NYTraveler - she's pretty damn lazy. That's one reason we kept this trip short. Sometimes she can hang but we plan for the worst and hope for the best.

Think we'll have to just play it by ear; we'll head south that morning anyway and see what appeals to the kids most at that point. I'm sure they will disagree though :)

Thanks for the tip about Governor's Island. Sounds like if we do that we should allow for some time there. A gametime decision, with your tips in mind.

All three of my children too nyc trips for their 6th birthdays. We have done almost everything listed above. The things they enjoyed the most were Max Brenners all chocolate restaurant, the Staten Island Ferry (don't miss this!), Top of the Rock and Dylan's Candy Bar. Ellen's is usually a big hit too but they are not huge fans of waiting and the wait can be long (go early). American Girl is a store but also has a most precious restaurant (make reservations). This was a must-do for each of my girls and we've returned a third time!

My children were not impressed by Little Italy/Chinatown. The aggressive sales creeped them out, and they got a little disoriented. If you want good pasta Carmine's in Times Square is kid friendly and is well known for their Italian food.

If the walking is a problem, I really recommend taking a small umbrella stroller ($10-20 at toys r us). It sounds crazy for a child that age but we have done this before on trips with tons of walking and made our older ones (ages 5-6) ride to lengthen the day. It helped a lot!

Happy Gay Pride Day in NYC!


Thin

Perhaps a cheap stroller isn't a bad idea. I must admit that I see a lot of strollers in the city with kids that I would think are way too old for them. Kids are running around at 1 and granted their energy is limited, in my experience by 3 they can outrun many parents - although stamina is limited.

But at 6 I was on my bike - or on skates - riding/whipping around all day (as long as the day wasn't too hot). My mother's problem was keeping me in the immediate neighborhood unless with an adult. And the walk to school was 12 blocks (and by the end of the day I was running home).

Is she tired - or just bored?

OK lots of changes / updates. Thanks for sticking with me.

As for her royal highness and walking - maybe I'm having low expectations and it will turn out better - hope for the best, expect the worst.

Another change - now my 10 year old son is joining us (he was supposed to go on a different trip with grandparents but that was cancelled). He and my husband are considering going to a Yankee game Sun afternoon - big baseball fans. That takes up a big chunk of our time; but he has been to NYC before. He was younger and doesn't remember a whole lot, but he doesn't really need to do everything again. Also, they wouldn't stay for the whole game, just a few innings, a souvenir purchase and some pics. From what we read it's a pretty quick trip via subway. Thoughts?

So the general idea is this (we are staying at the Marriott East Side / Lex and about 48th I think):

Sat get there around 3 - spend some time in CP, then walk over to Times Square to see M&M store, Hershey Store, Toys R Us, etc... eat dinner, back to hotel

Sun AM: more time in CP, rent bikes (trailer for the lazy one) for a couple of hours. Boys leave for Yankees game; girls go to Alice's Tea Cup and then Dylan's Candy Bar and ??? Maybe just shop / explore unless anyone has a suggestion otherwise.

Sun PM: Meet up with the boys and go to Staten Island ferry then pasta dinner (Sofia's in LI - thoughts)?

Mon: my husband leaves for Philly so it will just be me with the two kids and we have until about 3 before we need to leave for LGA. Thinking Top of the Rock, Serendipity for late lunch, anything else that struck their interest that we didn't already do.

If you use LI in NY, people think is Long Island. I looked for Sofia's on Long Island and wondered why you would go there.

There is little reason to eat in Little Italy. Carbone is too expensive with kids and Parm is hard to get into.

For fresh pasta at reasonable prices try Gnocco or Supper in the East Village. And for dessert Veniero's, far superior to Ferrara's.

Went to Gnocco with mom and loved it, I will check out Supper!

Thx for the info - meant Little Italy!

Going to a Yankees game is very pricey for just a few innings - not sure I would do it much as I am a Yankee fan.

For Central Park be aware that bikes are limited to the single circular road through the Park. The rest of the paths (to get to most places) are for pedestrians only (or small kids on tricycles) no regular bikes. I would look at the map of the park before deciding to do bikes and find you can;t get where you want to be.

Since you will be in the neighborhood if you choose Dylan's and Alice's Tea Cup, Lazy Girl might enjoy a ride back and forth of the Roosevelt Island tram. Actually, the whole family might enjoy it.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roosevelt_Island_Tramway

Love that idea ellenem! Thank you!