1 hour(s) 30 minute(s)
English
Included
Exclusive hard hat access to the abandoned Ellis Island Hospital
Explore normally off-limits areas including wards, autopsy rooms, and staff quarters
Learn the history of a 100-year-old contagious disease hospital
See JR’s “Unframed” life-sized photo installation throughout the complex
€ 77.24
This activity is managed by our trusted partner FareHarbor.
Additional taxes and fees may apply — total shown at checkout.
Select your preferred date and time from the calendar above.
Free cancellation and unlimited rescheduling leads to total flexibility while you plan your travels
Lowest Price Guarantee — no other provider offers this tour for less
Explore one of New York City’s most haunting and extraordinary historic sites—the abandoned Ellis Island Hospital complex, a vast 100-year-old institution once regarded as the pinnacle of American medical care. Closed in 1954 and left untouched for nearly six decades, this hospital later served as a US Coast Guard base and an FBI detention center before falling into decay. Now, through an exclusive partnership with Save Ellis Island, you can step inside this hidden world on a rare hard hat tour that grants access to buildings normally off-limits to the public. As you walk through the deserted laundry facility, contagious disease wards, autopsy rooms, staff quarters, and more, you’ll uncover the powerful stories of the immigrants who passed through these halls on their way to a new life in America.
Throughout the experience, you’ll also encounter striking life-sized photographs from JR’s exhibition “Unframed – Ellis Island,” placed throughout the hospital to bring its forgotten history to life. These images—pasted onto crumbling walls and worn passageways—create an unforgettable dialogue between past and present. Though just steps away from the main arrival point for visitors, the 29-building south side hospital complex remains hidden in plain sight, a skeletal reminder of one of the largest public health projects in American history. Guided by a Save Ellis Island docent, this tour uncovers the site’s many buried secrets while directly supporting its preservation.
Round-trip ferry tickets to and from Ellis Island
Access to the Ellis Island National Museum of Immigration
Exclusive hard hat tour inside Ellis Island's abandoned hospital
Personal expenses
Gratuities
Wear comfortable closed toe shoes
Bottle of water
Camera
Minimum age of children to participate 10
Not wheelchair accessible
Hard hats must be worn throughout the tour and are provided
Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Type in your hotel/accommodation to see how far the attraction or departure point is.
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This is one of the best things I’ve done in New York. A fascinating tour, led by a very knowledgeable guide in a small group. The atmosphere was very striking and the history presented was engaging and haunting.
I recommend this tour for anyone who wants a more up close visit on Ellis Island. I am a native New Yorker and had been to Ellis island before but I never got to experience it in such detail until a friend from out of town came and expressed interest in this tour. Our guide, Nick, was clearly very passionate about the history of Ellis island and had a wealth of knowledge to share. The tour is about 90 minutes and it was thorough and fascinating. It also was extra special for me as a healthcare worker to see the hospitals that some of the immigrants had to stay in.
Awesome and very informative tour of Ellis Island! I would heavily recommend this not only for the information but also the experience, and to support the island. Tour guide was very knowledgeable and friendly and would answer any questions we had. Included in these photos is the measles ward, tuberculosis ward, the morgue, and some of the doctors that went to this island to revolutionaries Healthcare in America.
This was a truly unique perspective of Ellis Island. I really enjoyed seeing a part of our history that few people get to experience. The Hospital Complex is, well, complex. If a person was identified as having a contagious disease they were brought here for treatment, quarantine, and hopefully recovery. The buildings that we toured had a deep sense of sorrow combined with glimmers of hope. Through the tour I got to be a part of the world in which these people lived, just steps away from a new life, afraid but hopeful. If there is one takeaway it's how the Hospital Complex might seem to have been Government overreach, but that would be ignoring the lethality of the diseases at the time: Tuberculosis, Influenza, or Measles. What is striking is that if it were overreach at that time, then we have truly learned nothing. A simple look back at the most recent Pandemic shows so many mistakes being repeated. This tour is a rare opportunity to look not just at those mistakes, but the successes as well, and shape a future in which we bring the best of those hard earned lessons forward. Thank you Rob, our tour guide, for your patience and insight, you were amazing.
We so enjoyed the Hard Hat tour of the dilapidated Ellis island hospital. Our tour guide Alex was giving her first solo tour and did a great job. So much information!
