Five Tips for Summer Fun in New York City with Kids

As Summer draws nearer for those of us in the Southern Hemisphere, Winter is closing in for our friends in the North. Summer in New York City with kids is probably far from many peoples’ minds but I’m started to put together a plan for what our travel plans for 2013 will look like. Those plans might include a week or so in the Big Apple in late May or early June. Here are five tips from 30Traveler on how to have summer with in New York City with kids.

1. Sublet an apartment near one of Brooklyn’s parks (e.g., Prospect Park or Fort Greene Park). It’s very common for New Yorkers to sublet their apartments, especially during summer. Use Craigslist if you don’t have any connections. If you do know New Yorkers, ask them to put out a Facebook blast to their network.

New York City Public Pool

2. Use the NYC public swimming pools. NYC in summer is HOT. You’ll need to cool off. There is a beautiful public pool at the North end of Central Park. Be aware that they strictly enforce weird rules. You must bring a lock, you can’t bring anything poolside, swimsuits need to be lined, and non-swimmers have to wear only white poolside. Check the NYC parks department website for locations. Pools are only open for the summer, 11-3pm and 4-7pm each day. The Parks Department lists all pool locations.

View of Manhattan from Governor’s Island

Governor’s Island

3. If your child is overwhelmed by Manhattan and needs a break, take the free 7 minute ferry to car-less Governors Island. It’s awesome but only open weekends. If you have access to bicycles, you can bring them on the ferry free and bike around.

4. If you’re feeling lucky, enter the lottery to get to family camp in Central Park (tents supplied). You can only enter on one specific day.

Clowns Eating Lunch in Times Square

Elmo in Times Square

5. The sidewalks in NYC are crowded. Nowhere is this worse than around Times Square. However, a section of Broadway has been turned into a giant seating area where you can sit and watch the world go by. (It’s still really busy). If your little one loves Elmo as much as Reuben of Flashpacker Family, there are dozens of Elmos and other characters dressed up available for pictures around Times Square. Bryant Park is only a few minutes walk from Times Square, so you can head there or to Central Park to decompress after the frenzy of Times Square. For the cleanest toilet option near Times Square, sneak upstairs at the Marriott Marquis between 45th and 46th st, just West of Broadway.

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About the Author

30traveler is a blog and podcast about travel beyond backpacking. 30 Traveler covers topics like slow travel, vegan & vegetarian travel and budget travel as well as travel psychology. You can follow 30 Traveler on Twitter or Facebook.

Got any other tips for a Summer visit to New York City with kids? I’d love to hear them!