A Week in NYC with Kids: Please comment and help me tweak the plan!
 

Hi Fodorites,
We're coming to NYC with two kids, boys, ages 6 and 8. My DH and I have worked out a travel plan we think has something for everyone, but I wanted to run it by you for input. Let me know what you think!
In general , we do a lot of walking around and stopping where we get interested in something. We eat ice cream or street food practically all the time when we're on vacation, and don't particularly want to spend time in nice restaurants. We don't need to nap or to come back to our place to rest in the afternoons, but being in air conditioning seems to perk us up.
Day 1: Arrive in the evening, walk around neighborhood (Lower East Side)
Day 2: Start at Top of the Rock, via subway. Head to the Nintendo World as that will blow my son's mind. Split up: One pair to the Yankee's afternoon game, the other to the Bronx Zoo via the express bus on Madison and 54th. Meet back up after for dinner somewhere in midtown.
Day 3: A favorite kid's rock band is playing at Madison Square, so check that out in the morning. Proceed to Mars 2012 for lunch, and then to Intrepid for touring. Back to Times Square for the evening, and do King Tut after a "eat off the cart" dinner while sitting around in the Square to look at the lights.
Day 4: Central Park: Zoo, Carousel, boat pond. Then go to the Museum of Natural History for lunch and tour the permanent collection and Silk Road exhibit. Head back to FAO Schwartz from the museum. Dinner anywhere- casual. We don't want to take tired kids out to a fancy dinner, so is there a cool diner that would be appropriate in the vicinity of the Museum or FAO? We may get tickets to 4Play by the Flying K Brothers. The kids love acrobats.
Day 5: Little Italy, China Town, and Lower Manhattan walking tour (which company? I'd like to do a private tour and really tailor it to be kid-friendly). Pay our respects at the World Trade Center site. Wave at the Statue of Liberty. Lunch at South Street Seaport, ride on the Shark or the Beast (I forget which one it is). Tour the other boats, see the buskers, look at the scrimshaw in the Mariner's Craft space. That evening, hit We the People in the West Village.
Day 6: Back to Museum of Natural History to do the Planetarium and space related exhibits. Lunch at Zabar's. Go to Belevedere Castle, do playground beside the Met. Go to the Met's egyptian and medivial exhibits (the kids are into knights and mummys). Hit Dylan's Candy Bar. Evening??
Day 7: Take the kids for Dim Sum in Chinatown and the head home.
What do you think? Other shows we should do? We would be willing to go to a Broadway show if we could get inexpensive tickets. The Lion King would be wonderful, but the tickets were really, really expensive. We don't want to do the Statue of Liberty tour- we think that and Ellis Island will be a little more meaningful when the kids are older.
Thanks for your help!

Thanks for feedback!

Your itinerary is interesting...however, I wonder if it is
a tad ambitious for boys so young?

Rhea, they have so much more energy than I do that I'm far more concerned about keeping up with them than I am wearing them out. I wondered, though, if my daily desitination plan was do-able, since my sense of how much time it take to get from place to place is not well-developed. Assuming we had the energy, is this do-able? Or still too ambitious? Thank you!

On Day 5, I'd scrap everything up to the Statute of Liberty. Either go to the Statue or take the Staten Island Ferry and back. There's very little in Chinatown, Little Italy, lower Manhattan and Ground Zero that will interest 6 and 8yos.

And I'd do pizza somewhere instead of Dim Sum in Chinatown, which isn't all that. Much more New York.

A couple of ideas I had. Your day at the Zoo, AND the MONH is alot. The CP Zoo is quite large and will take several hours to see. The Museum is on the other side of the park, so just stay on the East side, and from there do FAO and maybe some of the shops on 5th Ave, if they are into Basketball the NBA store is not far away.

Day 5 head downtown to the South St. Seaport and see if you can get some discount tickets at TKTS and the walk up to Chinatown for Dim Sum, and through Little Italy for some desert. I don't think your guys are going to be all that interested in the Tenement Museum, and it's going to be HOT in there, no AC.

