Begin with a guided tour of Ground Zero, hearing firsthand stories from your guide and learning about the events of 9/11.

We start at St. Paul’s Chapel, which miraculously survived the falling debris, even though it’s only a block from where the Twin Towers collapsed. The church was a landmark even then, known as the city’s oldest continuously used public building. But in the aftermath of 9/11, it became even more — a rescue center for victims, a bulletin board where families posted notices of their missing loved ones, a gathering place for recovery workers. Today, it stands as a living memorial.

Follow your guide to the 9/11 Memorial, where you’ll pause to pay your respects and learn about its many symbolic elements. One of the most famous of these, Michael Arad’s “Reflecting Absence” is the largest manmade waterfall in the country, pouring endlessly into the empty footprints of the Twin Towers and inscribed with the names of those who died in the attacks.

Each guide’s experience of 9/11 is unique, and so is each tour. In addition to the stops above, you may visit other sites at Ground Zero. These include the FDNY Memorial Wall, the Survivor Tree, the Brooks Brothers building that served as a temporary morgue, and the Millennium Hotel, where the FBI thwarted another attack on New York. Your guide may also stop into the Oculus, the grand entrance to the WTC Transportation Hub.

After your tour of the 9/11 Memorial, continue for your self-guided visit to the One World Observatory. Located inside Freedom Tower, the tallest skyscraper in the Western Hemisphere, the observatory was built after the destruction of the World Trade Center. You’ll climb aboard the SkyPod, an elevator that shows you a time-lapse of NYC while whisking you 1,250 feet in the air to the three-level observation deck. This attraction includes a theater, educational displays, dining, and incredible views of Manhattan. It’s the perfect way to end your visit to Ground Zero.