When there in fall of 2012 we stayed at Crowne Plaza in Times Square. The location turned out to be great for us. Our daughter was then a few months short of 4 years old, but she still talks about wanting to go back. It was close to so many things that weren't all day stuff to see so we could easily go back and take a break. Our daughters favorites were the toy stores - toysrus and FAO Schwartz and also Central Park and the play ground there. We used the subway to get to other places such as going to see the statue of Liberty. We did drive to the hotel and had our rental car, but we kept it parked in the hotel and didn't bring it out.

Not sure what age your kids are though, but for a younger one it was nice being close enough to walk to some "sights" that interested her and could be done in between other activities.

How much did you want to spend per night? Are you driving or flying?

Mtn- Flying from New Orleans. Would prefer to stay around $500/night or less.

Lyfia- thanks! Our kids are ages 3, 5, and 8.

If you have a child in a stroller I would not stay in Times Square. Midtown would be easier. However, the budget will determine your choices. If you care to share it we can be more helpful.

Thanks, kswl. I don't particularly need to have a stroller. I don't even own one anymore but I suppose if I needed one I could get one. My youngest is an independent and only 28 lbs three year old (in other words, not too hard to carry when needed). I'd prefer no stroller (as would she) unless you all think that's a mistake. I'd like to stick to $500/night or less unless that's unrealistic for a nice location.

We didn't use a stroller as my daughter is very independent although she was 3 years and 8 months old at the time. She was quite a bit heavier though, but we didn't need to carry her much at all due to the location. Only times we really carried her was when she fell asleep on the ferry back from the statue of liberty and my husband carried her to the subway and then when we were out shopping and there was a lot of construction tunnels to walk through - she got scared.

Thanks so much, lyfia! My youngest daughter will be about the same age as yours when we get there (she'll be 3 yrs 9 months), so your perspective is helpful. I'll forgo the stroller then. So, would you stay at the same hotel (crown plaza Times Square I think you said) if/when you go back to NYC?

chilibeans - I would. They had a good breakfast included for us too - sort of continental, but a bit expanded. Even with having a child with a dairy protein allergy we found things that she liked and would eat from it. I didn't really pick it to start with. We were on a drive across the eastern part of the US and didn't really have a set date when we would arrive in NYC. Only had the day we were leaving as our flight home was out of there so as we left Washington DC and driving towards NYC I went online and just booked us a hotel. We had a room in the upper level and it had a sitting area where they put an extra bed for our daughter. Hotel room was small, but not cramped, though we really didn't spend much time there so didn't bother us. We ended up having a good view from our room too in 3 different directions due to how the windows were setup in the sitting area.

I highly recommend taking the kids to Ellen's stardust diner - our daughter absolutely loved it. Of course at that age when you asked her what she wanted to be when growing up the answer was pop star so it was right up her alley. Our waitress dedicated her song to our daughter and sang right in front of her too.

Now I should mention we did rent a stroller when we were in Washington DC though. We did a lot more walking there as things seemed further away and our hotel was further out one station past Dupont Circle so we used the stroller for her to take a nap instead of having to go back to the hotel and she liked riding in it there, but we never felt the need for it while in NYC (My guess is NYC was more to our daughters liking than the monuments and museums in DC). It might help you to map out what it is you want to see and do and then figure out from that what area it is best to be in. Ie what you will walk to and where you'll need to ride transportation to get to places.

I know we visited toys r us at close to 10pm the first night we were in NYC after having dinner just a short walk from the hotel. Our schedule were all messed up being on vacation, but we weren't complaining as our daughter for the first time in her life would sleep until 9am with no problem.

This post was edited by lyfia on Tue, Apr 1, 14 at 16:55

For your size family a suite hotel would be ideal. The San Carlos on East 50th is near a subway station, lots of restaurants, and your budget will stretch to a one bedroom suite. That will make a tremendous difference in size. Check out their ratings on tripadvisor. Don't forget to add in the occupancy taxes that magically turn a $350 per night room into a $405 per night room. Just be aware as you shop rates.

Thanks for all of the info, lyfia! So so helpful. And I agree that there are definitely places that warrant strollers- even for independent three year olds. We went to Disney World over Mardi Gras break and my three year old (and five year old) enjoyed taking frequent breaks in the rented stroller.

And Thanks so much, kswl! I will look into that one, as well. The location (from my brief tripadvisor digging) looks to be great, too. I notice it's not in the middle of times sq like many I have researched. Which leads me to my next question...

