I have two and a half fast days in NYC with my 8 year old in October. She is dying to see the Statue of Liberty, but would love thoughts on other kid-friendly activities in the NYC area. I will have just subjected her to four days of museum overload in DC, so move-around experiences are particularly welcome. Kind of an aside, but has anyone had luck with Craigslist apartment listings in NYC? There are some cool listings on there but I'm not sure where good deal becomes too-good-to-be-true deal.As a general rule, Craigslist (like pretty much every other sales site) is governed by the idea that if you think it's too good to be true, it probably is. My family's always had good luck with Priceline, especially on weekends, though it's easy to wind up getting stuck downtown, which is not the most convenient place to be.
As for activities, in a lot of ways, September and October are the best time to visit NYC, because it's usually warm enough to be outside without being oppressively hot, as it frequently can get in the summer months. As for activities, Central Park is the obvious one, but I'd also suggest hanging out in Union Square Park or Times Square and people-watching, and Madison Square Park for Shake Shack. In connection with the Statue of Liberty, it's been years since I've done the trek, but I'd also suggest Ellis Island, which is very well done. I'm sure the rest of y'all have suggestions, so weigh in.
For short term rental, I've been seeing good things about Roomorama's website www.roomorama.com They broker short term rentals around the world like condos, bed & breakfasts, and other unique places. For more than a non-business longer than a weekend stay, I'd prefer a kitchen to mini-bar.
ReplyDeleteOur families have had excellent luck with Craigslist apartments. There aren't many hotels this far uptown and it's nice to have a kitchen. The main thing is to look carefully at the ad and then ask a LOT of questions about location, ambience, amenities, logistics. And Google Street View is your friend.
ReplyDeleteI might suggest the Bronx Zoo or the NY Botanical Gardens, which will have giant pumpkin sculptures and a bunch of Halloween themed kids' activities.
The Tenement Museum is less museum-y than most, and some of the tours are very focused on the children of the families living in the house.
Oddly enough, there is a Medieval Fair in Ft. Tryon Park on Oct 2, which would at least be an excuse to visit the unicorn tapestries in the Cloisters.
October is a really great time to visit NYC.
I'm going this weekend! My itenerary includes Coney Island and all-you-can-eat sushi, but it's being planned for me for the most part.
ReplyDeleteI looooved the Central Park Zoo when I went about 6 years ago. Really cute zoo, and central-ly located.
I've never used it for NYC, but what about airbnb, which has listings for different kinds of apartments, rooms, etc. I had good luck with it in London.
ReplyDeleteBig hits for our kids (now 9 and 12) during our more-or-less-annual trips to NYC have included the Central Park and Bronx Zoos, Times Square, FAO Schwartz, and the Intrepid Sea-Air-Space Museum (yes, it's a museum, but it's on a freakin' aircraft carrier!). Also, being car-centered suburbanites, they really enjoy taking public transportation of all kinds -- subway, bus, ferry, Roosevelt Island tram. Even a taxi ride can be a memorable experience.
ReplyDeleteI was also going to recommend Airbnb. which can be a little less sketchy than Craigslist, but I've also never used it myself.
ReplyDeleteI used homeaway.com when I needed a larger apartment to house my family for a long weekend in NYC. It was a mostly painless process, I was mostly working with real estate brokers (rather than direct with homeowners) and the apartment (size, location, cleanliness, etc.) worked out really well. Availability doesn't always match up with what the website says, but an inquiry email takes care of that quickly.
ReplyDeleteMy nice is a few years younger than your daughter, but she really liked Alice's Teacup and Central Park. She also loved watching all of the firetrucks and taxis.
I'm going to recommend the High Line, which is a very different kind of park than the others in the city. It's a park created on old railway tracks, so it's elevated over the city. It's like walking a strange, urban boardwalk and it's lots of fun to walk it and keep discovering how it surprises you - an area where you can take off your shoes and wade in an inch of water, a grassy area, low wooden benches, etc. If you enter from the north end - 30th Street and 10th Avenue - there's a lot with roller skating and food vendors, although I'm not sure if that was just a summer thing or if it will continue through the fall. (I had a fantastic ice cream sandwich there from CoolHaus - you pick your type of cookies and mix it with a type of ice cream, and there's lots of unusual flavors. Messy, but YUM.)
ReplyDeleteA friend of mine got a great place through VRBO...I know there are apartments you can rent by the day which are less expensive than a hotel room.
ReplyDeleteI would avoid going to the Statue of Liberty itself. Especially given the limited amount of time. The few times I did it I found it exceptionally dull (both as a child and as an adult). what I normally do is take people on the Staten Island Ferry. 30 minutes each way, it's free, and you get a beautiful view of the Statue and New York Harbor.
I also love the Museum of Natural History if you're going to be in the Central Park area. A better museum designed with children in mind (but not for children) has never been created.
I too have had sucess with a recent trip using VRBO in Halifax, Nova Scotia, but for NYC I would suggest checking out places in Hoboken NJ. The PATH Train offers easy access to NYC.
ReplyDeleteAlso, we did Ellis Island and SoL 2 years ago and left from the NJ port. It takes you to Ellis Island first (which is great!) and then the SoL. It is much less crowded than the NYC side ferry. Spend your time on Ellis Island and then just walk around the SoL.
