Memorial Walks With One World Observatory

One World Trade Center seen from the memorial plaza between rows of oaks

In short: One World Observatory is on floors 100 to 102 of One World Trade Center, 1,268 feet above the plaza, with its own timed ticket and its own security line. Three of the six options sell it as an add-on to a guided walk of the memorial: the Full Access walk, which can also include the museum; the memorial-and-observatory walk, which never includes the museum; and the City Hall walk, which offers either or both. The observatory adds about an hour, or about 1.5 hours on the City Hall route. Observatory tickets are date- and time-specific and cannot be transferred.

Floors100 to 102

Height1,268 feet

Options with itThree of six

Time addedAbout 1 hour; 1.5 on the City Hall route

SecuritySeparate line at the observatory

CancellationFree up to 24 hours before

What One World Observatory is

One World Trade Center rises 1,776 feet to the tip of its spire, the tallest building in the Western Hemisphere, on the north-west corner of the site. The observatory on floors 100 to 102 opened on 28 May 2015 and is reached by the Sky Pod elevators. It is run separately from the 9/11 Memorial & Museum, with a separate timed ticket and a separate security check, as the observatory’s own site sets out. The Full Access walk also includes a self-guided visit to the One World Trade Center lobby with the “Voices” film before going up. From the top the two memorial pools sit directly below.

The three walks that include it

Full Access walk. The Ground Zero route from L’Arte del Gelato through the Oculus and the pools, then the museum (1 hour) and the observatory (1 hour). The Full Access option includes an expert local guide, skip-the-line museum entry, the lobby visit and observatory entry, and the guide accompanies the group into the observatory. A second Full Access option adds a VIP guided museum tour with a museum docent. A walk-only option exists too.

Memorial-and-observatory walk. St. Paul’s Chapel, the Oculus and the pools, then the observatory for an hour. Four options: walk only, walk with observatory, private walk, private walk with observatory. The museum is not included on any of them, so this is the walk for a visitor who has booked the museum separately or does not want it.

City Hall walk. The long route from Warren Street and Broadway through St. Paul’s Chapel, Trinity Church, the FDNY Ten House, the Oculus and the pools. The observatory option adds about 1.5 hours, and the Full Access option adds the museum as well, for a listed 1.5 to 5 hours in all. The listing describes skip-the-line access through a separate entrance. The guided tours page compares the routes stop by stop.

Date-specific tickets and rescheduling

Observatory tickets are issued for a date and a time and cannot be transferred. The walk itself can be rescheduled, but a date-specific observatory ticket cannot move with it, so a change of day means a new observatory slot. All three walks allow free cancellation up to 24 hours before. On the Full Access walk the museum’s timed windows also have to be kept, which fixes the order of the afternoon: walk, museum, then observatory.

Security twice, and the wait

The museum and the observatory each run their own screening, so a Full Access day passes security twice. At the observatory the wait can reach 20 minutes in high season, and at the museum the line can take a while at midday. The museum’s bag rule, one bag no larger than 8 by 17 by 19 inches, is the stricter of the two, and large bags are excluded on the walks.

How long the observatory adds

The listings allow about an hour at the observatory on the Full Access and memorial-and-observatory walks and about 1.5 hours on the City Hall walk. Added to a walk of 1.5 to 2.5 hours and a museum visit of one to two hours, a walk with both add-ons fills a half day. Wim from Belgium wrote that the time passed quickly. The timing page gives the figures for each layer, and the one-day itinerary fits the observatory around the museum slot.

Museum, observatory or both

The three walks answer three different needs. The memorial-and-observatory walk is the view without the museum. The Full Access walk is the view with the museum, on the same afternoon, with a docent if the VIP option is chosen. The City Hall walk offers the same pairing from a start point further north and with a longer route. The museum’s own timed ticket does not include the observatory on any option, so a visitor who books the museum alone adds the view either through the memorial-and-observatory walk or directly with the observatory. The which-tour page sorts the six by need.

The three options

Durations are printed on each card. Each allows free cancellation up to 24 hours before.

Walk, museum, views

What reviewers mention

On the Full Access walk Richard from the Netherlands wrote that a difficult part of history was explained in a personal, engaging way, and Conni from the US mentioned the guide’s lifelong memories of New York. On the memorial-and-observatory walk Susan from the US wrote that sensitive details were handled with expertise, and Michelle from the US that personal stories brought it to life. On the City Hall walk Tom from the UK found it informative and respectful, and Arun from Australia funny, informative and personalised.

Local tip

The observatory is a clear-day ticket, and its slot is fixed once booked. Booking the walk first and adding the observatory closer to the date, once the forecast is known, keeps the 24-hour cancellation window on the walk and avoids a date-specific ticket for a day of low cloud.

Check dates for the Full Access walk

The walk runs rain or shine and allows free cancellation up to 24 hours before. Pick a date to see which departures are open.

Check availability & book

9/11 Museum Tickets is an independent guide, not a ticket seller, and is not affiliated with the National September 11 Memorial & Museum. Booking links go to GetYourGuide and are affiliate links: a booking made through them may earn this site a small commission at no extra cost to the traveller. See the affiliate disclosure.

Frequently asked questions

Does the 9/11 Museum ticket include One World Observatory?

No. The museum’s own timed ticket covers the underground museum only. The observatory is a separate ticket run separately, and three of the guided walks sell it as an add-on. The museum ticket page lists what that ticket does include.

Can the observatory be booked with a walk but without the museum?

Yes. The memorial-and-observatory walk never includes the museum, and the City Hall walk has a walk-plus-observatory option. The close-up of the memorial-and-observatory walk describes its four options.

What is the “Voices” film?

A film shown in the lobby of One World Trade Center. The Full Access walk includes a self-guided visit to the lobby with the film before the Sky Pod elevators take the group to floors 100 to 102.

Can an observatory ticket be moved to another day?

No. Observatory tickets are date- and time-specific and non-transferable. The walk part can be rescheduled, and the whole booking can be cancelled free up to 24 hours before, but a new day means a new observatory slot.