While my daughter tours the campus, what would be good activities for my teen son in the area--say, to consume several hours?

If the weather is nice, you and your soon could easily be entertained for a few hours just sitting in Washington Square Park, watching the parade of people. Walking north from the park up 5th Ave, University or Broadway will take you to Union Square. There is a Virgin Megastore there if that would be of interest to a teen boy. Walking east toward 3rd avenue and along 8th Street from Cooper Square/3rd Avenue to 1st Avenue will give you a glimpse of what remains of the punk era and lots of kids on skateboards and tacky shops. I guess it's hard to say more without knowing generally what types of things you think your teen son would be willing to do.

Movie theater at 850 Broadway & 13 Street has 14 screens
The Strand Bookstore at 828 Broadway
Virgin Records Megastore 14th Street at Union Square
Tower Records 692 Broadway (at East 4th)
Barnes & Noble either at Union Square North or at 4 Astor Place between Broadway & Lafayette.

If video games and computers are his thing, there is a very cool internet cafe a few blocks in which he can get online with several different types of games and battle people all over the country or just surf for awhile.

http://www.web2zone.com/

And around the corner from that is St. Marks Pl which is a pretty hip area with some avant garde shops.

I second Washington Square Park. I could spend hours there just watching all the "stuff" going on. There's always people performing, and the dog run (believe it or not) can be pretty entertaining too. Sometimes there are street fairs in the area (check out http://www.nyctourist.com/st_fairs_calendar.htm for dates & places). I also recommend St. Marks Place.

Re: Washington Square Park - just avoid the drug dealers and you will be fine.

The drug dealers in WSP are few and far between these days. WSP is a city park, but it is still a place for families and children, so I would not worry to much about the above comment. Great people watching. Go to BB Sandwich Bar for a great cheesesteak. They are around the corner from the park on 120 W. Third St. (bet. MacDougal St. & Sixth Ave.)

If he wants a hip NY hairstyle, go to Astor Place Haircuts (don't know if that the right name, but you won't miss it)where all the hip kids go. There are a number of vintage clothes stores and trendy shops if he cares about looking urban cool. Some years ago, I discovered a furniture warehouse around Astor or Third Ave. that sold original retro furniture that kids only see now in 60s and 70s movies. Very entertaining. Venture over to Soho (south of Houston St.) for more boutiques and galleries. Good luck to your daughter. If she goes to NYU, it will certainly be community experience to remember.

As a person who lives near Washington Square Park, let me rephrase my response. Avoid the men standing on the edge of the park saying "Smoke? smoke?". They usually target younger, rich looking NYU students, so if you don't fit that category it's normal to think that they no longer exist. But alas they do.

Shop in SoHo, if you can afford it.
Otherwise, you can visit washington square park (the one with the big arch), Union Square (N,R,W, uptown one stop), Astor Place (about a block over from B'way),
Personally, I like Chinatown. It's close to NYU and just a short subway ride away. If your son is like anyother teen son, he'll love Canal Street, on the southern edge of Chinatown, where you can get a VHS copy of a movie already in the theater for $7. Also, The Chinatown Ice Cream Factory is near there too. They have great ice cream (try the mango!)
To get to Chinatown:

East Chinatown (near Lower East Side):

Walk over to Astor Place. Hop on the 6 downtown to Bleeker, and transfer to the S. Take it to Grand Street. Remember, coming back, there is no free transfer to the uptown 6 from the S.

Central Chinatown:

Enter at 8 st/NYU station

sorry, i got cut off for the rest of my reply

As i was saying, for central Chinatown,
get in the subway at the 8 St/NYU station. Take the N,R, or W downtown to Canal Street and get out

To get to Chinatown Ice Cream Factory from Canal Street Station:

Walk east on Canal street to Baxter Street (4 blocks). Turn right, then turn left after one block on Bayard Street. You should see the flag ahead

happy college hunting

lol, gothampc. Anyone who thinks the drug dealers have left WSP completely, has never been approached by those fine young and not so young gentlemen saying, "Smoke, smoke". But a woman walking with a teen son, probably won't be approached.

The real question for penel523 is where are you from, will you be accompanying your son, and how much does your daughter want to go to NYU? If you are from a conservative area or a worrying mind set then head North up fifth to 9th street and then walk across the streets 9 through 13, from University Place to maybe as far west as Greenwich street. In this area, you will see beautiful brownstones, some nice prewar buildings, upscale supermarkets and interesting shops. You will also see 2 of the NYU dorms. Maybe you will see a star or two. But you will be content with the area.
If your son is going alone with your daughter and has time to kill by himself, then all of the things mentioned are good. Also, if he likes basketball, he can try to get into one of the pick-up games at the playground on 6th avenue and West 3rd St, or if he likes chess, he can watch the people play or try to get into a game at the southwest corner of WSP.

as someone who has lived in downtown nyc for a VERY long time (and who is raising a family there), i am well aware that there are still drug dealers in WSP. i just don't think it's helpful to "scare" visitors by telling them to "avoid the drug dealers". i am just afraid it buys into the stereotype that NY is a scary,dirty place.

This thread reminds me of when my son was at NYU about 15 years ago. I was a bit concerned about the drug dealers in Washington Square Park, but my son reassured me. He never did any kind of business with them (yes, I do know this for a fact) but he spoke to them and knew their names. He thought it was best to be on friendly terms with people who could be pretty scary at times, especially since he had to walk through the park at night a lot. When I went to visit him, we were walking across the park one day and one of the dealers came sidling up with his usual "Smoke? Smoke?" and then stopped short and said "Oh, hey, Mark, is that your mom?"
The dealers were and are a big problem. Mark actually had a friend who died of an overdose while they were students there. What a waste.

Thanks, everyone, for your advice. We're coming from the Boston area, and I think we'll be OK with whatever we might see in Washington Square Park . . . but thanks for the warning.

And thanks to everyone who's passed along good wishes for college hunting.