Experiences

President’s Tour

Step into the world famous USS Iowa Captain’s Cabin and hear the stories about President Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s historic trip across the Atlantic on board the IOWA in 1943. This top secret mission was set-up to transport FDR across the Atlantic to meet with Churchill and Stalin at the Tehran Conference. This fully guided 45 minute experience will delve into FDR’s mission, and will tell the stories of his most trusted advisers and military leaders that accompanied him on that trip. You will hear about a close call involving another escort ship providing protection duties for the IOWA that could have changed the course of WWII. We will describe the modifications to the IOWA that were necessary for FDR’s comfort and mobility while he was on board and actually see the bathtub built for the President that still remains to this day as a visual reminder of his time on board The Battleship IOWA.

U.S. President’s that have been aboard: President Franklin D. Roosevelt, President Ronald Reagan, President George H.W. Bush, President Donald Trump, President Joe Biden.

This tour must be booked in advance.

TO BOOK THIS TOUR:
1) Purchase General Access Pass in step 1.
2) After purchase, you will be given the option to add on a special tour.

Guided Tour

For those that want a more personalized tour experience while visiting the Battleship IOWA, the Private Guided Tour is for you. This exclusive add-on optional tour requires all members of your group to first purchase the self-guided General Access Pass. No other groups or individuals outside of your own family group will be allowed to join you and your assigned guide to maintain the physical distancing protocols currently in place. The Private Guided Tour takes you deeper into the story of the Battleship IOWA dating back to Her initial active duty days in 1943 all the way up to IOWA’s third decommissioning in October, 1990. You will hear stories of courage and service about those that served on board this iconic ship while being escorted by a member of today’s crew that is dedicated to preserving her for future generations.

Due to the limited number of reserved Private Guided Tours available each day you must book and reserve your tour time prior to your planned arrival date. We are able to customize this tour to accomodate a wheelchair accessible route.

TO BOOK THIS TOUR:
1) Purchase General Access Pass in step 1.
2) After purchase, you will be given the option to add on a special tour.

Gun Tour

It’s time to bring out the BIG GUNS! We’ve opened one of our battleship gun turrets for guided behind-the-scenes tours… but this is not all you’ll see. We’ll take you on an epic behind-the-scenes tour that weaves through levels of the historic Navy ship never before opened to the public, down hatches, up ladders, into the lives of battleship sailors throughout history, and culminates in an awe-inspiring view of the mechanical marvel at the heart of our battleship: the 16 inch guns.

Due to the limited number of reserved Gun Tours available each day you must book and reserve your tour time prior to your planned arrival date. These tickets are non-refundable and non-transferable to another date and time. You must be 10 years of age or older to take this tour.

TO BOOK THIS TOUR:
1) Purchase General Access Pass in step 1.
2) After purchase, you will be given the option to add on a special tour.

Engineering Tour

Explore the depths of the iconic warship and see the areas below deck that keep the ship moving! The Battleship USS Iowa Engineering Guided Tour takes you and your guests behind the scenes to explore the depths of the most innovative warship during WWII. During your guided tour you will see first-hand and hear stories about the anchor windless room, an engine room, a boiler room, after-steering, and several support facilities (e.g., the oil and water testing lab). You will walk along passageways that thousands of sailors transited during both peace and wartime service. Gain exclusive access to areas that have been off-limits to the general public since the ship went into commission in 1943. Due to the confined spaces along this tour, it is limited in group size and availability.

Guests are required to wear closed-toe footwear due to ladders and grated decking. The guest must be able to negotiate the ladders that will take them up and down to these unique spaces on board. This museum tour is not recommended for children under the age of 10 or those with physical conditions that may impair their ability to negotiate the stairs or stand for prolonged periods of times.

Due to the limited number of reserved Engineering Tours available each day you must book and reserve your tour time prior to your planned arrival date. These tickets are non-refundable and non-transferable to another date and time.

TO BOOK THIS TOUR:
1) Purchase General Access Pass in step 1.
2) After purchase, you will be given the option to add on a special tour.

Escape The Ghost Fleet

Picture it. The year is 2011. After a decade of work, the US Navy has just awarded you custody of the last of its great battleships – USS Iowa.

But there’s a catch.

She’s been languishing in the Suisun Bay Naval Reserve Fleet – known colloquially as the “ghost fleet” – for ten years, and she’s been “mothballed” – closed up, sealed up, and in indefinite storage – for a total of twenty. She’s hot, stinky, and claustrophobic inside.

The Navy has a checklist you have to fill out in order to be allowed to tow her. It’s 158 items long. Because no one knows where they are, you have to search the ship from top to bottom to locate them.

To make the task of finding them even more difficult, the ship has no power, so everything is dark; you have to negotiate it by flashlight.

If that’s not enough, you have an insanely tight window to move her. There are only two days on which the water in the bay will be deep enough for her to float, yet still shallow enough for her to get under a bridge that was built after she was anchored. That date is a mere six weeks away.

If you can’t get her out, it’s highly likely she may never leave, and even be scrapped.

Can you do it? Can you save this engineering marvel and historical treasure?

The circumstances above are a true story. We actually did everything described in order to bring Battleship IOWA to Los Angeles. Now we’ve reimagined a very abbreviated version of that challenge for you to experience.

Part escape room, part scavenger hunt, all fun, Escape The Ghost Fleet is the newest in our add-on tours menu, but it’s not like any other offering we have. For this one, you guide yourself (with supervision), and search for rarely-seen spaces not open on any other tour.

Due to the confined spaces through which this “tour” passes, it is limited in group size and availability. Escape The Ghost Fleet will accommodate up to five (5) participants ages twelve (12) and up.

Guests are required to wear closed-toed footwear in order to negotiate the ladders (staircases) and grated decking that will take them to unique, rarely-seen spaces on board. This experience is not recommended for those with physical conditions that may impair their abilities to climb stairs or stand for prolonged periods of time.

The tour lasts approximately two (2) hours.

TO BOOK THIS TOUR:
1) Purchase General Access Pass in step 1.
2) After purchase, you will be given the option to add on a special tour.