weekend in NYC

[Anonymous]

Hi everyone -
I am thinking of taking a short weekend trip up to NYC with my 8 year old son. I've never really been (maybe when I was younger, but not for a while) and am looking for the touristy things to do with him (empire state building, central park, maybe the Trump towers, the zoo, maybe radio city music hall?...)

When I started looking at hotels, it was hard for me to figure out where to stay (meaning which neighborhoods/areas - not the actual hotels) that would be relatively convenient for all these tourist places since I don't really know 1.) what exactly we'll end up doing/seeing and 2.) where those places are.

I googled "hotels NYC" and got places that said SoHo, Upper East Side, Manhattan something-or-other.....

So, I'm hoping those of you travelers or ex-New Yorkers may be able to help me?

Also, when I looked for hotels I saw prices for as cheap as low $200s to as high as $800s per night. If you can't tell by my lack of traveling, we're not real wealthy so I'd like to stay in the lower range, if that makes a difference in locations.

Any suggestions of what neighborhoods (or how I can narrow my hotel search) to look for that would be decent (or even any specific hotels you are aware of)?

Any other touristy attractions that you think we'd have fun doing? I'd really like my son (and me) to experience NYC at least once and get the most out of it.

Thanks everyone

[Anonymous]

Honestly, as long as you are close to the subway, you'll be fine. I would use hotwire and find a room- I always get them around $150!

Make sure you hit Times Square- my 8 yo lives for the M&M store.

If you are going to Times Square, Top of the Rock might be easier (and cheaper) than the Empire State building.

If you are low on money, I like driving up Saturday morning to the Staten Island Ferry. If you park there, it is $8 through Sunday night and you can take the FREE ferry into the city that has an awesome view of the Statue of Liberty. Just go up to the top deck and he will love it and you will love the pictures. They drop you off right at the bottom on Manhattan and there are lots of subways right there.

Have the best time! He will be awed by everything so don't worry about doing too much.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Honestly, as long as you are close to the subway, you'll be fine. I would use hotwire and find a room- I always get them around $150!

Make sure you hit Times Square- my 8 yo lives for the M&M store.

If you are going to Times Square, Top of the Rock might be easier (and cheaper) than the Empire State building.

If you are low on money, I like driving up Saturday morning to the Staten Island Ferry. If you park there, it is $8 through Sunday night and you can take the FREE ferry into the city that has an awesome view of the Statue of Liberty. Just go up to the top deck and he will love it and you will love the pictures. They drop you off right at the bottom on Manhattan and there are lots of subways right there.

Have the best time! He will be awed by everything so don't worry about doing too much.

NP. That is an AWESOME urban foraging idea. I lived in NYC for quite a while and have never considered the SI ferry idea! You just made my day

[Anonymous]

A couple of top-down pointers:

NYC, like DC, is a walking town. Expect him, and you, to be exhausted. Plan accordingly.

I will offer activity ideas, then hotel ideas:

The High Line - it is the elevated train tracks, which stood forever, falling apart. They were developed into a park - an awesome perspective on the city. Free.

Empire State Building - I suggest going late at night, like, after midnight, and only if the weather and sky are clear. The city looks like a bed of jewels then. Maybe $15 per person?

The water: think the Hudson River(west side of Manhattan) and the Battery-southern part. That will get you to see the Statue of Liberty, which you can do. That also gets you close to the NYSE and Wall Street. The NYSE was free last I remember. You can also jump on the Circle Line for a cruise around NYC. I would do this if it was brutally hot and or the weather is nice. Also, the WTC museum/memorial is there. You can also see the Intrepid, which is the big air-craft carrier.

Time Warner Center: the southwest corner of Central Park. A great space, some very cool shops, ie the Samsung Experience.

Rockefeller Center: it will be packed, but, it is still worth a look. Try and hit these places either early in the morning, or, late at night.

Pick a very good restaurant to go to - avoid any and all chains; you can eat at those here.

Hotel: I suggest using Priceline. Avoid the Upper East and Upper West sides - mostly residential. Avoid mid-town, which is always a zoo.

[Anonymous]

I was the PP - for a touristy thing, go to the top of the Marriott - go there for a drink and a snack only. The food sucks, but, it spins, and offers another great view of the city.

[Anonymous]

We go to NYC frequently. For an 8 year old, I recommend the following:

1. Statue of Liberty & Ellis Island visit. Airport level security, but what a super time!

2. Walk across the Brooklyn Bridge.

3. Eat at the original Shake Shack in Madison Square Park. Yes, there you can have SS here, but the original location is a lot of fun and (fast forward to #4)

4. You can get gelato at Eataly for dessert. Eataly is very close to a way big fun Lego Store.

5. See a show. The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe has been playing off Broadway for a million years. It is a low key show and the actors meet and greet the audience afterward.

6. Yankees or Mets game if you are there during baseball season.

7. If you are Catholic, mass at St. Patrick's Cathedral.

8. The Met and/or MoMA. MoMA has a new location which is really neat.

9. Central Park. Beatles fans? Strawberry Fields. Children's literature fans? Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan, etc. sculptures

Where to stay? I rely heavily on the Travelzoo website for NYC hotels. They often have great prices. One trip, I completely lucked out and got 2 rooms for $125/night each at the Hyatt Grand Central.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Hi everyone -
I am thinking of taking a short weekend trip up to NYC with my 8 year old son. I've never really been (maybe when I was younger, but not for a while) and am looking for the touristy things to do with him (empire state building, central park, maybe the Trump towers, the zoo, maybe radio city music hall?...)

