PROGRAMS AT ELLIS ISLAND

FREE Ranger-Guided Tours: A National Park Service Ranger or a dedicated Volunteer in the Park lead walking tours of the museum. The tours are approximately 45 minutes and are accessible for handicapped visitors.

Tours chronicle island history and explain what many immigrants experienced at the facility during its busiest years of operation. Tours depart from the information desk on the top of the hour. The numbers of tours offered vary based upon daily staffing levels. TICKETS ARE NOT REQUIRED for walking tours.  Tours are periodically offered in American Sign Language (ASL). Upcoming ASL tours will leave at 11:00 AM on September 12, October 10, November 7. Our 2010 ASL schedule: March 13, April 10 and May 8.     

Audio Tours of Ellis Island are available from  in English, Italian, French, German, Spanish, Mandarin, Russian, Arabic and Japanese for $8 for adults, $7.25 for children and seniors. 
There are also new children's tours (with animal characters as narrators) available in English, Spanish, French, Italian and German.  The price is the same as the main tour.

FREE Film: "Island of Hope, Island of Tears" is an award-winning documentary shown in two theaters. Each 45 minute presentation includes a 15-minute park ranger introductory talk followed by the 30 minute film. Each theater seats 140 people. Tickets are required and available for free at the Ellis Island information desk. Note the latecomers will not be seated.

Theatrical Program: The Statue of Liberty-Ellis Island Foundation, Inc., in cooperation with the National Park Service is proud to present a theatrical production based on actual immigrant accounts that are part of the Ellis Island oral history project. Professional actors bring to life the experiences that were shared by millions of immigrants who made their way to the New World through Ellis Island. This 30-minute presentation is offered daily Spring through Autumn at regularly scheduled times. Contact the Foundation at: (212) 561-4500 for information and reservations ($6.00) or by e-mail.

FREE Ferry Building Tour: This free one hour program is conducted in the building reopened in 2007 after undergoing an enormous restoration. The exhibit entitled "Future In Balance: Immigration, Public Health and the Ellis Island Hospitals" chronicles the story of the United States Public Health Service, its employees and immigrants treated for a variety of illnesses. Visitors must sign up for the program as spaced is limited. Tours are offered Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and some weekends at 11:30 AM and 2:30 PM. For additional information call Save Ellis Island, the National Park Service partner entrusted for the rehabilitation and reuse of the unrestored hospitals at 973-347-8400 ext 17.   

FREE: Board of Special Inquiry Program: This living history program presents the accounts of actual immigrant hearings conducted during the time of peak immigration at Ellis Island. This program is conducted in the "Hearing Room" which has been carefully restored to the period of 1908-1911. Audience participation decides the fate of the immigrant standing before them. Visitors learn the importance of immigration policy at the turn of the century and current-day immigration law. This free program is offered at regularly scheduled times starting mid-April. For details, check at the information desk.

Genealogy Workshop: The National Park Service, with the collaboration of The National Archives presents a workshop for visitors who wish to research their family immigration history. This workshop is offered on a monthly basis (March - October) and provides instruction about how to gather, interpret and use historical data to trace family histories. The workshop is free to all visitors of the museum. Call (212) 363-3200 for additional information.