NEW YORK — It's crowded. It's hot. You have to climb hundreds of steps to get there. And throngs of people can't wait to visit.

Unfortunately, many will have to. Tickets sold out fast for the July Fourth reopening of the Statue of Liberty's crown, closed since shortly after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.

Aaron Weisinger, a 26-year-old from Walnut Creek, Calif., was one of the lucky ones. He will be part of the first group of tourists in eight years to climb the 354 steps, 146 of them up a narrow spiral staircase, to stand atop the statue's head and peer from under the spikes of her crown.

"The statue is very powerful. It symbolizes liberty and freedom," said Weisinger, whose great-grandparents met Lady Liberty's gaze as they passed through Ellis Island from Eastern Europe.

Reasons vary for why the crown has been closed for so long, and there are questions about the role terrorism played in that.

After terrorists leveled the World Trade Center just across New York Harbor, the statue was closed to visitors until 2004, when the base, pedestal and outdoor observation deck reopened.

In May, the Obama administration announced that the crown would once again welcome visitors, albeit cautiously. Starting Saturday, only 30 people an hour will be allowed into the crown, and they will be brought up in groups of 10, guided by park rangers along the way.

New handrails have been installed to help with the climb. Bags, both big and small, are not allowed. Only cameras and cell phones are acceptable.

The National Park Service says the crown remained closed since Sept. 11 because the narrow, double-helix staircases could not be safely evacuated in an emergency and didn't comply with fire and building codes. Tourists often suffered heat exhaustion, shortness of breath, panic attacks, claustrophobia and fear of heights, spokesman Darren Boch said.

Rep. Anthony Weiner, D-N.Y., has pushed for years for the crown to be reopened, once calling the decision to close it off "a partial victory for terrorists." He said for it to be off limits for so long was an embarrassment.

"I've always said this was as much a failure of creativity as it was a failure of courage," Weiner said. "I just think they couldn't figure out basic things like limiting the number of people, for example, or limiting whether they can carry a bag with them.

"It's such a great experience for all the reasons why the National Park Service wanted us not to have it. It's great because it is cramped. It's great because it is hot. It's great because it's an adventure."