If you are still up for some walking head to the East Village and stop at Pomme Fritte for the BEST fries, and this will be one stop your guys will talk about for a long time. IT's a tiny store on 3rd Ave just south of St Mark's Place (8th St), intesesting stores on ST Marks Place as well.

Day 6, I'd pick one museum not both, too much too see. With your guys, I think the MONH is a better bet and you can spend all day there so much to see and a 3D movie as well. There's also the Planetarium. The museum also has a restaurant, so you can eat there, fastish food and decent quality and pricing. Also several gift shops to wander.

In Central Park there is also a Victorian Carnival in the area of the ice skating rink. Rides and games for the kids might be fun.

If the guys are into Medeval Times, you might add The Cloisters to one of your days, WAY uptown, but amazing museum, with lots of little gardens, and it looks like a castle. If you did the MET on one of your days, you could do both for the same admitance fee. Do the Met walk through the park to the 79th St C/B line, take that to 145th and take the A train up to 190th St and Ft. Washington, from there walk up through Ft. Tryon Park to the Museum, it would be another really memorable day.

Mars 2012 gets poor reviews for food and service, but right across the street is Ellen's Stardust, diner, and the servers there are broadway wantabees, so you get some entertainment with your lunch.

We now have 4 carousels in Manhattan, you might make a goal of trying all four, Bryant Park (6th and 42nd) ToysRUs (Times Square) Central Park and the Victorian Carnival also in Central Park, where the ice skating rink is not far from the Zoo.

Don't know about the bus to the Bronx Zoo, but the subway goes there, probably faster, and the elevated train you get a great view of the city.

Also if you are downtown, you might take the Staten Island Ferry for a GREAT view of the Statue of Liberty and in this hot weather, a nice cool breeze off the water would be a nice evening ride.

Just saw you are staying on the Lower East side, that might be the time to head to Pomme Fritte for fries the first night, AND no trip to Manhattan imho is complete without a stop at Veniero's (pasteries, cakes, pies, cookies) 11th St and 2nd Ave, however you will gain 5 pounds just walking in the door.

If you want an evening out, there is a movie theatre on 3rd Ave and 12th St and a huge movie theatre (25 screens) in Times Square (42nd and 8th Ave).

I'd suggest picking up a guide book on the city asap, so you can get an idea of where things are located so you don't spend alot of time in transit, pick things you want to see based on location. That way you can maximize your time.

Also in most of the parks there are playgrounds and during the summer, they have fountains or sprays for the kids to cool down, your guys might really enjoy that too.

Ok that's my 2cents.

Hope this helps and have a GREAT time while you are here.

I do not thinks kids that age would like the Cloisters very much. It is a dedciated to medieval art. If kids that age wanted to see something of that era, the arms and armor at Met would be mich more diverting.

A rite of passage for every NYC kid is the Museum of Natural History. They have a whale hanging from the ceiling and great dinosaur skeltons. This is a must to add to the itinerary. I am not sure about lunch there.

You cannot eat at Zabar's. You can take prepared food to the park or soemwhere but there is no place to sit. Their cafe has a very limited menu and I do not recall if they have seats at all.

South Street Seaport is probbaly the most boring tourist stop in NYC. It is basically a mall with a horrible food court and two ships that are not very interesting. I would skip it.

The kids would probably like two stores
Forbidden Planet which has comic books, grpahic novels, and toys

Evolution on Spring Street which has many things they will think is either cool or gross.

There is not much left of Little Italy but Chinatown is exciting. Take them to the Chiantown Ice Cream Facory. They have storemade ice cream with vanilla and chocolate for the kids and green tea and lichee for the adults.

Skip Mars 2112 and go to Daisy Mae's ribs enroute to the Intrepid.

I agree that the Met exhibit on knights and armor plus the Egyptian section would be better w/ young kids than the Cloisters. The Michael Rockefeller collection at the Met is also pretty spectacular and might appeal to them

Two days of zoos for one adult and one kid in the family seems like a lot

Do NOT eat at Mars 2112 - the food is awful and there are issues with cleanliness. Agree tht Ellen's Stardust is a much better choices (the food is diner basics - but decent - and the performances are a hoot).

