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New York Observatory - One World Observatory
New York Observatory - One World Observatory
In 2001, the history of New York, like the United States as a whole, changed once and for all. How did the view of Lower Manhattan change after the 9/11 attacks.
And now, almost 14 years after the tragedy, in May 2015, the new One World Trade Center tower opened its doors to visitors. In fact, this is a whole complex that includes the OWTC building itself (it is also called the Freedom Tower), a museum and a 9/11 memorial, in the form of 2 huge waterfall fountains located on the site of two twin towers. Along the perimeter of these fountains are engraved the names of all the victims who suffered during the attack.
The One World Trade Center building itself is the tallest in New York and the safest.
It is believed that the OWTC tower is a symbol of the greatness of the United States and a symbol of the embodiment and unity of the two previous towers of the World Trade Center.
Two 4-sided buildings are now embodied in one 8-sided building. The height of the tower is 417m. Interestingly, with the spire, the height of One World Trade Center is 530 meters, which is 1776 feet (1776 is the year of US independence).
At the very top of this skyscraper, a new observation platform One World Observatory has opened. Prior to this, New York from a bird's eye view could only be viewed from two points - the Empire State Building and "Top of the Rock", which is located in the Rockfeller Center. But One World Observatory beat them both in terms of height and service. No, the Empire State Building also has an observation deck on the 102nd floor, but it's more like a patch with thick (and, unfortunately, already scratched) glass. Not to look properly, not to photograph. And the main "viewing room" here is on the 86th floor.
На сайте One World Observatory рекомендуют покупать билеты он-лайн. На самом деле это действительно удобно. Можно выбрать и день, и время (интервал 15 минут). Иначе придётся простоять немалую очередь. Самый простой билет – 32$ для взрослого, 25$ детский и 30$ - для пенсионеров (от 65 лет). Детям до 5 лет вход бесплатный.
Если, например, идти семьёй из 4-х человек, конечно, немало получается. Но, как говорится, один раз это стоит увидеть. Можно практически не рассчитывать на то, что получится купить билет и сразу войти. Это только не в сезон (не летом), утром и в будний день. Тогда возможно. В других случаях, придётся подождать или вернуться к назначенному времени.
Of course, there are also “flexible” tickets (Flex-tickets, you can come at a convenient time) or express tickets (Priority), which give you the right to skip the line, but they are already 1.5-2 times more expensive. Not sure if the 15 minutes of time saved is worth paying the extra $30 for. For an amateur.
At One World Observatory, the show starts even before you go upstairs. Having stood in line, we first go down the escalator, where we go through security control.
Then we pass through the “stone tunnel”, where the “voice from above” tells us that a tower was built on these stones, a brief excursion into history, interviews with project participants, etc.
Climbing up is a separate attraction. The Sky Pod elevator is a 3-sided screen (instead of walls, from floor to ceiling), which during the ascent shows the history of the development of New York, from a swampy area to a modern metropolis. And the corner has a counter showing the year. The picture changes very quickly. And on the last floors, it’s as if you find yourself inside the construction site of this very OWO tower. And finally, welcome to One World Observatory, 102nd floor.
By the way, the elevator is very fast. The ascent to the 102nd floor takes less than 1 minute.
After the exit again the next screen. And again another video. About New York. About its diversity and greatness. Beautiful! The most impressive is at the end. We look. :-)
The screen flips up to reveal a stunning view of New York. Oh, ah, and applause!
But they don’t linger here, the next “portion” of tourists is on the way.
Next, they will try to sell you a couple of services - a photo against the background of "New York from above" and an iPad with information. The first costs $30 with a frame, although it is not clear what to pay for, if it is not even a real view of New York, namely a large poster against which you are standing. But, as they say, there is a demand, there is a supply.
As for the iPad, they rent it for $15 with a program installed on it that lets you know what you see behind the glass. It looks like this - they sent the iPad to the city and the tablet gives out information about what is behind the glass. Many buildings are automatically signed. There are short videos about some important buildings. In general, for a change it is possible.
If such services are not of interest, we confidently pass by.
Further through the 101st floor, on which the cafe is located, we go down to the 100th. Here is the main observation deck.
Its advantages over the other two.
The observation decks of the Epmire State Building and Top of the Rock are located in downtown Manhattan. There you can see Central Park better and, perhaps, it is more interesting for someone to look at the central part of the island from top to bottom.
From the OWO site, the views are much more beautiful. Due to its location in the southern part of the island, here the whole of Manhattan is at a glance. You can clearly see the Statue of Liberty, the Hudson River and bridges - both Brooklyn Bridge and Manhatten Bridge.
The site has a 360 degree view.
This observation deck is new, respectively, the glass is still clean and not scratched. It is possible to take good photos without super equipment.
There is also a gift shop and Sky Portal entertainment on the floor. It is a scaffold with screens on which a "live" image is fed from downward-facing cameras. This, of course, is not a glass floor, but only images, but still interesting.
A few points that might come in handy:
- If time permits, we recommend visiting the One World Observatory just before sunset. In this case, you can enjoy the daytime view of New York, and the night, and twilight, when on the horizon, on the one hand, a stunning sunset, and on the other, the lights of the big city are already on!
- If you want to sit in the cafeteria, take a table while it is free. There are few seats. Price guide: soup - $ 10, salads $ 20-26, a glass of wine $ 12-16 (prices for October 2015)
- You can stay at the OWO site as long as you like.
- It is better to buy tickets in advance via the Internet. If at the box office, it’s more convenient “today for tomorrow”
- If you decide to go in the evening, keep in mind that there will be a lot of people who want to see New York in Lights and you will still have to stand in line to go down. Count the time.
Opening hours of One World Observatory from 9:00 to 20:00
On holidays it can work until 24:00 (you need to check on the official website).
Bright impressions to you!