In a city as bustling as NYC, it seems like there’s always a million things going on all the time! From Broadway shows to art exhibitions to concerts, there’s no doubt why we’re the “city that never sleeps.” But what about things to do in NYC with kids? There are so many family-friendly things to do in the city, it was hard to narrow them down into a list! Nonetheless, whether you’re visiting NYC and need some kid-friendly ideas, or you’ve lived here all your life and want to spend a fun day with your children, we’ve got some options of things to do with kids in NYC!
1. Spend a day with a furry friend at an NYC zoo
With spring arriving next week, that means warm weather is coming, and there’s never been a better time to spend it at one of New York’s famous zoos! Spend hours on end with your children while you check out all the wildlife there is to offer, from sea lions to Andean bears. Check out all of NYC’s zoos here!
🦍 Buy tickets to the world famous Bronx Zoo here!
🐘 Buy tickets to the Central Park Zoo here!
2. Have tiny meet tiny at Small is Beautiful
Museums and art exhibitions are a great way to let your child’s imagination explore, and there’s no better place to do that than Small is Beautiful! Here, your kids will be able to get face to face with miniature artwork that’s a little more scalable for them! From a tiny field of mushrooms to intricate carvings into pencil tips, this kid-friendly exhibition will open your children’s mind to the creative side! Plus, there are discounted children tickets for ages 6-12.
🍄 Buy your tickets to Small is Beautiful here!
3. Stroll through Central Park
Central Park is one of the most popularly explored urban parks, so we can’t talk about things to do with kids in NYC without mentioning our gem of a park. Of course you can bring them here for a picnic, game of catch, or whatever you fancy, but they also have kid-friendly attractions scattered throughout, like a carousel near the Dairy, as well as the miniature Belvedere Castle! Go now to check out the cherry blossoms too!
🌳 Central Park
4. Get up close and personal at the Museum of Digital Experiences
This family-friendly outing in Brooklyn is the first all-digital museum in New York! With 14 unique digital art installations from around the world, this exhibition invites children and adults alike to explore the crossover between technology and creativity. Take pictures as a family, ward off emojis in an interactive way, and do so much more! It’s just waiting to be explored!
✨ Buy your tickets to The Museum of Digital Experiences!
5. Explore the Brooklyn Children’s Museum
Believe it or not, the Brooklyn Children’s Museum was founded as the world’s very first children’s museum back in 1899! With a mission to “create experiences that ignite curiosity, celebrate identity and cultivate joyful learning” among children and middle schoolers, there are so many exhibits, programs, movies, and events always going on here! Take a look at exhibits like World Brooklyn, where children can play in kid-sized shops based on local Brooklyn businesses, or even Neighborhood Nature, which explores life sciences, the natural world, and live animals! Learn more and plan your visit here.
🧒 145 Brooklyn Ave, Brooklyn
6. Play at the Children’s Museum of Manhattan
Welcoming over 350,000 visitors a year, the Children’s Museum of Manhattan is an Upper West Side hub for children to “grow and develop into their best selves.” There’s tons of exhibitions to check out, including a Nickelodeon sponsored Adventures With Dora and Diego activation, as well as a PlayWorks™ space that allows kids to build their physical, social, math, art, science, literacy and problem-solving abilities! Check out what’s happening at CMOM and plan your visit here.
🛝 212 W 83rd St
7. Sail to the Statue of Liberty
Whether you’re a tourist or a local, visiting Lady Liberty is never a bad idea with your kid. Not only is it a fun thing to do with your kid, but it’s a memory that will last a lifetime! Take the ferry, snap pictures, and get up close and personal with one of NYC’s most famous landmarks! Plus, there’s audio tours for kids, a museum, and they can even climb up to the crown if they’re above four feet tall.
🗽 Statue of Liberty, Liberty Island
8. Dive into an NYC aquarium
Similar to zoos, NYC’s aquariums are a great way to spend a day with children, and you can even do it if the weather doesn’t cooperate! Peek into different marine life featuring penguins, sharks, and exotic fish at the various aquariums around the city. Many, like the New York Aquarium offer sea lion shows, while others offer unique fish breeds and touch tanks. Check out the full list here.
9. Ride rollercoasters at Nickelodeon Universe Theme Park
No matter the age of your kids, you’re sure to find something fun to do at Nickelodeon Universe Theme Park. It’s a little outside of NYC in East Rutherford, NJ but it’s definitely worth the trip! They have rides that may homage to famous characters like Timmy Turner and Spongebob, so you know it’ll be a good time. Plus, the American Dream Mall where the park is located also has tons of other kid-friendly attractions, like a mirror maze, ice rink and more!
🎢 Read more about Nickelodeon Universe Theme Park here.
🪞 Buy tickets to American Dream’s Mirror Maze here!
⛸️ Buy tickets to American Dream’s The Rink here!
📍 1 American Dream Wy, East Rutherford, NJ
10. Go building at LEGOLAND® New York Resort
This LEGO takeover is also a little outside of New York City, but it’s a great day trip to make with your children! There is quite literally so much to do here, it can even be overwhelming! You and your kids can ride rides and attractions, do meet and greets with LEGO characters, watch LEGO movies, shop, eat, and so much more! Check out everything that’s going on at LEGOLAND® here.
🧱 1 Legoland Blvd, Goshen, NY
11. Dive into the past at the American Museum of Natural History
There really is so much education to be had at museums, and the American Museum of Natural History is one of the best for kids. The things you’ll find in here range from the largest collection of pre-historic dinosaurs to the Discovery Room for kids age 5-12, to even the Hayden Planetarium! There’s also a wide span of children, teenage, and family science programs constantly taking place! Check out everything the museum has to offer here.
