Thinking about bringing the children? Don't hesitate! New York City is rich in activities, sights and entertainment for kids of all ages. So bring the entire family. Most Museums have on going special exhibits for the young ones. Many activities are free, including the Staten Island Ferry, Central Park, FAO Schwartz, Toys R Us, Sony Wonder Technology Lab, and more. We will give you a good overview of things to do with the kids and as a family. Hot off of the press, Broadway now has a kids (ages 6-18) are free night. It's February 2, 3 and 7th., 2010. Go to kidsnightonbroadway for more information. Let's start with Museums -
The winter season has Nights at the Museum available at several museums. American Museum of Natural History on various dates. Open to 8 to 12 year olds. Runs from 5:45pm to 9:00am. Just a LIRR train trip away in Riverhead, Long Island is the Atlantis Marine World Aquarium.
Museums - almost every Museum has something for the young ones. For a detailed listing of each NYC Museum, please go to our NYC Museum Page. Some of the more well known are: American Museum of Natural History where two merrily lit 19-foot Holiday Barosaurs welcome you. Besides the dinosaurs, there are Butterflies, live lizards & snakes, an outdoor synthetic skating rink, Sea Monsters ( a large format film), loads of exhibits and don't forget the Hayden Planetarium. AMNH also has sleepovers. Imagine spending a night at the museum! The Children's Museum of Manhattan for the younger set - enjoy adventures with Dora and Diego, PlayWorks, Block Party and more. Please check their schedule before going. The New York City Fire Museum is for kids of all ages and they operate a world-class fire safety education program designed to teach participants how to prevent fires within the home and importantly, how to protect themselves and escape should one occur. New York City Police Museum - be a Junior Detective for a Day, bike safety, back to school safety, car seat safety and other programs. The New York Transit Museum, one of the city's leading cultural institutions, is the largest museum in the United States devoted to urban public transportation history and one of the premier institutions of its kind in the world. The Museum explores the development of the greater New York Metropolitan region through the presentation of exhibitions, tours, educational programs, and workshops dealing with the cultural, social, and technological history of public transportation. Located in Brooklyn and easily accessible by various subways. Museum of the City of New York - many family programs - check out the schedule before going. The Metropolitan Museum of Art has programs and exhibits for the entire family. And then there's the one and only Brooklyn Children's Museum - A pioneer in education, the Brooklyn Children's Museum was the first museum created expressly for children when it was founded in 1899. It's success sparked the creation of similar institutions around the globe, and today the Museum continues as a world-class institution with community roots. With a recent expansion, all new exhibits and all new programs, the Museum is now both the world's oldest and the world's newest children's museum. Accessible by the subway A or C trains.
Zoos and Central Park - Let's start at the Bronx
Zoo. This winter the Bronx Zoo’s annual nighttime holiday event becomes a
daytime extravaganza, as the Wildlife Conservation Society continues to lighten
our energy output and provide great family traditions. Enjoy horse-drawn wagon
rides, storytelling, ice-carving demonstrations, marshmallow roasting, and more.
It's easy to get to the Bronx Zoo. The BxM11 express bus makes stops along
Madison Avenue, between 26th and 99th Streets, then travels directly to the
Zoo’s Bronx River entrance (Gate B). For your return trip, pick up the bus
just outside the same gate at the MTA BxM11 sign (just before the underpass). By
subway take the #2 or #5 train to East Tremont Ave/West Farms Square. At street
level, walk straight ahead (follow train uptown) on Boston Road 2-1⁄2
blocks to the Zoo’s Asia gate entrance (Gate A). By train take Metro North’s
Harlem line to Fordham, then take the Bx9 bus eastward to 183rd Street and
Southern Blvd. The New York Aquarium in
Coney Island is well worth the subway trip there.
Take the F or Q train to the West 8th Street station in
Coney Island, Brooklyn. There's
always something new to see at the New York Aquarium. Stop by Sea Cliffs to
visit Brooklyn's biggest baby—Pacific walrus Akituusaq. Catch one of the daily
feeds for sharks, penguins, walruses, and sea otters. And don’t miss the
lively Aqua theater training demonstrations, starring Duke and his fellow
California sea lions. (Check the entrance and plaza area for times.) Go take a
look at Central
Park in New York City. There, right in the heart of Manhattan is the Central
Park Zoo. Anytime is a great time of year to visit the zoo. Watch penguins,
sea lions, and harbor seals bulk up their winter weight during daily training
and feeding demonstrations. And when it gets chilly, warm up in the
Rainforest, where the tropical climate makes for a real getaway. Take a Live
look at The Penguins in Central Park Zoo. Now that we're in Central Park,
there's the Tisch
Children's Zoo, the Carousel,
Delacorte
Music Clock, the Wollman
Rink, Belvedere
Castle, Alice
In Wonderland, and so much more. Up in the Bronx, Kids In NY Kids In NY The Holiday Train Show is on now through January 11, 2009. Wrapped in the
glow of twinkling lights, model trains and trolleys zip along over bridges and
on winding tracks past scaled replicas of New York landmarks made by
award-winning designer Paul Busse. Orange slices, cinnamon sticks, poppy pods,
pine cones, and other plant parts are used to create the more than 140
architectural reproductions. A remarkable layout of trains at The
New York Botanical Garden in the Bronx. Take the B, D, or 4 train to
Bedford Park Blvd Station. From the station exit:
• Take the Bx 26 bus east to the Garden's Mosholu Gate entrance. or
walk eight blocks down the hill on Bedford Park Blvd to the end (approximately
20 minutes). Turn left onto Kazimiroff Blvd and walk one block to Mosholu Gate
entrance. Take the Metro-North Harlem local line to Botanical Garden Station.
Walk across Kazimiroff Boulevard to the Garden's Mosholu Gate entrance.
Just 20 minutes from Grand Central Terminal in Manhattan
Other Places- include The
South Street Seaport Museum. The Museum is comprised of over 30,000
square feet of exhibition space and educational facilities in New York City’s
largest concentration of restored early 19th-century commercial buildings. The
Museum houses exhibition galleries, a working 19th-century print shop, an
archaeology center, a maritime library, a craft center, a marine life
conservation lab, and the largest privately-owned fleet of historic ships in the
country. The Empire
State Building, has great views and the New
York Skyride. The Intrepid
Sea, Air & Space Museum is one of America’s leading historic, cultural
and educational institutions. Opened in 1982, the Museum has welcomed more
than 10 million visitors. The Museum is centered on the aircraft carrier Intrepid
(CVS-11), one of the most successful ships in US history, and now a national
historic landmark and one of the most unique attractions in New York City. The
Museum features a range of interactive exhibits and events providing a snapshot
of heroism, education, and excitement. Children and adults alike find
themselves immersed in and inspired by the Museum’s exhibits, which range from
thrilling historical re-creations such as Kamikaze: Day of Darkness, Day of
Light, to new interactive displays. Visitors also can ride in the A-6 Cockpit
Simulator, visit the Virtual Flight Zone, and tour the inside of the world’s
fastest commercial airplane, Concorde. In addition you can tour the
submarine USS Growler. The only intact strategic diesel-powered submarine that
fired nuclear missiles open to the public anywhere in the world. Time Out
New York has a great site for kids.
New York City has some great restaurants that are family friendly. To mention a few (in alphabetical order)-Alice's Tea Cup, Galaxy Global Eatery, Inakaya, Jekyll & Hyde Club, La Bonne Soupe, Mars 2112, Peanut Butter & Co., The Prime Burger, Serendipity3, Shake Shack, Shopsin's and Sweetiepie.