When I started looking at hotels, it was hard for me to figure out where to stay (meaning which neighborhoods/areas - not the actual hotels) that would be relatively convenient for all these tourist places since I don't really know 1.) what exactly we'll end up doing/seeing and 2.) where those places are.

I googled "hotels NYC" and got places that said SoHo, Upper East Side, Manhattan something-or-other.....

So, I'm hoping those of you travelers or ex-New Yorkers may be able to help me?

Also, when I looked for hotels I saw prices for as cheap as low $200s to as high as $800s per night. If you can't tell by my lack of traveling, we're not real wealthy so I'd like to stay in the lower range, if that makes a difference in locations.

Any suggestions of what neighborhoods (or how I can narrow my hotel search) to look for that would be decent (or even any specific hotels you are aware of)?

Any other touristy attractions that you think we'd have fun doing? I'd really like my son (and me) to experience NYC at least once and get the most out of it.

Thanks everyone

An 8 year old might enjoy hearing a story in the Park. The Hans Christian Anderson Storytelling Sciety does it in Central Park on weekends.

[Anonymous]

Museum of Natural History! Dinosaurs!

[Anonymous]

OP here. These are all such great ideas and great feedback. Thank you SO much. just reading all these I'm getting excited about going.

Thanks for the websites for hotels too.

[Anonymous]

There are a bunch of other posts on here too that would be worth looking at.

Agree about Staten Island Ferry, taking the subway every where, seeing at least one show (off-Broadway is good too), Brooklyn Bridge, Brooklyn Transit Museum.

[Anonymous]

If you can squeeze it into your budget, try the Beast speedboat trip to the Statue of Liberty and back. An eight year old boy would love that!

[Anonymous]

I agree with all these suggestions. A few additional ones:

If you have a clear day, try to hit one of the building viewing platforms (i.e., empire state building, one WTC, top of the rock) at dusk. Watching the sun set and all the buildings light up is pretty amazing and something you cannot really do here in DC. Another alternative is to take the Staten Island Ferry out and back at dusk. This will give you a great view of lower Manhattan as the city lights up.

Look into Airbnb for lodging. With luck, you should be able to get a 1 br apartment for under $200 / night. This will allow you not eat out for every meal, which might save you some $. I would look somewhere near the Greenwich Village, SoHo, Chelsea, etc.

I would not walk across the Brooklyn Bridge with an 8 year old. The views of Manhattan are kind of cool but there's not a whole lot of interest on the bridge and when you get to Brooklyn you're sort of in no man's land. Highline is much better for this sort of activity.

If you want to see art without paying the museum entrance fees, hit up the galleries in Chelsea. There are numerous galleries and almost all of them are free to the public. Might be good for an 8 year old because you could spend an hour and go to one or two without dropping $50 to go to MOMA or the Whitney. Chelsea market is also cool.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Honestly, as long as you are close to the subway, you'll be fine. I would use hotwire and find a room- I always get them around $150!

Make sure you hit Times Square- my 8 yo lives for the M&M store.

If you are going to Times Square, Top of the Rock might be easier (and cheaper) than the Empire State building.

If you are low on money, I like driving up Saturday morning to the Staten Island Ferry. If you park there, it is $8 through Sunday night and you can take the FREE ferry into the city that has an awesome view of the Statue of Liberty. Just go up to the top deck and he will love it and you will love the pictures. They drop you off right at the bottom on Manhattan and there are lots of subways right there.

Have the best time! He will be awed by everything so don't worry about doing too much.

NP. That is an AWESOME urban foraging idea. I lived in NYC for quite a while and have never considered the SI ferry idea! You just made my day

It's been in every guidebook for about 50 years.

[Anonymous]

We like to stay at the Hilton Midtown on Ave of the Americas between 53rd and 54th. It's huge, so there's a Starbucks and a modestly priced cafe and always a line of cabs out front. But if you're game for the subway it's right in a nexus of stops for several different lines. You can walk to Central Park, Radio City, Rockefeller Center, MoMA. There are also a lot of cheap eat options, including what was at one time the most popular food truck, Halal Guys, right on the corner.

I like the quintessential stuff that everyone has mentioned, especially the Circle Line, but would add that if you're on a budget then spend some time in Lower Manhattan, where you can still get a feel for the old, old city, see City Hall, Wall Street and get a cheap delicious meal in Little Italy or Chinatown.

Download the Transit app for your phone. ( http://transitapp.com/ ) I find it invaluable, because no matter where you are you can enter a destination and it will provide a map, give you every transportation option for getting there, provide a walking map to the nearest stops, tell you how long before the bus or train will arrive and how long it will take to get there. Invaluable and it works in more than 100 cities around the world.

[Anonymous]

Op The Lucerne Hotel on West 79th is good - its family friendly, a walk to the Nat History Museum, the Kids Museum, the metro station and the park.