Family Travel

Kids of all ages love New York - it's a city full of dinosaurs, parks, ships, the world's greatest toy stores, ballerinas, space shows, tigers, speedboat rides, circuses, great stuff to eat, hands-on museums, and so much more. Check out the Family Fun itinerary for specific suggestions or simply type in "kids" in any search box on any page. If your kids are teens, get some ideas for what they might be interested in at The Teen Scene. Read about a parent's experience exploring NYC with a 7, 9, and 12 year old. Take a NYC video tour of famous sights and exciting places to visit during your stay. See tips for planning a family trip from the author of The Grownup's Guide. If you're visiting during the winter holidays, see tips from this author on visiting NYC with kids during the holidays.

NYC is family-friendly. If you haven't been here in awhile, you'll be surprised by how many children are visiting and having the time of their lives. New York is safer (the safest large city in the U.S., according to the latest F.B.I. crime statistics) and friendlier than ever. We have several children's museums, zoos, an aquarium, and parks in all five boroughs. You can rent bikes, rowboats, and kayaks, go ice-skating and swimming - yes, NYC has beaches and pools!

Books:

Miffy Loves New York City!

International bunny sensation, Miffy, is the focus of a new full-color educational children’s picture book, Miffy Loves New York City! featuring the beloved children’s character on her great adventure in New York City. "Miffy Loves NYC" features Miffy and her parents on vacation in New York City visiting 30 prominent, family-friendly New York City landmarks. The book, which also includes tourism information on the City for families to use as a guide during their travels, is now available in hardcover for $9.99 at bookstores throughout the nation.

Melanie in Manhattan

Melanie Martin is an excellent Big Apple tour guide as well as "an appealing young heroine" (Vanity Fair). Perfect for kids ages 8 to 12, Melanie in Manhattan will leave your children feeling as though they too are crossing the Brooklyn Bridge, going up the Empire State Building, seeing a Broadway show, dining in Chinatown, taking the subway, hearing gospel in Harlem, visiting zoos and parks, and taking in the Met, the Frick, the Hispanic Society of America, and the Queens Museum of Art. This diary-novel is the fourth in a series about a family of globetrotters who travel to Italy, Holland, and Spain, and who finally stay home and discover their own wonderful city. Read author Carol Weston's tips on family travel:

» How to Get Kids Excited about Art Museums

» How to Take Little Bites of the Big Apple

Taking the Kids:

You’re headed for the Big Apple - now what? Grab The Kid’s Guide to New York City and turn your family vacation into a mega-fun adventure. Be prepared for new experiences, different cultures, good food, and great shopping. You might even learn something.

Getting Around

New York is a great city to explore on foot - a real walker's paradise, so make sure everyone's wearing comfortable shoes. Our public transportation system is safe, easy to use, and inexpensive: only $2 per ride, no matter how far you travel, and kids under 6 ride free. You can hop on and off subways and buses as many times as you'd like with Unlimited MetroCards: A 1-Day Fun Pass is $7; a 7-Day MetroCard is $21. Our bright yellow taxis are another way to go - the fare is per cab, not per person, an excellent deal for a family (four passengers allowed per taxi). Other fun options for getting around include double decker hop-on hop-off sightseeing buses and harbor sightseeing cruises or speedboat rides.

Fun in Midtown

ESPN Zone has lots of sports-themed video and participant games; LaZer Park features laser tag and the exciting Battletech® virtual reality ride simulator; Madame Tussauds New York has more than 200 wax figures of everyone from Madonna to Muhammad Ali. Mementos of your visit are essential. The gifts shops in museums are excellent, and all kids will insist on exploring the legendary FAO Schwarz on Fifth Avenue and Toys 'R' Us in Times Square, where there's an indoor Ferris wheel and both a life-size Barbie townhouse and model T-Rex that hisses and sways. For a food break, the Times Square area has tons of options including Planet Hollywood and Mars 2112. World-famous Broadway has great options for kids, including Disney's Beauty and the Beast, The Lion King, Stomp, and anything at the New Victory Theater, our town's first performing arts theater exclusively for youth and family audiences.

Learning About NYC's Fire and Police Departments

New York City Fire Museum Renovated 1904 firehouse features historic collection of the New York City Fire Department including uniforms, tools, and fire engines. Fire Zone Through a variety of hands-on exhibits, including a recreated firehouse, visitors are immersed in a unique experience where they become part of the fire-fighting team and learn they can play a major role in preventing fires. Official store on-site.