Agree to skp the Seaport - really little for anyone fo do but shop and Littel italy - nothing there. Take the free Staten Island ferry - fairly close views of The SoL and great views of the skyline on the way back - and the kids will love the boat and the harbor.

You cannot eat at Zabar's - no seats. You buy food and take it home - or to a picnic in the park. Either prepared sandwiches and salads - or things you select from the counter. There is also a Shake Shack in the area - but the lines are awful.

Agree to spend more time at Natural History - kids love it and there are numerous fund displays as well as several IMAX movies and the planetarium.

The Met is also great for kids - esp Egyptian section (my little brother was always trying to get into the sarcophagi to see the mummies), Temple of Dendur and arms & armor.

1. I wouldn't split up the Museum of Natural History Day. Stop for lunch between the dinosaurs and the planetarium. It's fine to run over to the castle afterward.

2. Do the Central Park Zoo and Metropolitan Museum on the same day (zoo in the morning, museum after lunch). The food at the zoo isn't half bad, but the food court in the museum is probably better, if more expensive.

3. If you do end up going to the Bronx zoo (I agree that two zoos is a little much), don't take the bus. That's forever. Either take Metro North or the subway. The subway lets you out about a 10-minute walk from the zoo and is cheaper but takes longer.

4. I actually would do Chinatown and the Lower East Side. If you don't want to eat dim sum, you could go to the Essex Street Market, where there are a couple of places to sit down and eat. Or you could have the wonderful fried chicken at Congee Village. Dylan's Candy Bar is ok, but Economy Candy is really amazing for old-time stuff and is more of a candy-store experience to me. Easily combined with Chinatown and a walk across the Brooklyn Bridge.

5. South Street Seaport is truly horrible. Go there if you must, but for me, it represents the worst of NYC. All touristy but not at all interesting.

There's nothing wrong with your plan, though I agree with others that it sounds a bit ambitious to me for such young kids. At least you're listing and are avoiding the Empire State Building.

Spend the money on tickets to The Lion King! Your boys are the perfect ages for this and it will be a highlight for them. My boys are now 15 and 17 and still talk about seeing The Lion King on Broadway! It will be memorable for the entire family.

My kids always loved walking around Times Square - M & M store, Hershey store, street vendors, etc. They also love eating at the Hard Rock Cafe in every city we go to (one son collects the drum sticks) so that's a "must" for them.

There are websites to check for discounted show tickets - last spring The Lion King had a great discount. Hopefully someone can list the sites for you. Have a great trip!

Having raised two boys in this city, I absolutely agree with the others that they would not appreciate the Cloisters. The Met is the way to go. While there, go up to the roof. Besides nice views, there was a cool art installation made of bamboo up there. If it's still on, the boys might like to walk through it. After the Met, you could stop at the ancient playground just south (betw the Met and 79th St) or head over to Belvedere Castle (10 min walk).

I would also go to the MONH in the morning and plan to spend the day. There are so many great things there that it might be a good idea to start while you're fresh in the morning.

Have a fabulous trip!

Another vote for Lion King tickets. Simply amazing costumes and staging.

Any interest in Ellis Island? It might not be the most interesting place for kids, but I thought it was neat to be in the place through which so many people entered the country. More interesting than the Statue of Liberty, that's for sure.

IMHO, my DD saw the Lion King at 5 years old and now nine years later doesn't remember going. I don't know if they would like Mary Poppins, you can probably get discounted tickets at Broadwaybox.com; regardless you should check that website out to see if anything else would interest them. I think you would need more time at the Bronx Zoo; it is very large; if you spent an entire day you wouldn't be able to see everything. Whichever zoo you go to make sure you go to the children's section.

I would avoid Ellis Island on this trip, the Staten Island Ferry is one of the best deals in NYC. You get really close to the statue and the boys would enjoy the ride, especially if our heat wave continues.

Also, you know your own kids, some find museums "boring".

Don't forget to get them NY pizza; Italian ices.

I may have been an overprotective mother; even if your boys know your cell phone number inside and out, I always put my cell phone number in my daughter's sneaker. I just think that if a child gets nervous their memory goes out the window.

