Family Travel

What do the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, Brooklyn Children's Museum, Brooklyn Museum, Brooklyn Public Library, Prospect Park and the Prospect Park Zoo all have in common? They're wonderful NYC cultural institutions that you almost feel guilty for not going to more often (or ever). You know they're great, they're just a little...inconvenient.

But now, they all have something else in common too...they're all stops on the brand new FREE Heart of Brooklyn cultural shuttle. The Heart of Brooklyn Culture Shuttle is a free hop-on hop off service running three different programs: Read more »

The Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum just opened up again this weekend after a five year renovation. A lifelong New Yorker, I admit I had never been to the Intrepid before. Roaming around a big ship and looking at airplanes had never appealed to me. But since they took the trouble to redo it, and I now have a five year old son, I figured it was worth going to check it out and I'm glad we did.

The people at the Intrepid Museum obviously took families into consideration in their planning because they've created a whole new kid-friendly section called the Exploreum. In the Exploreum kids play their way through exhibits that teach them about the inner workings of the ship and life on the ship, plus the Intrepid's role in the Space program. Read more »

Riding the subway is the fastest, easiest way to get from point A to point B in NYC. And it's a great way to travel with kids. But if you're not 100% familiar with the subway system, are traveling with a stroller, or hit schedule changes, it can really stink. We've rounded up the best online resources to make it easier to get around NYC by subway, especially with kids.

There are now a few sites that give accurate subway directions. Just type in your starting and ending addresses and they will tell you the best routes. Read more »

You don't need to burn a lot of dough or fossil fuels (meaning even more dough) to have a great Labor Day Weekend. We've got 10 fun family activities that you can enjoy for cheap or even free.

Labor Day Weekend for me is all about having one last hurrah for summer, so these activities all focus on getting outside, either with an easy day trip from New York or doing something in the city that makes you feel like you're not. This isn't like most of my free and cheap lists. Some of these activities cost a bit of cash, but I figure, if I'm staying in the city or skipping the hotel, it's worth it to pay a little bit to feel like I'm getting some vacationing in.

Here's 10 ideas that will take you away, without getting too carried away: Read more »

In my post about the farms you can visit in Westchester, I mentioned that it is easy to get to Philipsburg Manor and Stone Barn Farms without a car, using public transportation. I thought it would be cool to write about some of the other day tips you can take from NYC using public transportation. There's really no reason to be stuck in the city just because you're carless (or want to save your gas money on, say, the down payment on an apartment). There are plenty of fun family day trips that can be easily accessed using Metro-North trains or busses.

The MTA actually has an entire section of their website dedicated to what they so romantically dub MTA Getaways . You've probably seen this advertised in the subway, but I know I never really looked into it before. Many of the trips you could do any time, but the MTA has also worked with local tours and groups to create specific event packages.

Dutchess County Fair
For instance, this weekend you could take Metro North up to the Dutchess County Fair and buy a discounted ticket that includes your train ticket and admission to the fair. The package costs about $30 per adult (children get in free to the fair and are only $1.50 RT on the train). I figure this out at about a $7 discount. Keep in mind that once you take Metro North to Poughkeepsie you have to take a one hour connecting bus ride to the fair grounds for a total travel time of almost 3 hours, so I don't know if I would recommend this unless you did it as an overnighter.

But here are some other ones that are definitely worth a try: Read more »

For many, Long Island conjures up images of beaches, malls and traffic and not much else.  But, Long Island is filled with hidden gems that have nothing to do with shopping or the sea (unfortunately traffic is always possible). Once a farming community, you can still find a lot of family farms throughout the Island and these days many have added pick-your-own fields, petting zoos, gourmet fresh markets, garden centers and kid activities. Each farm maintains its personal flavor, here are a few that are really worth the drive.

If you are looking to sink your hands into the soil or spend a day gorging on fruit, head to one of Long Islands many pick-your-own farms Read more »

Are you raising a city kid who thinks that milk comes in a carton and apples are from the bodega?  On second thought, we all know New York City kids are way too precocious for that but I would bet that most of your kids feel more comfortable on a subway than they do on a farm.  And, even though they "know" where milk comes from, have they ever actually milked a cow?  

If you are looking for a way to get your kids to connect more to the food on their plate, try taking them to one of New York State's county fairs.  County fairs are filled with animals, award winning vegetables and lots of farm demonstrations. With county fairs every day of the week throughout New York State for all of July and August if you are planning on heading out of the city you should check these listings to see if you can bring Old Macdonald to life for your little one. Read more »

We love NYC in the summer, there is so much to do and it's less crowded. But, its also great to get out of town to spend some time in nature, swim in the ocean and check out new places. For all of July and August, in addition to our regular posts, we will be posting suggestions for fun day and weekend trips that you can take with kids. Here are a few quick suggestions to get you started. Any of these ideas would be great for something to do with the kids this Fourth of July Weekend. Read more »

I know when we've hit upon a good vacation spot when my husband starts to question why we live in NYC. It only took a few hours in New Orleans for him to start with the following line of questioning - Why do we live in NYC again? Do you realize what kind of house we could live in here if we sold our 5th floor walk-up? Usually I rebuff all this with reminders of how NYC is the only cool place in the country. But New Orleans left me with little response, I have to admit, it's got more culture and soul than even my beloved NYC.

While I don't think we are moving any time soon, we do want to go back for Mardi Gras which our friends have convinced us is a great event for kids. Though you need to know what to avoid, ie the boob flashing streets of the French Quarter and where to hang with kids, they suggest St. Charles Ave where families set up in one spot and watch the procession pass. And of course, the accumulation of beads is enough to entertain most kids for a long time.

But, N.O. is an amazing place to visit any time of year Read more »

The travel industry is notoriously ridden with a lot of "guides" that are actually just advertorials. But family bloggers and parent writers are stepping up to give parents traveling with kids real information based on their personal experiences. We've gathered together the top genuine resources for family travel from blogs to books.

DeliciousBaby
An excellent site I have found is DeliciousBaby. Debbie blogs about traveling with her two small children in the US, Canada and Europe, sharing their favorite destinations, kid-friendly restaurants, plus her site has lots of great family travel tips to make traveling with kids a little easier. Read more »