A Day in The Big Apple with Kids - Grace, Giggles and Naptime

Happy February, friends! Spring is on the horizon and I know many of you are itching to start planning spring break trips and summer vacations. And speaking of summer travel, it got me thinking – I realized I never shared our day in NYC last summer! Considering planning a trip to New York City with kids? Read on for a one-day itinerary of family fun in the Big Apple.

We had the absolute BEST day exploring NYC with these two! From Central Park to Times Square to Battery Park, we crammed a ton into our day. And the most shocking part?! No one whined and not a single tear was shed. That, my friends, is a NY miracle! But don’t ask me to share my secret because I honestly don’t know how that happened with a 4 & 6 year old who walked alllll over the city! Who knew these Disney kids were city kids, after all?! My only guess is that our park days at Disney adequately prepared them for the hustle & bustle of the big city!

American Museum of Natural History

Our day started off with a morning at the American Museum of Natural History. Since we had quite a bit planned for our day in the city, we made sure we knew ahead of time which areas of the museum we wanted to see most. For our family, the dinosaurs were our top priority! The museum is incredibly large and you could easily spend an entire day exploring and still not see everything. Having a game plan going into the museum allowed us to see everything we wanted to see in just under 2 hours.

The museum is open daily from 10 AM to 5:45 PM. Tickets are available on-site or online. We opted to purchase our tickets online before we arrived, which allowed us to skip the long admission line. I definitely recommend purchasing your tickets in advance – especially when visiting with kids!

Tip: Your admission ticket is valid all day, which means you can leave for an off-site lunch and come back later. There are many food trucks that line the streets just outside of the museum entrance; however, we opted to have lunch at Shake Shack just around the corner.

Central Park

After lunch we headed over to Central Park. For those who may not be familiar with Manhattan, Central Park is actually located directly across the street from the museum, which made it the ideal next stop of our day.

We took our time strolling through the Park to take in the sights. The kids enjoyed spotting all of the wildlife. And of course we had to stop for an ice cream break, too, which was undoubtedly the highlight of their afternoon.

Times Square

Next, it was time to hit up Times Square! Since we had left our car in a parking garage near the museum (which was way-too-many NYC blocks away) we opted to catch an Uber from Central Park to Times Square. Which, by the way, was the best decision of the day! The kids got a kick out of riding in a “taxi” and it was a welcome break for our tired feet.

And after a quick wardrobe change, we became the ultimate NYC tourists in our I love NY shirts!

Tip: Wait until you get to Times Square to buy these iconic shirts. There are dozens of little shops that sell them – they come in all sizes (& colors) and are under $10!

In Times Square we visited the M&M’s Store and stopped for an early dinner at Chick-fil-A before ending up at the Disney Store.

Minus that $5 ice cream treat in Central Park, I’m pretty sure Times Square was their favorite part of our day in NYC. London especially loved all of the flashing lights & signs! You decide, but I think she was totally in her element here!

Battery Park

We couldn’t end our day without a quick stop at Battery Park to check out the Statue of Liberty. This little history buff could barely contain his excitement! He had been asking to see the Statue of Liberty all summer, so when we finally got to see her in person he was ecstatic!

Sadly, this was our last stop of the day, but it was a great ending to our day in the Big Apple. If it weren’t for our early wake up call the next day (we were headed out to the Hamptons for the 4th of July), we would definitely have gone to see a Broadway show with the kids (Aladdin or The Lion King were at the top of our list)!

My Biggest Advice for New York City with Kids?

Depending upon how long you are planning to stay, pick no more than 3-5 activities for each day in the city. Try your best to plan ahead (as much as possible) and group activities/tourist attractions together by neighborhood to avoid zigzagging all over town.

Having spent a very full day in the city with two kids in tow, I’m here to tell you that New York City with kids is not only possible, but actually a lot of FUN!