We recently took a five-night family vacation to New York and I wanted to share all the fun things we did with you. This trip was inspired by my eight-year-old because of his love of Spiderman! He wanted to see the tall buildings, check out the Statue of Liberty, and eat hot dogs on the street – and we did it all!
✈️ Did you know I'm also a Travel Advisor? I'd love to help you plan a family or couples getaway - and I love helping with multigenerational vacations too! Find out more at susanelitetcagent.com. ✈️
Day One - Evening Arrival
We arrived into LaGuardia in the evening and hopped in an Uber to go to our hotel in Chelsea. (The Metro is easily accessible from LaGuardia, we just didn’t want to mess with it late in the evening with our luggage.) After a quick check-in, we headed out to find some dinner. It was 9:00 pm in New York, but it was 7:00 pm our time and we wanted to explore a bit.
We had plans to check out a Singapore Food Hall, but all the stalls were closing early, which was a huge bummer. Then we had hungry and tired children and were in the hot seat to find something else, and after a couple of other attempts (including a diner with a line around the block), we ended up at a different highly-rated diner that was still open. Then back to the hotel for some rest before a big next day!
Day Two – Statue of Liberty, Empire State Building & Dinner at Craft
For some reason, we planned one of the longest tourism days on our first day, and of course, there was record-breaking heat for April in New York (we thought we were avoiding that by going in the Spring!) So we were exhausted at the end of the day, but we had a lot of fun!
We started our day by grabbing bagels at Murray’s, a famous local bagel place. So many choices and so many schmears! They were delicious and a great start to our day.
Then we headed down to visit the Statue of Liberty. This experience is a LOT. Boarding the ferries takes a lot of time and isn’t shaded, and you’re so squished you feel like cattle. But the views from the ferry were fantastic and the kids were excited to get off and explore. We grabbed the free tour headsets once off the ferry and the kids were thrilled that there was a kid’s version of the tour. It kept them engaged and helped them learn a lot during our visit, they were even listening to tracks that weren’t about something in front of us, it was strange and wonderful.
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After walking through the outdoor areas for a bit we headed to the pedestal. We really wanted to go into the crown, but couldn’t get tickets, so we selected the pedestal instead. (Make these reservations as early as you can, they sell out quickly and are not available on the day of your visit.) After 215 steps (10 flights) of stairs we made it up to the pedestal. It’s a small space and gets pretty crowded, so it was a quick visit, but we enjoyed the nice breeze it offered while we were there. After descending all 215 stairs, we headed to the museum across the plaza. We picked up Jr. Ranger packets when we entered the museum, and the kids took some time figuring out the answers to the questions. We rushed them a bit because we wanted to get the next ferry to Ellis Island, but they were able to get the worksheets done and get their badges.
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Our rush to the ferry was not rewarded when we saw how many people were also in line. We had to wait for the second ferry, and it was the same as before – squished and sunny. Once on the ferry we realized everyone in our family was exhausted, and made the sad decision to skip the tour of Ellis Island. As much as I wanted to, it likely would have been a disaster. So we enjoyed the ferry ride back and hopped on the subway to our next destination.
Our next Spiderman destination was the Empire State Building. We had already decided not to take the elevator to the top, the cost to go to the top was shocking and the kids didn’t care about the view, they just wanted to see the building. So we found a great rooftop bar with spectacular views of the Empire State Building, and spent a few hours relaxing and soaking up the New York skyline. Then it was back to the hotel to rest and get ready for dinner at Craft.
Side note: Not all bars allow children in NYC, so check those details before you make plans! One of the rooftops we attempted didn’t allow kids!
We’ve been fans of Tom Colicchio since Top Chef started and were excited to enjoy dinner in one of his flagship restaurants. Our dinner there was delicious, but also pricey and for some reason incredibly hot (maybe they hadn’t turned on the air conditioning?) It was a good experience for the kids, and we left fairly satisfied with our experience.
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Day Three – 9/11 Memorial, Central Park & Dim Sum
The previous day we had stumbled upon a cute chilaqueria down the street from our hotel as my husband was searching for coffee. So we stopped there for breakfast on our third morning and the food was simply delicious.
Then it was off to the 9/11 memorial and museum, which was a solemn and difficult visit. We first saw the footprints of the buildings and then went through the museum. The kids had a hard time seeing everything, but we did a lot of talking and experienced it together as a family. I think it was important for all of us to see even though it was a difficult visit.
