199 Best Sights in New York, USA

The Asian art collection of Mr. and Mrs. John D. Rockefeller III forms the core of this museum's holdings, with artworks and artifacts dating as far back as the 11th century BCE. A growing contemporary collection features video, animation, photography, and new media art by artists from Asia and the Americas. Founded in 1956, the society has a regular program of panel discussions, film screenings, family events, and performances, in addition to changing on-loan exhibitions of traditional and contemporary art. Trees and flowering vines grow within the glass-enclosed, skylighted Leo Café, whose menu reflects the diversity of Asian cuisine. The AsiaStore carries the best in Asian design and literature. Docent tours are offered regularly; a schedule is posted on the museum's website.

Bailiwick Ranch and Discovery Zoo has three attractions that will entertain children: horseback rides along scenic trails, a zoological park with exotic and farm animals (including a petting zoo and feeding area), and paintball. Educational programs and special events also take place throughout the year. The ranch is open year-round (weather permitting), but the zoo is closed November through March. Members of the military receive free admission.

This rust-tinted spaceship of an arena with a lawn for a roof houses the NBA's Brooklyn Nets and the WNBA's New York Liberty, and hosts events from concerts to family shows to boxing. With a capacity hovering around 17,000, Barclays Center also has plenty of room to offer concessions courtesy of local restaurateurs, including Fuku, Parm, and Federoff's Cheesesteaks.

Marking the southernmost point of Manhattan, the Battery is a respite from the hurried Financial District. Even if you don't plan to stay for long, carve out a few minutes to enjoy the view, which includes the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, and the harbor. The park's main structure is Castle Clinton National Monument, the gathering point for ferries to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. This monument is a former fort erected during the War of 1812 to defend the city. (Its sister fort, Castle Williams, sits across the harbor on Governors Island.) From 1855 to 1890, Castle Clinton served as America's first official immigration center.

The Battery is home to memorials, monuments, an urban garden, a playscape, and a labyrinth, as well as the lovely SeaGlass Carousel, where for $6 children and adults can ride "inside" luminescent fish and pretend to float magically underwater. To the east is the Staten Island Ferry Terminal; to the west is Robert F. Wagner Jr. Park, with its tidy lawn and benches from which to view the harbor and summertime shows.

Housed in a 1905 barn, the visitor center sits above the Blenheim-Gilboa pumped-storage project, which generates power by recycling water between two reservoirs. Hands-on exhibits explain the science of energy production; an enclosed porch overlooking the lower reservoir has exhibits of local fauna. Picnic tables are scattered between the historic outbuildings. Hiking trails lead to Mine Kill State Park.

Just steps from the subway, this stretch of golden sand is the showpiece of Brooklyn's oceanside playground. Families set up beach blankets, umbrellas, and coolers, and pickup games of beach volleyball and football add to the excitement. Calm surf, a lively boardwalk, and a handful of restaurants for shade and refreshments complete the package. That spit of land in the distance is the Rockaway Peninsula, in Queens. Amenities: toilets. Best for: people-watching; sunsets.

A long-running community outreach program that used to operate a mobile children's museum out of a purple bus has now found a permanent home within the cavernous, former Powerhouse building in Mill Pond Park. Kids can play and create in this bright, colorful, and bilingual space (English and Spanish) with two arts and crafts areas, a learning area about local nature, a flowing water play table to learn about boats on the river, and "The Block"—a kid's version of a neighborhood street scene. Programs, like story times and animal encounters, are scheduled regularly.

The four towers of this complex (aka the World Financial Center) range from 34 to 51 stories high and are topped with different geometric ornaments designed by Cesar Pelli. Inside are the company headquarters for the likes of American Express and Dow Jones. But the main attraction is the glass-domed Winter Garden atrium with its signature palm trees—a pleasant open space that hosts music, dance performances, a winter ice rink, and links to a variety of stores and restaurants. You can cross West Street at street level, or use the concourse underneath that connects Brookfield Place with the World Trade Center site (and the subway and PATH trains). The massive windows at the top of the Winter Garden's grand staircase on the north side of the atrium provide a view of the 9/11 Memorial Plaza and Westfield World Trade Center (the Oculus) to the east.

A guided-missile cruiser, destroyer, and a World War II submarine are on display at this 6-acre waterfront site, the largest inland naval park in the nation.

Exhibits cover everything from anthropology to zoology. One exhibit uses the stories of three mummies to explore what daily life was like for ordinary citizens in ancient Egypt.

Endangered Amur (Siberian) tigers, Asian elephants, and Indian rhinos are among the nearly 1,000 wild and exotic animals found in this natural setting in Delaware Park. The grounds include an interactive, mock, field-research station, and a rain-forest exhibit. There's also an on-site children's zoo, which features farm animals historically found in the Erie Canal area.

Located right next to Enchanted Forest, this amusement complex offers go-karts, bumper boats, miniature golf, and an arcade. A Pizza Hut is on-site. Attractions cost a ticket or more each, and each ticket is $5.

Named for a German immigrant who was a prominent statesman and newspaper editor in the 19th century, this 14.9-acre park is so tranquil that you'd never guess you're directly above the FDR Drive. Walk along the esplanade and soak up views of the East River and Roosevelt Island across the way. To the north is Randalls (which is conjoined with Wards Island on the east side) and the Robert F. Kennedy Bridge (formerly the Triborough Bridge)—while the sights of locals pushing strollers, riding bikes, or walking their dogs surround visitors. Within the park is a Federal-style, wood-frame house that belies the grandeur of its name: Gracie Mansion, the official residence of the city's mayor. It was built in the 18th century.

