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Private 9/11 Memorial Tour with NYPD First Responder

4.913 reviews

  • 2 hours
  • Free cancellation up to 24h before
  • 2 languages
  • Private tour

Highlights

Experience Ground Zero through the eyes of a retired NYPD first responder who was there on September 11, 2001. This private walking tour offers a personal and respectful perspective on one of New York City’s most significant days. Led by a retired NYPD officer and Ground Zero survivor, the experience shares firsthand stories, personal memories, and the realities faced by first responders during and after the attacks. Your guide will share rare Ground Zero photographs while leading you through important locations around the World Trade Center site, including places many visitors overlook. Learn about the rescue and recovery efforts, the rebuilding of Lower Manhattan, and the lasting impact of 9/11. The tour begins at St. Paul’s Chapel and continues through the 9/11 Memorial area, including the Survivor Tree, FDNY Ten House, and other meaningful sites connected to September 11th. This is more than a sightseeing tour — it is a personal experience guided by someone who lived through it.

Inclusions

What's included

  • Guide is Retired NYPD First Responder/ Ground Zero Survivor

What's not

  • Gratuities NOT Included and Always Appreciated

Itinerary

  1. St. Paul’s Chapel opened in 1766 as an outreach center for Trinity Church’s expanding congregation. It was a “chapel-of-ease” for those who did not want to walk a few blocks south along unpaved streets to Trinity. A decade later, the Great Fire of 1776 destroyed the first Trinity Church, but St. Paul’s survived, thanks to a bucket brigade that ran from the Hudson River up to the chapel’s roof. Until the second Trinity Church was rebuilt in 1790, many, including George Washington, made St. Paul’s their spiritual home. On April 30, 1789, after Washington took the oath of office to become the first president of the United States, he made his way from Federal Hall on Wall Street to St. Paul’s Chapel, where he attended services. Saint Paul's played a pivotal role during 911 for housing first responders and a place of family's to search for their loved ones

    10 min

  2. traverse the Oculus at Ground Zero former location of the World Trade Center Mall, one of the routes used by survivors to escape the collapsed buildings via the Subway. Listen to the stories of bravery and sacrifice to evacuate 100's of survivors trapped when the North Tower fell. Observe the hidden architectural details that memorialize the site's history most visitors miss.

    Passes by

  3. Walk the steps of 911 Hero responders as they searched for survivors with the depths of the destroyed Westfield World Trade Center mall.

    Passes by

  4. North & South Tower Memorial Pools: In January 2004, the design submitted by architect Michael Arad and landscape architect Peter Walker, Reflecting Absence, was chosen as the winning entry. Their design features twin waterfall pools surrounded by bronze parapets that list the names of the victims of the 9/11 attacks and the 1993 World Trade Center bombing. The pools are set within a plaza where more than 400 swamp white oak trees grow.

    10 min

  5. The Oculus is the centerpiece of The World Trade Center Transportation Hub. After 12 years of construction and constant delays, it finally opened to the public on March 3, 2016. Designed by famed Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava, the $4 billion building exceeded the original estimate by 100%! In total, the WTC Oculus is 350 feet long and measures about 75,000 square feet of retail space. 180 Greenwich St, New York, NY 10006, USA

    10 min

  6. We will end at FDNY Ladder 10 House

    10 min

Cancellation

Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the experience starts, for a full refund.

Reviews

4.9

  • 512
  • 41
  • 30
  • 20
  • 10

Ratings come from 13 reviews collected by our booking partner. They are travellers' own words, in the order they were written — never reordered to flatter the experience.

Know before you go

Meeting point
Meet your guide in front of FDNY Ten House, located at 124 Liberty Street, New York, NY 10006, at the corner of Greenwich and Liberty Street. Your guide will be waiting outside the firehouse. Please arrive 10 minutes before the tour start time.
Pickup
Everyone meets at the starting point; there is no pickup.
Ticket type
Mobile or paper ticket accepted
Operated by
NYPD Police Tours
  • Wheelchair accessible
  • Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
  • Service animals allowed
  • Public transportation options are available nearby
  • Transportation options are wheelchair accessible
  • All areas and surfaces are wheelchair accessible
  • Suitable for all physical fitness levels

How it compares in New York City

  • Its from-price is 431% above the median of the 2673 experiences we list in New York City.
  • Its length is typical for the group.
  • By number of reviews it ranks 851 of 2673.
  • The operator lists free cancellation on it.

About New York City

New York City packs skyscrapers, famous museums, Broadway theatres and dozens of distinct neighbourhoods into five boroughs that hum day and night.

Manhattan is the classic first stop. Times Square glows above the theatre district, Central Park stretches for blocks between the Upper East and Upper West Sides, and the Empire State Building, the Chrysler Building and Rockefeller Center define the midtown skyline. Downtown, the 9/11 Memorial, Wall Street and the Brooklyn Bridge sit close together, and boats run out past the Statue of Liberty to Ellis Island.

Top-ranked sights in New York City: Statue of Liberty, Central Park, National September 11 Memorial & Museum.

See all 2673 experiences in New York City

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Was/now prices come from the operator, never from us.

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