The Statue of Liberty re-opened today amid heavy security, for the first time since the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, in sign of America's growing confidence.

About 20,000 people caught to catch the ferry from Manhattan to Liberty Island in the New York Harbour, although only about 240 will make it up the 354 steps from the State of Liberty's base to the viewing deck in the crown.

When Statue Cruises, which operates the Statue of Liberty’s ticketing system for the National Park Service (NPS), offered $20 advance tickets earlier this month to visit the crown on July 4, they sold out within a few hours.

Today those tickets are reportedly changing hands for as much as $200 each.

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About 30 people will make the climb, which used to take up to five hours on a busy day, each hour today.

Lady Liberty's interior has been closed since terrorists the Twin Towers eight years ago, when the US Government feared that America’s symbol of freedom, packed with patriotic visitors with little chance of escape, might prove too tempting a target for further attacks.

Liberty Island reopened in December 2001 but visitor numbers to view the statue were down by 40 per cent. The statue’s base re-opened in 2004.

On May 8, announcing the reopening of the crown, Ken Salazar, the US Interior Secretary, said that it was a "new beginning, restoring confidence in the American people, in their Government and in our place in the world".

Mr Salazar said that he based his decision to re-open the State of Liberty on work by the NPS to some of risks to visitors, including putting handrails on the spiral staircase and stationing park rangers throughout the monument.

The Government is still taking no chances with security. Yesterday the New York City police and the Coast Guard undertook a terrorism drill off Liberty Island.

To get into the statue, visitors will "face security twice as intense as any airport you’ve every been in", Jon Mazza, a National Park ranger, told USA Today.

The re-opening of the statue will be celebrated with naturalisation ceremonies on the island and a show including Constantine Maroulis, an American Idol finalist, and Jennifer Stewart, national winner of the Statue of Liberty Centennial Look-Alike Contest.

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