Field-Tested Travel Tip: Visiting Apollo 11 Sites

This summer marks the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 mission to the moon, where American astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin landed on July 20, 1969; Michael Collins remained in the capsule Columbia in lunar orbit.

Here are a few places to take your own small steps to commemorate the event.

Smithsonian National Air & Space Museum, Washington: Neil Armstrong’s Apollo 11 spacesuit will go on temporary display for the first time in 13 years starting July 16. A slate of commemorative activities are planned throughout the year. At the museum’s Udvar-Hazy Center, adjacent to Dulles International Airport, you can visit the Mobile Quarantine Facility, a high-tech Airstream camper where the astronauts were initially confined upon their return to Earth. (airandspace.si.edu)

Museum of Flight, Seattle, Wash.: Through Sept. 2, the Apollo 11 command module is on display, along with other rare artifacts, as part of the traveling exhibit “Destination Moon: The Apollo 11 Mission,” which moves into a permanent gallery at the Air and Space Museum in 2022. (museumofflight.org)

Kennedy Space Center, Merritt Island, Fla: There’s lots to see here, so make sure to board the bus for a tour of the actual launch sites where the Apollo astronauts soared out of the atmosphere. (kennedyspacecenter.com)

U.S. Space & Rocket Center, Huntsville, Ala. Home of the famous Space Camp, this museum is a must-see for space buffs. Through December, it’s putting on a special exhibit, “Apollo: When We Went to the Moon.” Artifacts include the hand casts used to create the gloves for the Apollo 11 astronauts. (rocketcenter.com)

USS Hornet Sea, Air & Space Museum, Alameda, Calif.: After the astronauts landed in the Pacific Ocean, they were taken aboard the Hornet. As part of its Apollo exhibitions, yellow footprints painted on the deck mark their exact first steps back on Earth. (uss-hornet.org)

Armstrong Air & Space Museum, Wapakonata, Ohio: This museum in Neil Armstrong’s hometown explores his life. Local touches include memorabilia from his childhood supplied by his parents. (armstrongmuseum.org)

Neil Armstrong First Flight Memorial, Warren, Ohio: A quirky memorial (set in a McDonald’s parking lot) that replicates Apollo 11 sitting on the surface of the moon, it commemorates the site where a 6-year-old Armstrong took his first airplane ride and became hooked on the concept of flight. (firstflightwarren.org)

Grand Canyon National Park, Ariz.: For an accelerated course in geology, the Apollo astronauts hiked down the South Kaibib Trail and stayed overnight at Phantom Ranch before hiking and riding mules back up along the Bright Angel Trail. (nps.gov/grca)

Meteor Crater, Winslow, Ariz.: Astronauts trained here to learn more about geology at the best-preserved meteorite impact site on the planet. It’s 120 miles southeast of the Grand Canyon, and visitors can gaze into the void (550 feet deep) or take a hiking tour around the rim (2.4 miles). (meteorcrater.com)

Parkes Observatory and Australia Telescope National Facility, New South Wales, Australia: Fans of the quirky Australian film The Dish will recognize it as the site that relayed the images of the Apollo 11 astronauts cavorting on the lunar surface back to Earth. This immense 210-foot radio telescope in the sparse Bush Country is surrounded by grazing sheep, belying the important scientific mission taking place within it. There’s an on-site museum about its role in Apollo 11. (parkes.atnf.csiro.au)

Philadelphia natives Larissa and Michael Milne have been full-time global nomads since 2011. Follow their journey at ChangesInLongitude.com