Also buy your tickets ahead of time online. Worth it. We did get the tickets to go into the SoL and I have a great picture of my husband and kids in the pedestal museum posing with their fingers up the nose of Miss Liberty. Priceless!
I absolutely second this recommendation- every single time we've had friends with kids in town, they've loved this spot. Plenty of room to run around, and I heard the food vendors will be there through September. Sue, I had that ice cream sandwich too, and it was perfection!
ReplyDeleteThey're also having an awesome screening in September of "Trains in Film" at night in September too, but they're probably not that kid-friendly ("Strangers on a Train", "Some Like it Hot").
I must chime in, as I live with an 8-year-old in NYC (and a 10-year-old). As for Sue's recommendation for the roller rink by the High Line--it will be closing soon, so check the High Line web site. We recently took my kids (who've "been there done that" as far as museums go) on the Staten Island Ferry to see the Staten Island Yankees play the Brooklyn Cyclones. Every seat is a good seat, and the stadium is adjacent to where the ferry lets you off in Staten Island.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the Bronx Botanical Gardens, as they now have their Edible Gardens planted, so it's cool to see familiar (and unfamiliar) veggies as they take form. Plus, they sometimes have cooking demonstrations.
But why leave Manhattan, when you can visit FAO Schwartz, Dylan's Candy Bar, Alice's Tea Cup, etc.? OR, if you head downtown and decide on the Tenement Museum Tour (which is very good), visit Economy Candy on Rivington Street. It may be less "glitzy" than Dylan's, but it's great. Every candy you can remember from childhood, and more. And then you can stroll around the lower east side and eat all sorts of great stuff--not sure if you like knishes...but Yonah Schimmel's sweet potato knishes are yummy (on Houston Street).
And...my last suggestion: Eataly, right by Madison Square Park. A virtual foodie heaven, and a great place for a quick bite or some gelato.
Oh wait, one more. Play some mini-golf over at the Hudson River Park, down by Battery Park City. You take the subway to Canal Street (E or 1 train) and ask someone "which way to the river?" The mini golf course is just to your left (by the skate board park and the playground).
It's all good. Never gets old.
Why leave Manhattan? Oh, this Brooklynite (and former Queens resident) is going to cry!!
ReplyDeleteFor the outerboroughs:
Brooklyn:
Prospect Park: carousel, skating, zoo
Coney Island: rides, beach (yes, there are beaches in NYC), Nathan's hot dogs, NY Aquarium
Williamsburg: good restaurants (lot farm to table), BK Flea (Sundays), point out to your children that they should get jobs, not tats
Brooklyn Heights: walk over the Brooklyn Bridge, Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory, Grimaldi's pizza
Queens:
-Museum of the Moving Image
-Long Island City - hey, you can't see the skyline of Manhattan FROM Manhattan!
-World's Fair Grounds
You can take the East River Ferry to Brooklyn Heights, Williamsburg, Greenpoint and Long Island City.
To note- minor league baseball (Staten Island Yankees and Brooklyn Cyclones) do not play after mid-September.
Thirding the High Line - we had a wonderful time there with our then 9 & 7 y.o.s earlier this summer. And since then, they've opened up another section, which looked terrific on the conceptual drawings.
ReplyDeleteI'll add to the Queens list that the Panorama at the Museum of the City of New York in Flushing Meadows Park is really cool. I haven't been with kids, but I imagine they'd love it. It's a 3-D map of New York City that you can walk around and sometimes over. (And the museum is right near the big World's Fair globe in the park. When they turn the fountains off in the fall (not sure when), you can walk right under and around it.)
ReplyDeleteThanks so much to all for the suggestions. I am so excited to spend this time with my daughter and your ideas are fantastic!
ReplyDeleteAugh, my comment was deleted! I also love the High Line. If you're looking for a place to stay, we usually go with The Hotel 91 in Chinatown -- tiny rooms (although no smaller than other hotels I've stayed at in NYC) but inexpensive (I've never paid more than $99 a night), in a fairly safe area and near a number of subway stops. It's walking distance to Soho, Little Italy, etc. Best of all, it is mere steps from Doughnut Plant.
ReplyDeleteI'd second the Eataly and Alice's Teacup recommendations too. Good choices for kids and grownups alike.
ReplyDeleteMy brother just went to New York with his family, which includes a 9-year-old and 7-year-old girl. They also liked Dylan's as well as FAO Schwarz and the M&M store on Times Square. The older girl enjoyed the Museum of Natural History quite a bit. There was some sort of children's class at the Metropolitan Museum of Art that they liked.
ReplyDeleteI second Kate's motion that you take the free ferry and take pictures of the statue in the background -- the statue itself is a tourist trap of the worst kind. Once on Staten Island, though, get right back on the ferry, I repeat: GET RIGHT BACK ON THE FERRY. <span> </span>
ReplyDeleteThat's odd, my comment wandered off. Anyway, for short term accommodations, I've been reading good things about Roomorama . They seem to be getting a good reputation as a broker for renters and people lending out their condo, apartment, or other housing. I didn't have enough leadtime to use them for my trip to Montreal, but their global so you may find some nice NY places to stay. Personally, if it's not a business trip and not just a weekend, I kind of like having a kitchen rather than a minibar & room service.
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