I agree with Adu about the arms and armor at the Met. I think it's cool and I'm about 5x older than your eldest. There's a GREAT pizza place on 80th and Lex or so (dunno the name, probably Ray's or John's like 75% of the others) -- tiny little joint on the northeast corner.

As for the Museum of Natural History -- yeah, spend the day but eat elsewhere. The cafeteria sucks.

ICYNYC has opened again on Avenue A and about 6th Street. They make their own ices. We had the orange ginger and the cherry both were very flavorful. The cherry either had bits of cherries or insects in the ices, in any event it was delicious, if not expensive for ices-$2.50-$3 for a small.

Other places kids would love

Cones-Bleecker Street
Sundaes and Cones-10th Street, off 3rd Ave.
Moishe's-all sorts of baked goods.
Il Laboratorio de Gelato-Next to the Tenement Museum
Gray's Papaya-the renown hot dog stand. The papaya and orange drinks have never met a fruit and that is their charm.

About 1/2 the price of Dylan's and ten times more interesting is Economy Candy on the Lower East Side.

For the day or days on the Upper West Side (Museum of Natural History and Planetarium)try EJ's Luncheonette (but also open for dinner, and pretty quiet then)-- retro style diner, but much better quality comfort food
In fact the whole area of Amsterdam Avenue between 79th and 86th is almost all restaurants, casual, kid friendly, especially at lunchtime. Really inexpensive lunches at Indian, Chinese, Cuban/Dominican restaurants, among other choices.
Shake Shack (on Columbus Avenue)is good, and at odd hours the wait from getting on line to sitting down with food is about 20 minutes. If the line is inside, but just reaching the door, that's about the amount of time.

Zabars is fine for takeout to the park, but the "cafe" is just a crowded storefront, standing around a tall table, with or without a couple of barstools to perch on.
Fairway, a grocery/gourmet store a few blocks south does have a proper cafe, but at night it becomes a steakhouse so the menu is much more limited and expensive
http://www.fairwaymarket.com/restaurant.html

Wow! I really appreciate all of this feedback! I will skip Southstreet Seaport and rearrange the museum days. Thanks for the tip on how to get to the Bronx Zoo. Yep, I know it's a lot of zoo, but he wants to go. Do you think that going to the Tish Children's Petting zoo would be a good subsititue, and then go back to the regular Central Park zoo another day? My kids are split on that first day, and I'm trying not to do anything that my oldest would "miss" by not being there.

I'll look for reasonable Lion King tickets. And I'll write down all of the restaurants you suggest and avoid the Mars 2012. I was just doing it for the kids, but the Broadway wanna-be place sounds much better.

We don't leave until Sunday, so please, keep those thoughts and posts coming! :)
Thank you all so much-
Laura

The children's zoo in Central Park (while wonderful) is no substitute for the Bronz Zoo. However, the Central Park zoo does have polar bears, sea lions, and a rain forest exhibit; they might be enough, but it has no lions, tigers, big apes, etc.

Random thoughts, mostly reiterated from the above, from the father of a 4 and 9 yo:

Where exactly are you staying?

I disagree that children won't like Chinatown/Little Italy, our son was fascinated by the sights and sounds and hustle and bustle.

I thought the food in the basement cafeteria of the Met was pretty good for the price.

Consider walking out onto or all the way across the Brooklyn Bridge.

Agree that MoNH deserves a big chunk of time, and also that the Upper West Side is a great place for restaurants that are comfortable for families (since families actually live there).
The Bronx Zoo is huge. I disagree with the poster that said the Central Park Zoo is big, it is nicely done but really shouldn't take more than a couple of hours.

Try to hit Central Park on a weekend day when you'll have more street performers.

Agree with the recommendation for Gray's Papaya, and John's Pizza in the Village.

Is Washington Square Park open now? Last time we were there it was very cut up due to renovations. When it's fully open it's a bevy of activity that will fascinate the kids, between the buskers, boarders, chess players, etc.

Our son saw Lion King on Broadway at 6 and loved it (and still remembers it), and the rest of us enjoyed it also.

Agree that I would not make the special trip to the Cloisters.