Central Park - What to see?
 

Our children, 11 & 14, want to go to Central Park on our upcoming visit to NYC. It's a fairly large space. Any suggestions as to what route to take through the park and what to see?

Take them to the zoo in the park. It is small and they will love it.

<BR>I've not been the Central Park Zoo since it was redone, but isn't it a "childrens" zoo? If so, then the 11 & 14 year-olders might be too old to realy enjoy. If I'm wrong, someone please correct me. <BR>In general, there really aren't specific"must see" sights in the parks. It's sort of the whole thing! There used to be an area where the rollerbladers "performed." They might enjoy that. Maybe someone out there can give more specifics. <BR>The park is a nice area just for walking. But, keep your activities to the daylight hours! Going at night is not advisable!

There's a children's zoo and a regular zoo. There's free Shakespeare and World Music concerts in the summer. Remote controlled sailboats available for rent, room for biking and rollerblading, strolling, ice skating in the winter . . .

It is a great place to go bike riding on the weekends. You can also rent rowboats. There's weather station which looks like a castle sitting on a rocky outcrop near the Delacorte Theatre, which has a great view.

TREES!!!! The first time I went to NYC I went with a group from my high school. We hadn't seen a tree in days. As soon as we saw the trees in the park somebody said: "I see something green." The rest of us responded in a unified voice: "TREES!" And we took off running. I was 16. I sat under a tree and watched people for atleast 30 minutes. People watching is best. I think there's a pond that has remote control boats. If you got boys, they'll love it. <BR>

First, I would say go to the Dairy (walk in the 65th st. entrance from the east side, ie 5th avenue), which is the visitors' center, only because I assume it has maps of the park and event schedules. If you've got the time and energy, just wander around and let yourself be surprised - the park was designed so you could do just that and not be bored or get completely lost. <BR> <BR>In the middle (enter at 72nd street) is the Lake, with the rental boats and a good (not cheap) restaurant. <BR> <BR>The pond with remote-control boats (featured in Stuart Little) is the Conservatory Water, on the East side of the park just above the 72nd st. entrance. It also has large Alice In Wonderland and Hans Christian Anderson statues nearby. <BR> <BR>The Wollman Rink (ice skating in winter; rollerblading, mini-golf and kid-sized basketball hoops in summer) and the Zoos are right near each other on the lower east side, between 59th and 66th streets. At the main zoo you can see Gus, the polar bear who had to go into psychotherapy. If you have kids and you could only do one section of the park, I'd say do this one - it could take an hour or all day, depending on your interests and energy levels. <BR> <BR>For Beatles fans, the John Lennon memorial Strawberry Fields is on the West Side, near the 72nd st. entrance, right by the Dakota where he lived and died. <BR> <BR>Right in the middle, near the Bethesda Fountain (72nd street), is the place where hotshot rollerbladers demonstrate their skills. <BR> <BR>The old-fashioned Carousel is off the 65th st. transverse, right in the middle (west of the Dairy) - it's great but I'm guessing teens won't be rushing to get there. <BR> <BR>To just relax and people watch, I'd recommend Sheep Meadow, north of the 65th st. transverse in the middle. <BR> <BR>And the secret gem of Central Park, which is probably best seen in the spring and more a grown-up thing, but still nice, is the Conservatory Garden, off 5th Avenue at 105th street (don't worry, it's a completely safe area). It includes the Secret Garden, a memorial to Frances Hodgeson Burnett (sp?). <BR> <BR>Finally, a great restaurant for kids is the old fashioned ice cream shop Serendipity, not too far away at 225 E. 60th (between 2 & 3 aves) with enormous, amazing sundaes and the classic Frozen Hot Chocolate.

Sorry for be a little off on the zoo. However, if I was coming to New York for a few days with 11 and 14-year-old children, I might spend a little bit time in Central Park, but it wouldn't be at or near the top of my list. <BR>A Circle Line Cruise around Manhattan Island, a visit to the Intrepid Aircraft Carrier, a ride on the Staten Island Ferry passing the Statue of Liberty, a walk around South Street Seaport, a visit to the top of the Empire State Building or the World Trade Center or both, a walk around Times Square, stops at FAO Schwartz and the many theme stores on Fifth Avenue would all be much higher on my my list, plus numerous others than I can't think of at the moment. <BR>

Thanks, everyone, for all the information. Howard, you've been especially helpful with many of my queries over the past few weeks. Thank you very much. <BR> <BR>

Thanks for the kind words. I love this city and I want everyone to enjoy it as much as I do! So, enjoy it!