departs from Whitehall Terminal South Ferry Station in Lower Manhattan, located on the corner of South Street and Whitehall Street.
The path has a length of about 8 kilometers and takes place along the Hudson River bed. After about 25-30 minutes ferries disembark at St. George Terminal ie Staten Island.
The very impressive journey offers a wonderful view of the famous Manhattan architectural skyline. Also, during the journey you can see the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island and the Verrazzano bridge.
Opening Hours
The ferry leaves every 15 or 20 minutes during peak hours e every 30 minutes at other times.
The service is carried out free of charge 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
How to reach the port of embarkation in Manhattan
The Manhattan terminal is easily accessible with the bus of the MTA and the NYCT Bus (M1, M6, M9, M15, X90). If you want to use the subway the useful lines are: 1, N, R and W which arrive at the South Ferry - Whitehall Street station or lines 4 and 5 of the Bowling Green station which is connected to the port of embarkation by an underpass.
Curiosity
The service delivers approx 23 million passengers a year, that is to say 60 thousand a day, between tourists and New Yorkers. Overall the service is operated by eight ferries who make about 33 trips a year, that is about 109 a day.
The journey on these ferries is very suggestive, so much so as to bring various registers to use the ferries as a location for their films or to use them for filming. Staten Island Ferry ferries are appeared in various films, such as A Career Woman (1988), How to Get Left in 10 Days (2003), and Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017). For lovers of film tourism It is a must.