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After that experience, we needed something to look forward to, and we hopped on the subway to grab hot dogs from Gray’s Papaya, which are supposedly the best hot dogs in the city. They were indeed delicious, inexpensive, and came with fabulous fruity drinks that we enjoyed! A Magnolia Bakery was nearby, which I had loved on a previous visit, so we headed there, and each picked out a slice of cake. The plan was to head to Central Park and enjoy our treat. But once we arrived, we couldn’t find a place to sit anywhere! Our kids were like hot baby ducklings following us down the endless path. But we did finally find a bench overlooking the turtle pond with a view of the castle. It could have had a good ending, but the treats from Magnolia Bakery were not as good as I remembered!
We returned to the hotel for some well-deserved rest time and we also snuck in a glass of wine at the hotel rooftop bar. Then we were off to Dim Sum for dinner near the hotel. It’s a favorite meal for us and we couldn’t wait to have it in New York! Typically, Dim Sum is a brunch-type meal, but that’s the great thing about New York, you can have whatever you want whenever you want! Ordering off the menu instead of carts made everything super fresh and delicious, we were so happy with everything that we ate.
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After dinner we took a quick walk down to Milk Bar just down the street to try some of their famous goodies. My daughter loved the cereal milk ice cream and I enjoyed one of their cookies.
Day Four – Chinatown & Moulin Rouge
This is where we slow down a bit! We didn’t have much of a plan for this morning but decided to start our day in Chinatown. The night before I realized we could get foot massages there, which we all desperately needed. So the first thing we did was to sit down at a massage spa and each enjoyed a 25-minute foot massage, wow was that amazing!
With fresh feet, we went in search of more bbq pork steamed buns and found a little storefront where they sell them uncooked or steamed in the store for takeaway. We ordered way too many and went in search of somewhere to enjoy our breakfast. We ran across a boba tea store, and after ordering a few teas they let us enjoy our steamed buns there too, it was perfect.
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I didn’t realize Little Italy and Chinatown were so close to each other, but we had spotted an Italian grocer down the street and had to stop in! They had the most delicious prosciutto and capicola, plus we got some delicious cheeses too. I knew there was a good reason to find a hotel with a mini fridge! We munched on these delicacies for the remainder of our trip. As we walked back to the metro we wished we’d planned time for a meal in Little Italy, it was beautiful!
That afternoon I took my daughter to Moulin Rouge and my son and husband took the metro up to Yankee Stadium for a baseball game. I saw Moulin Rouge when it was in Denver and knew I had to see it again, and it lived up to my expectations. I could have sat there all day and just watched it over and over again!
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Our dinner reservations for the evening were in Chelsea. It was a warm evening but drizzled a bit as we walked, but we were all enjoying the walk so much that we skipped getting an Uber and enjoyed exploring the neighborhood a bit instead. The restaurant was a great neighborhood place, but sadly so incredibly loud that the kids were sitting there with their ears covered. We ordered a few things quickly and then headed out to get some rest for another big day.
But we made a last-minute switch to grab gelato instead of going back to the hotel, and I’m so glad we made that decision! We stumbled upon Anita Gelato, and it’s the best gelato I’ve had since enjoying gelato in Italy. The line was out the door, but we were committed, and it couldn’t have been a better decision!
Day Five – Eataly & Harry Potter
On our last full day, we indulged ourselves with a sleep in morning. Then we headed for an early lunch at Eataly, a huge Italian market, with several restaurants scattered throughout the space. We sat at one of the counters and had several meats and cheeses, calamari, and a divine bowl of gnocchi – it was all so good!
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After lunch, the kids and I headed to see Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. My husband was going to do a Brooklyn Beer Tour, but unfortunately, it was canceled due to low registration, so he went to check out a military museum and a brewery on his own!
We’re big Harry Potter fans, so it was fun to walk into the theater on Broadway. The best part about shows on Broadway is that they can update the lobby and theater to match the show, and this one didn’t disappoint! The show was also fascinating, with so many cool effects and surprises. And the entire lobby changes at intermission based on something in the show, so cool!
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Afterwards we met up with my husband for a break and to get ready for dinner. We ate a Koloman and met up with one of my friends who lives in the city. It was a nice meal and great to catch up!
Day Six – Bagels & Goodbye
We had a late morning flight out of LaGuardia, so the kids and I got up to grab bagels at Brooklyn Bagels around the corner – which were delicious – and my husband grabbed coffee at the Chilaqueria again. Then it was off to the airport and back home!
Phew! Those five nights were a whirlwind of adventures and created a stack of memories that I will cherish for a very long time. I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of New York City, I love the hustle and bustle, and everything it has to offer. I can’t wait to be back!
Want help planning a trip to New York or somewhere else in the world? I'd love to help, I'm also a Travel Advisor - just reach out at susan@elitetcagent.com.