You're entering hallowed ground, because this building was once the Espresso Café, where Bob Dylan, Janis Joplin, Joan Baez, and others entertained countercultural dreamers. Now a gallery space for photography, the center aims to provoke serious consideration of the medium, offering a dynamic series of exhibits, lectures, and workshops.

The Dairy (midpark at 65th Street) is one of five visitor centers in the park. The others include Belvedere Castle (midpark at 79th Street), the Chess & Checkers House (midpark at 64th Street), the Charles A. Dana Discovery Center (at the top northeast corner of the park at 110th Street, on the shore of Harlem Meer), and the Columbus Circle Information Kiosk (southwest corner of the park at West 59th Street). All have directions, park maps, event calendars, and volunteers who can give you guidance. The Conservancy also offers themed guided tours, such as views, gardens, and statues and monuments.

Even a leisurely visit to this small but delightful menagerie takes only about an hour, unless, of course, you fall under the spell of the zoo's adorable animals, be they the ever-friendly penguins, the spry snow leopard, or other furry or feathered residents. More than 130 species are found here, but there's no space for animals like zebras and giraffes to roam. Don't miss the sea lion feedings, possibly the zoo's most popular attraction, daily at 11:30, 1:30, and 3:30, or the penguin feedings at 10:40 and 2:30 daily.

Clustered around the central Sea Lion Pool are separate exhibits for each of the Earth's major environments: penguins and seabirds live at Polar Circle; the highlights of the open-air Temperate Territory are the chattering monkeys; and the Tropic Zone contains the flora and fauna of rain forests. The Tisch Children's Zoo (no additional ticket required) gives kids the opportunity to feed sheep, goats, cows, and pigs. The 4-D theater shows 15-minute-long, family-friendly films that feature sensory effects like wind, mist, bubbles, and scents. Children under 12 are not admitted to the zoo without an adult.  All visitors must reserve a date-specific ticket in advance.

This sports-and-entertainment complex along the Hudson River between 17th and 23rd Streets, a phenomenal example of adaptive reuse, is the size of four 80-story buildings laid out flat. There's pretty much every kind of sports activity happening both inside and out, including golf (check out the multitier, all-weather outdoor driving range), sailing classes, ice-skating, rock climbing, soccer, bowling, gymnastics, and basketball. Plus there's a spa and elite sport-specific training. Chelsea Piers is also the jumping-off point for some of the city's boat tours and dinner cruises.

Kids can learn about Mohican life or bees and pollination through the interactive exhibits here, which cover science, history, and art.

In this five-story exploratorium, children ages one to seven are invited to paint their own masterpieces, float boats down a "stream" (seasonal), rescue animals with Dora and Diego (in an exhibition created in collaboration with Nickelodeon), and walk through or crawl under larger-than-life contemporary sculptures at Inside Art. In the immersive, comic book–inspired Superpowered Metropolis exhibit, a trio of lively pigeons—Zip, Zap, and Zoom—guide you through a 1,500-square-foot space equipped with interactive features like a climbable, two-story tree house. Special exhibits are thoughtfully put together and fun. Art workshops, science programs, and storytelling sessions are held daily.

At this museum with hands-on exhibits geared for kids three to ninash in a model diner.

The CMA encourages children ages 1 to 15 to get creative through a variety of mediums. Along with the requisite children's museum offerings like pencils, chalk, and paint, you'll find a clay bar; a media lab with mounted cameras and a recording studio; a small slide and colorful ball pond that kids can play in; an airy exhibition space with rotating exhibits (and workshops inspired by exhibits); a permanent collection of children's art from more than 50 countries; and classes in ceramics, origami, animation, filmmaking, and more. Check the website for a busy calendar of events.

Here, as their motto says, learning begins with play. This is a perfect place to let kids run off some steam on a rainy day, or just to take a break from the beach. There's a fire engine replica, painting room, library, climbing ship, and a separate play area for toddlers. A mini-golf course is open in season, weather permitting. There are plenty of educational and fun classes and events on the calendar too, including the Summer Family Concert Series in August.

Subway tokens, Statue of Liberty figurines, and other artifacts you might find in a New York City time capsule crowd the displays of this quirky, community-run museum inside a former bodega. While exhibitions rotate, one that's found permanence is of actual children's letters addressed to Spider-Man, sent to his comic book address in Queens. 

This 2½-mile beach, flanked by the Riegelmann Boardwalk and the amusement park rides beyond, has become an essential part of New York legend. Although open (and visited) year-round, the beach really heats up in summer, when it can feel like the entire population of New York is out sunning and swimming. In winter, you'll see Russian, Eastern European, and Central Asian inhabitants of neighboring Brighton Beach strolling the boardwalk in their Sunday best. Moreover, the annual Polar Bear Plunge on January 1 sees thousands of revelers greet the new year by diving into the frigid waters of the Atlantic. Run by the Coney Island Polar Bear Club ( www.polarbearclub.org), a winter bathing club founded in 1903, it's free and open to everyone as long as they've registered on the website—although donations are highly encouraged at registration, to benefit local nonprofits and the community. Amenities: toilets; food and drink. Best for: swimming; people-watching.

The museum, housed in two 1932 hangars, is a tribute to Long Island's reputation as the "cradle of aviation." Displays here include a 1929 Brunner Winkle Bird, a biplane; a 1938 Grumman G-21 Goose, originally intended for civilian use; a Republic P-47 Thunderbolt, and a Grumman F6F Hellcat, both World War II fighter planes; a supersonic F-14 Tomcat, a strike fighter in service today; and one of only three existing original Apollo lunar modules, as well as dozens of other planes. Special exhibits have focused on space-theme toys and the Wright brothers. The museum encompasses the Leroy R. & Rose W. Grumman IMAX Dome Theater and a restaurant, the Red Planet Café.