Sept. 11 sites now becoming tourist draws
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The South Pool of the 9/11 Memorial in lower Manhattan. -
At the Flight 93 Memorial in Somerset County, the names of the 40 victims of the crash are inscribed on the marble panels. -
Mementos at a memorial bench at the Pentagon.
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September 11, 2001: Tourist destination?
It may be hard to imagine that three sites of the worst U.S. terrorism attack in history -- the World Trade Center in New York, the field near Shanksville in Somerset County and the Pentagon -- have now become the stuff of travel guides and package tours, interspersed between restaurant meals, shopping or boat trips.
"This is THE thing to do in New York City this year!" crowed the tourist site onboardnewyorktours.com, touting its own "NYC Freedom tour," "designed to help reduce traffic around the 9/11 Memorial at the World Trade Center site -- we get there by boat!"
When the new National September 11th Memorial opened Sept. 12 at what was formerly known as Ground Zero in New York, it was already a huge tourist draw: about 7,000 people had been issued tickets beforehand -- although only 1,500 are allowed in at a time -- while another 400,000 have already reserved tickets for the next few months, according to reports.
Indeed, demand has been so great that the New York memorial's website crashed.
At the two other Sept. 11 memorials in Somerset County and Washington D.C., crowds won't be the same problem, but here's a guide on how to get the most of your visits to one, two or all three sites.
First, take note: The World Trade Center memorial, designed by architect Michael Arad and landscape architect Peter Walker, honors not just the nearly 3,000 people killed on Sept. 11, 2001, in New York, Pennsylvania and at the Pentagon in Northern Virginia, but the six people killed in the World Trade Center 1993 bombing.
The names of every victim are etched into bronze panels framing two large square reflecting pools where the towers once stood -- nearly an acre in size, edged by the largest manmade waterfalls in North America.
The memorial isn't completed yet. More than 400 trees -- swamp oaks -- will eventually surround the reflecting pools, while a small clearing, the Memorial Glade, will provide a space for ceremonies and gatherings. Next Sept. 11, the memorial's museum will open, with 120,000 square feet of exhibition space under eight acres once occupied by the Twin Towers and their plaza.
First Published September 25, 2011 12:00 am
