Experiences

Guided Presidents Tour + General Admission

• Approx. 3 hour experience including both guided and self-guided experience
• Includes Guided President’s Tour (1 hour) and Self-Guided Experience (2 hours)
• Admission fees help maintain and operate the museum
• Advance purchase required

In November 1943 Battleship USS IOWA transported President Franklin D. Roosevelt and key military leadership on a secret mission to the Cairo and Teheran Conferences. During that voyage the ship was nearly sunk by an American destroyer, resulting in the only time an entire crew was arrested and pardoned by a U.S. president.

Embark on a journey through history, hearing fascinating stories and seeing areas of the ship not available on the self-guided tour, including the world-famous Captain’s Cabin, featuring the only bathtub on a Navy ship installed for a U.S. president.

Due to the limited number of reserved guided tours available each day, you must book your tour time in advance. Times are subject to availability. We are able to customize this tour to accommodate a wheelchair accessible route.

Guided Tour + General Admission

• Approx. 3.5 hour experience, including both guided and self-guided experience
• Includes Guided Tour (1.5 hours) and Self-Guided Experience (2 hours)
• Admission fees help maintain and operate the museum
• Advance purchase required

This exclusive add-on option takes you deeper into the story of Battleship IOWA – from her initial active duty days in 1943 all the way up to her third decommissioning in October 1990.

You will hear stories of the courage and service of those who 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 Guided Tours available each day you must book and reserve your tour time in advance, subject to availability.  We are able to customize this tour to accommodate a wheelchair accessible route.

Guided “Gun” Tour + General Admission

• Approx. 4.5 hour experience including both guided and self-guided tours
• Includes Guided Gun Tour (2.5 hours) and Self-Guided Experience (2 hours)
• Restricted to those ages 10 and up
• Advance purchase required
• Admission fees help maintain and operate the museum

The IOWA-class battleship is best known for its sheer amount of armament. We’ll take you on an epic behind-the-scenes journey that weaves through levels of this historic Navy ship never before opened to the public – down hatches, up ladders, into the lives of battleship sailors throughout history, culminating in an awe-inspiring view of the mechanical marvel at the heart of our battleship: the 16-inch guns – capable of firing the equivalent of a VW Beetle over 24 miles, the largest guns still in existence today.

Due to the limited number of reserved Guided Tours available each day you must book and reserve your tour time in advance, subject to availability.  This tour is not accessible for those with physical limitations.

Guided “Engineering” Tour + General Admission

• Approx. 4 hour experience including both guided and self-guided tours
• Includes Guided Engineering Tour (2 hours) and Self-Guided Experience (2 hours)
• Admission fees help maintain and operate the museum
• Restricted to those ages 10 and up
• Advance purchase required

Battleship USS IOWA was the fastest, largest, and most armored battleship ever built. The ship was propelled to a top speed of 40 mph (35 kts) by eight boilers and four steam turbines generating 212,000 shaft horsepower or the equivalent of more than 650 Ford F-150 pickup trucks. 

Your guided tour will take you into the heart of the ship as you experience first-hand and hear stories about the anchor windless room, an engine room, a boiler room, after-steering, and several support facilities (like the oil and water testing lab). You will enjoy exclusive access to passageways that have been transited by thousands of sailors during both peace and wartime service, but 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 to traverse ladders and grated decking safely. 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 time. Due to the limited number of reserved Guided Tours available each day you must book and reserve your tour time in advance, subject to availability. This tour is not accessible for those with physical limitations.

Escape the Mothball Fleet Experience + General Admission

• Approx. 4 hour experience, combining scavenger hunt like adventure and self-guided tour
• Includes Escape the Mothball Fleet experience (1-2 hours) and self-guided tour (2 hours)
• Admission fees help maintain and operate the museum
• Restricted to those ages 16 and up
• Minimum of two (2) and maximum of six (6) participants
• Advance purchase required

Get ready for a thrilling, once-in-a-lifetime adventure that blends elements of an escape room and a scavenger hunt to challenge you in a whole new way.  Unravel enigmatic clues, follow mysterious markings, and search off-limits areas as you race against the clock to save the largest battleship in United States history.

This adventure-game was inspired by real-life events. The challenge awaiting you was lived by our team, as they scrambled to meet a shockingly-short window of opportunity. If they had failed, USS IOWA might have been doomed to the scrapheap of history.

Now you have the chance to retrace their steps – exploring a vessel you’ve never been aboard and under pressure to find the answers you need before time runs out.

Your experience starts with a briefing, then you begin your adventure, hunting for clues through the seemingly endless maze of hundreds of compartments, companionways, and ladders. You have two hours to complete your tasks, otherwise IOWA might be lost forever.

Don’t worry. You’ll have members of our trained ship support staff with you, but don’t count on them to help. They’re only along for your safety (and it takes them weeks to learn the ship) – you’ll be navigating on your own.

You and your favorite group of family or friends will remember this experience for a lifetime.  Join us today and ESCAPE THE MOTHBALL FLEET.

Due to the confined spaces through which this experience passes, it is limited in group size and availability. Escape The Mothball Fleet will accommodate between two (2) and six (6) participants ages sixteen (16) and above. Minors under age eighteen (18) must be accompanied by an adult – one adult for each minor.

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

Escape the Mothball Fleet ranges between 1-2 hours, depending on speed and skill-level.