🦖 200 Central Park West
12. Seek thrill at Coney Island
Although it’s a little tougher in the colder months, there’s so much fun to be had at Coney Island! It’s one of our favorite things to do in NYC with kids because it’s packed full of amusement park rides, games, food, and fun! Take your kids to try to win a stuffed animal, or enjoy the many attractions (like the famous Wonder Wheel) the parks have to offer! Or how about a Brooklyn Cyclones baseball games? Not to mention it’s right on the beach! So many ways to have family-friendly fun!
🎡 Coney Island
13. Get active at Chelsea Piers
If your child is into sports (or you want them to be into sports), you have to check out Chelsea Piers. Their 100,000+ square foot territory on the west side of the city is a kids’ dream and a great way to keep them in tip-top shape! This place has everything thing a child could imagine, from an ice rink to a swimming pool to a bowling alley to rock climbing! Seriously, there’s just about everything you can think of. Check out everything that’s happening here.
🤸 62 Chelsea Piers
14. Visit Brooklyn Bridge Park
Take your kids walking over the iconic Brooklyn Bridge to get some fresh air and some picturesque NYC skyline views! Don’t forget to check out Slide Mountain, the vintage carousel at Empire Fulton Ferry or the chance to go roller skating at Pier 2. Or maybe one of their plentiful playgrounds will pass the time? Maybe even a summer movie in the park? Whatever strikes your interest, this is always a great visit with kids.
🌉 334 Furman St, Brooklyn
15-17. Go toy shopping at iconic NYC stores
Are you and your kids ready to shop until you drop? While there’s so many place to go shopping in NYC, we suggest stopping by some of the big kid-friendly stores you can only find in select places, like New York. We’re talking the mystical Harry Potter store, the LEGO store, and the iconic Fao Schwarz store in Rockefeller Plaza. Let your kids pick out something memorable and take a souvenir home from NYC.
🧙 935 Broadway (Harry Potter)
🧱 Rockefeller Center (LEGO Store)
🧸 30 Rockefeller Plaza (Fao Schwarz)
18. Ride the Roosevelt Island Tram
Are you looking for a low effort way to grab some skyline views with your children? Entrust in the Roosevelt Island Tram that offers gorgeous views and a fun ride to and from the island for the little ones. You can pick it up on the Upper East Side on E 59th and 2nd Ave every 7-15 minutes. Once you get to the island, you can explore Southpoint Park next to the river, North Point Lighthouse, and the Franklin D Roosevelt Four Freedoms Park.
🚠 E 59th St & 2nd Ave
19. Frolic around at the Museum of Ice Cream
Take a giant scoop of fun at the Museum of Ice Cream with you and your kids! Let them run rampant through the pink ice cream-themed paradise while they slurp up delicious flavors and take cute pictures. Have them hop into a giant swimming pool of sprinkles and slide down a three-story indoor slide, all in a days work! Oh, and don’t forget about a tasty treat as a reward. The museum is located at 558 Broadway in SoHo.
🍦 Buy your tickets to the Museum of Ice Cream here!
20. NYC Observation Decks
What better way to make a memory then grabbing a 360 degree view of our favorite city with your kids? Climb to one some of the highest heights with your kids to experience something like never before. Of course you have the Edge, One World Observatory, the Empire State Building, and so many more. Usually these experiences offer discounted children tickets as well! Check out all of the great observatories here.
21. Smell the flowers at Children’s Adventure Garden
While the Orchid Show continues to be the star of the show at the New York Botanical Garden, take your kids to check that out alongside the Children’s Adventure Garden! This place allows children to invent their own plants in “Plant Part Paradise” as well as dash through “Beth’s Maze,” plus many more activities! This is the perfect springtime way for kids to explore the wonders of science and nature! Learn more about the Children’s Adventure Garden here.
🌼 Buy tickets to the New York Botanical Garden here!
22. Catch a fly ball at Yankee Stadium
Take ’em out to the ball game! Buy ’em some peanuts and cracker jacks. There’s no family-friendly bonding experience quite like hitting up a New York Yankees game. You can check out the action, much on some yummy stadium food, and maybe even run the bases after the game! With the season about to start up, there’s still time to grab tickets. Or hit a stadium tour which is equally as fun.
⚾ E 161st St & River Avenue
23. Ice Skating
There’s still time for you and kids to go ice skating before the season is over! Hit up one of NYC’s rinks like Wollman Rink in Central Park or LeFrack Center in Brooklyn to get some glides and strides in with your children! Most places also offer rentals as well so no need to worry about that! Check out all of the rinks here.
24. Learn about history at South Street Seaport Museum
New York’s rich history as a world port for global trading, goods, labor, and cultures is fully on display at the South Street Seaport Museum. Have your children explore the often unspoken historical side of the city through different exhibits that discuss topics like different ocean liners and even a maritime-themed discovery room featuring a live hermit crab. Check out what’s on here!
🚢 12 Fulton St
25. Have a laugh at The Museum of Failure
No invention is ever really dumb! At least that’s the message at this hilarious new museum. Teach your child to expand their creativity and imagination to all new heights at this brand new opening in Industry City. With everything from Colgate Beef Lasagna to electronic robot gloves, this exhibit of inventions that flopped will teach your kids a good lesson of how to “learn through our blunders.”