Last summer, we went to California and loved almost every bit of it (Malibu, the drive up to monterey, sequoia np, etc.). The only place that I did not care for was the brief time we spent in Los Angeles- specifically hollywood. We went to Hollywood blvd, stars on the sidewalk, checked out The Sign from the Hollywood and Highland shopping center, the usual stuff. People yelled profanities at me (while I held hands with my then 2 and 4 year old daughters) for not wanting to buy maps from them, we witnessed a street fight that was crazy and bizarre, there were people asking for money, the whole place felt seedy and unsafe. Is this what Times Square will likely feel like to me? If so, I think I'd rather not stay *right there*. Or is it totally different?

I live in NYC. I have not read all the posts, and in fact if you search the forum, your question might be the number one question (after what to wear to a wedding), and you will find a lot of good information.

Times Square, quite amazingly, has been totally Disneyfied. It is filled with tourists and they junk tourists buy. I think it unlikely you will be treated hostilely.

I hope you have a wonderful time. As in any large city, you need to be a little careful, but NYC has fallen way off the list of big, bad scary cities.

We really enjoy the Washington Square, Greenwich Village area. Lots of fun food places to stop at, such as fruit bars on a stick, fun hot chocolate, pizza by the slice, etc. Chelsea Market is another good, fun food place. We have not made it to the Highline yet -but that should be a fun place to perhaps see some street art, etc. Thinking of your childrens' ages, I bet they would love the flagship FAO Schwarz store on 5th Avenue.

The only difficult thing about Times Square is the sheer volume of people. It can be a challenge getting a group of five people down a city block all at the same time, lol. Unless your focus is theater going I wouldn't necessarily stay right in Times Square unless you really want that experience. (You can google Times Square cam and see a lot of street scenes online. )

If you're after a more genteel city stay with cleaner streets and leafy trees along the sidewalks, with close proximity to museums, you will want a location much farther up. With five people you may have trouble with taxis--- some will not take that many and you will have to take public transportation or two cabs. So it becomes even more important to stay near your places of interest.

One thing I would urge you to do is visit the Museum of Natural History and the Metropolitan. The former is packed with kids, and the latter has great workshops for kids if you're interested in that. The Museum of the City of New York also has great family programs you can register for online. There are wonderful playgrounds in Central Park and I highly recommend spending time there. Not a fan of zoos but there is one in CP, along with the carousel.

One suggestion for a quieter stay, if that's what you want, is the Battery Park area near the SouthStreet Seaport. This is much quieter--- some might say dead, lol, at night---but gives you a good location for the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, the Staten Island Ferry, Circle Line tours around Manhattan, pretty easy access to Brooklyn via water taxi, Chinatown, the 9/11 Memorial, Fulton Market, etc. The Fraunces Tavern is also in the financial district and is an often overlooked "attraction." There is a small museum of revolutionary war art and artifacts, and the tavern is still a working restaurant. You will be taking public transportation everywhere else, but that is pretty straightforward. Rates are best on weekends as hotels in this district cater to business people during the week.

Its a lot to consider --- and all depends on what you really want to see. In June you should be able to get a good deal on hotel rates. With a family of five my personal priority would be on room size and location. Booking directly with the hotel usually nets the best rates and avoids any third party booking site "misunderstandings." Finally, when you call a hotel don't forget to ask of there is road or building constriction on either side of their block. That can make or break a hotel stay. Good luck!

No Times Square is completely different as others said. One word of caution though are the people that are dressed up as popular kids characters, Disney, Dora, Hello Kitty etc. and your kids will want to go up to them and they would like a "donation" for taking a picture with them. They never accosted us or anything and our daughter was not wanting to go up to them no matter how much she loves Hello Kitty so we were good, but it might be worth talking to the kids about ahead of time as to what you will allow them to do. Ie if you are not willing to give them a "donation" make sure your kids knows what the expectation is. We never got accosted though.

We were there when the Windows 8 launch was going on and it was crowded, but we had no issues getting through and with two parents and three kids it would have been doable still. During the day it was much better and the next night with no special event was fine too. We could all walk in a row.

I lived in NYC but we are now in CT; I am in NYC one day a week for a consulting role.

I actually would recommend against staying downtown. We spent a weekend at the Ritz in Battery Park City and yes, it is close to Ellis Island and SL and 9/11 but otherwise you will spend a lot of time in taxis. IMHO the South St Seaport is a low quality mall, and the Fulton market is gone, no? We were at the Ritz for another reason, and we liked it for the views, the quality of the hotel and the food. But it is also pricey.

As for taxis, they have been phasing in minivans since early 2013 and it is no longer a problem for a family to get one cab.

Our children are middle schoolers so we like more room than you probably need. For example we had a nice suite at the London, with 2ba, but that is overkill. I like their location and Id imagine their smaller rooms would suffice and be at your budget. For a girls weekend we had a room at the Morgan, with two fabulous roomy balconies and views of the ESB. I think it was 700 but it was very nice for the price.