New York City Police Museum Learn how detectives look for clues; exhibits on NYC's notorious criminals, uniforms, and weapons; photo gallery.

Madame Tussauds Wax Museum

Ghosts of New York Walking Tours

The Empire State Building

Now Playing on Broadway

From revivals of classic plays to blockbuster new musicals, New York City theater offers something for everyone this season.

Go to Broadway.com for tickets, times, and information about content.

25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee
Circle in the Square Theatre
1633 Broadway
Six young people on the edge of puberty strive to become adults.

Avenue Q
Golden Theatre
252 West 45th Street
Singing puppets and their human neighbors tackle life's most vexing issues.

Beauty and the Beast
Lunt-Fontanne Theatre
205 West 46th Street
Based on the Academy Award-winning animated feature film, a Disney musical extravaganaza.

Butley
Booth Theatre
222 West 45th Street
The story of an English literature professor whose world is crumbling all around him.

Chicago
Ambassador Theatre
1633 Broadway
Kander and Ebb's satire of murder, greed, corruption, violence, exploitation, adultery, and treachery.

A Chorus Line
Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre
236 West 45th Street
Experience the joy, despair and triumph of 17 dancers as they audition for an 8-member Broadway chorus.

The Color Purple
Broadway Theatre
1681 Broadway
An inspiring family saga that tells the unforgettable story of a woman who through love finds strength to triumph.

The Drowsy Chaperone
Marquis Theatre
211 West 45th Street
From the crackle of a hi-fi, the uproariously funny musical magically bursts to life on stage.

Grey Gardens
Walter Kerr Theatre
219 West 48th Street
A show that brings to life both the delightfully eccentric aunt and the cousin of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis.

Hairspray
Neil Simon Theatre
250 West 52nd Street
Set in Baltimore in 1962, the story of plain-jane Tracy Turnblad, who trys to dance her way onto TV.

Heartbreak House
American Airlines Theatre
227 West 42nd Street
The play follows the unlikely romantic encounters that occur in an estate on the English countryside.

How the Grinch Stole Christmas
Hilton Theatre
213 West 42nd Street
Max the Dog is your narrator as the Grinch's fiendish plan to steal Christmas from the holiday-loving Whos unfolds.

Jersey Boys
August Wilson Theatre
245 West 52nd Street
Based on the life story of Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons that chronicles the lives of a group of boys.

Les Miserables
Broadhurst Theatre
235 West 44th Street
The epic story of Jean Valjean, a man in search of personal redemption, who is pursued by Inspector Javert.

The Lion King
New Amsterdam Theatre
214 West 42nd Street
The story of the epic adventures of a young lion cub named Simba as he struggles with growing up.

The Little Dog Laughed
Cort Theatre
138 West 48th Street
A deliciously biting farce about Hollywood's dirty little secrets.

Mamma Mia!
Winter Garden
1634 Broadway
A group of hit songs by the Swedish supergroup ABBA shaped around the story of a single mother.

Mary Poppins
New Amsterdam Theatre
214 W 42nd Street
The musical based on the stories by P.L. Travers and the Oscar-winning 1964 Walt Disney film.

Martin Short: Fame Becomes Me
Jacobs Theatre
242 West 45th Street
Mr. Short fills the stage with all the unforgettable characters you know and love, plus himself.

Monty Python's Spamalot
Shubert Theatre
225 West 44th Street
Musical version of the 1975 British Film Monty Python and the Holy Grail about the legendary tale of King Arthur.

Rent
Nederlander Theatre
208 West 41st Street
Rock musical retelling of the "La Boheme" story relocated to AIDS-era East Village, New York.

Tarzan
Richard Rodgers Theatre
226 West 46th Street
A shipwreck leaves an infant orphaned on the West African shore who is taken in by a gorilla tribe as part its family.

The Wedding Singer
Al Hirschfeld Theatre
302 West 45th Street
It's the 80's. Robbie Hart lives in his grandmother's basement in New Jersey and sings in a wedding band.

Wicked
Gershwin Theatre
222 West 51st Street
A revisionist look at an American icon of evil and how the Wicked Witch of the West came into being.

The Phantom of the Opera
Majestic Theatre
245 West 44th Street
A disfigured musical genius haunts the catacombs beneath the Paris Opera and exerts control over a soprano.

The Producers
St. James Theatre
246 West 44th Street
A theatrical producer and his accountant hatch a sure-fire scheme to make money.