New York City, New York

Empire State Building

The Empire State Building is the biggest skyscraper of New York. It opened in 1931. It is 381 meters in height and with the antenna it is 443,2. His name comes from one of the nicknames of New York City : The Empire State.

There are 102 floors but the main observatory is on the 86th floor. It is located on Manhattan. The construction took only one year. There were 3400 workers who could work in the same time. Some of them were « sky boys » : they assembled the pieces of the building and they worked really heigh without any protection. Four and half floors was built each week. During the night the Empire State Building is lightning, the colours change for each event or season. Now it is red and yellow (becaue of the autumn).

The Empire States Building's current colors by night.

The Empire State Building is waiting for you day or night. Come watch the sunset as New York is bathed in warm orange, red and yellow tones, then stick around as the lights come on all over town. Or come later and listen to the live music (weekends only) as the stars and lights twinkle romantically. Whenever you come, enjoy the magic without the wait.

Ellis Island Immigration Museum

Ellis Island is open to visitors while the National Park Service continues to make repairs after Hurricane Sandy. Although some areas are restricted, visitors can stop in the American Family Immigration History Center to research their family immigration records and explore the Great Hall, "Journeys: The Peopling of America 1550-1890" exhibit which tells the story of immigration prior to Ellis's opening in 1892, and The American Immigrant Wall of Honor. Visitors can also enjoy the audio tour, join a ranger program, and watch the award-winning documentary "Island of Hope, Island of Tears."


Your visit will be more similar to that of an immigrant a century ago! Most immigrants were limited to the Baggage Room, Registry Room (the Great Hall) and the Railroad Ticket Office (now houses the Peopling of America Exhibit) during their short time on Ellis Island

You can still experience where history happened in the Great Hall! In that historic space, millions of people passed their medical and legal inspections and were allowed to enter the United States to start a new life.