One strong reccomendation; if you get something with a small kitchenette, you can have your own breakfasts and maybe a lunch or two. That is healthier, saves money and time, and you can find great take away food and produce. If memory serve, there is a place called the Shelburne that families like (Ive never been). I think it is is midtown east and has suites and is reasonable.

Have fun!

Thanks you all so much for your thoughtful replies! I'm going to try to figure this out tonight. I did look into the shelburne quickly but found that it has no available rooms during our dates. Bummer! I will check out others later. Maybe I need to narrow my things-to-do list, as well. I assumed I could see most of the touristy stuff during our week butt maybe I need to prioritize our list and plan our base hotel accordingly.

kswl- if I wanted to stay in a leafy, museum-rich area like you described above, what would that neighborhood be (called)? Thanks so much!

We took my son when he was 10 so older than your son, but maybe this will still be helpful. Our first day we did the Real New York Tour - I found it on trip advisor and I just checked and it was still the number one ranked tour. We did a private day long trip and it was awesome. It really helped us get an overall feel of the city and then we knew what we wanted to go back and see. Our guide talked the whole time and had very interesting stories to share about everywhere we went. Plus with kids, you don't have to feel bad about slowing down the group or stopping for a break. It was well worth it! My son still talks about the pizza at Rudy's in Little Italy,

I would also recommend STOMP. It was at a smaller theater at the time which made involved the audience more. It was loud and fun for music loving kids.

We stayed at the New York Palace which I think is midtown. That was a great location. It was close enough to walk to Times Square and the shopping parts of Madison Avenue. We took cabs almost everywhere we went except Yankee Stadium. They were just easier and faster than riding the subway. There were four of us, so they weren't really much more expensive than taking the subway really.

Obviously Toys r us, FAO schwartz, the top of the rock, the Lego store, American Girl etc are all kid fun. We also went putt putting on chelsea pier which was something we weren't expecting to do in the city. The museums, the shows, just the fun of it all. I can't wait to go back.

Have a great time!

It's up in the Bronx, but consider a day at the Bronx Zoo. I lived nearby when I was a kid, and popped over there every week, so I didn't realize that it was a very special place. Now it's more like Disneyland, but with real, live animals. Admission fees, too, but Wednesdays are "suggested" admission days.

Here is a link that might be useful: Bronx Zoo

Awesome. Thanks!!!

Lydia, I was in NYC five times last year for theatergoing, and stayed mostly at the Intercontinental in Times Square. I know the area (used to live there as well on UES) and it is very crowded. If young children do not like crowds or are overwhemed by them, all the Disney characters in the world will not deflect that anxiety. I have a 21 year old who spent the fall semester at an acting studio on 36th street and he avoided Times Square-- to the point of walking in wide arcs around it--- to escape the crowds, esp. at certain times of the day.

Chilibeans, I've been in transit myself on the way to Virginia. For some reason I did not realize my trip was going to coincide with a vast number of spring breakers :-(

To answer your question about a quieter neighborhood near museums, that would be the upper west side or upper east side. And there are other hotels you might check---St. Giles Court in Murray Hill, the Beacon hotel on the Upper West Side, the Salisbury Hotel in Midtown are all in your price range and have suites or junior suites that will allow you to spread out a bit. I still think for your size group the size of the room(s) is almost more important than the location.

Regarding transportation, there are a fair number of minivan cabs, true, But at least empirically they don't yet constitute the majority so I wouldn't assume i'd always get one. Apps like Uber work on a very limited basis in NYC, for trips to airports and such, although you may be able to use them with those new green cabs that will be on the streets in June. I would at least carry a subway map in case you need it.

Gosh, Mtn, I thought that guy who bought the Fulton Market property had it back open or redeveloped already---sorry, chilibeans, for the misdirection! I wasn't advocating a visit to the South Street Seaport, agree with the description of it as a mall, but for people who want a quieter stay downtown is certainly an option. Maybe not for a first visit though. If your family has an interest in gardening, the gardens and grove at Battery Park are very worth seeing regardless of where you stay.

Thanks again, everyone!

I finally booked everything this morning. It turns out that my options were greatly reduced because of being only two months out and needing to fit five in one room. Many of the places available earlier in the week were no longer available. I ended up at a Marriott in Midtown East. It has good reviews on tripadvisor and has an in room fridge. My other choice with availability was the doubletree suites at times square, but I went with the other mostly due to reviews. I hope I made the right decision!

Thanks once more. You were all so helpful and have given me great ideas of things that are must-see with little kids. :)

Cristal

This post was edited by chilibeans on Fri, Apr 4, 14 at 13:08