Family Getaways in NYC

Plan your family getaway to New York City with The Benjamin Royal Sonesta Hotel. From the latest museums to the newest parks, enjoy time with the family and create special memories with our curated list of family activities for kids of all ages in New York City. 

Check out the shops at Rockefeller Center for fun for the whole family. Start off at the LEGO Store for the ultimate LEGO experience. From innovative displays, interactive play areas, and hard-to-find and exclusive LEGO products, let your kids imaginations go wild. Discover the best in fashion, art, design, shopping & dining all at Rockefeller Center. Enjoy all the art, history, landmarks, and more all in one place. Stop into the Lego Store, American Girl Store, along with the Nintendo Store to see the grand shops and all they have to offer. Take a Rock Center Tour, a historian-guided Tour that takes you from the past to the present with an insider’s view of the incredible architecture, art, iconic buildings, and outdoor gardens.

Presenting music, theatre, dance, film, opera and more, Lincoln Center is a must-see in New York City. Make Lincoln center your summer destination for fun-filled free shows and creative activities for kids of all ages, families, and teens.

Come explore the world of Encanto by walking through the Family Madrigal plaza and exploring the rooms within. You and your kids will experience the magic and music of Disney Encanto and feel what it’s like to have your own powers. Disney Encanto x CAMP is a self-guided experience — explore at your own pace, forge your own path, and choose your own adventure!

Soak up the Cali vibes as you explore the new Malibu Barbie Cafe – full of Barbie colors, laid-back beachy motifs, and lots of retro glam. Enjoy this immersive dining experience and don’t forget to snap photos with the iconic life-size Barbie Box.

The Guggenheim Museum invites you and your family to join them for educational and inspirational programs designs for kids, teens, and families. Programs teach kids about the artists and works in the Guggenheim collection to inspire them to create masterpieces of their own.

The New York Public Library has everything kids and their families need to make learning fun, from e-books to learning aids to help with homework and projects.

Explore an historic and enormous aircraft carrier with 30 vintage planes on the flight deck, a guided missile submarine, and the space shuttle Enterprise – all at the Intrepid Sea, Air, and Space Museum. The Exploreum is full of interactive fun like climbing into a helicopter and steering the wings of a plane.

The dinosaurs may be the biggest draw at the American Museum of Natural History; but don’t forget the giant blue whale, the African elephants or the fabulous gems and minerals with treasures. The museum adjoins the Rose Center for Earth and Space with exhibits and spectacular shows at the Hayden Planetarium. The new Gilder Center features new exhibition galleries and one-of-a-kind experiences, including an insectarium, butterfly vivarium, floor-to-ceiling collection displays, and more.

Take in the New York City skyline with a visit to the Ultimate Observation Deck, Top of the Rock. At the pinnacle of 30 Rockefeller Plaza’s 70 floors with terraces facing east, west, north, and south.

An abandoned overhead freight railway has been transformed into an incredible elevated park at The High Line. It offers river and city views with lush landscaping that reflects the wild plants that grew up along the neglected railbeds. Along the way are art installations, videos, a place to take off your shoes and wade in an inch-high pool, or to sit back, relax and people watch all day long.

Hudson Yards is New York’s newest neighborhood and home to more than 100 diverse shops and culinary experiences. It is a great place to spend the day with your family with plenty of Family Fun activities that are exciting for all ages! Play, sing and dance together with Mozart for Munchkins and continue the fun with MakeInspires workshops centered around science, tech, art, and math.

Housed in a 1936 decommissioned subway station, the New York Transit Museum tells the amazing story of New York’s subways, beginning with how tunnels were dug underground. Visitors can walk through vintage subway cars and see the many kinds of tokens used to enter the subway. A popular interactive exhibit, On the Streets, traces the development of trolley and bus transportation in the city and invites kids to board a 12-seat bus and child-size trolley.

Experience wildlife in the heart of the city at the Central Park Zoo. Spot a snow leopard, take in a sea lion show, or find your inner child at the Children’s Zoo.

In addition to great art from every period from ancient to contemporary, the Metropolitan Museum of Art is the country’s largest museum featuring galleries with special appeal for families such as the chance to see mummies and explore an Egyptian temple, see life size knights and marvel at fascinating masks from Africa and Asia. Take advantage of the programs and activities offered for children as well. Enjoy Storytime and look, listen, and sing with fun picture books, then continue your adventure with a self-guided gallery hunt!

No trip to NY is complete without a visit to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. Views from the boat ride and from Liberty Island are spectacular and standing close-up to the Statue of Liberty is a guaranteed thrill for everyone.

Become history detectives and learn about early life in New York through a series of engaging exhibits at the DiMenna Children’s Museum at the New York Historical Society. Turn a dial to see photos of a street as it was 100 years ago and as it looks today, put your face into a cut-out of George Washington and imagine your own inauguration speech. The library areas is a place to rest, play interactive games, see early children’s books and find current books about the city.

New York’s first major theater devoted entirely to family entertainment offers troupes from around the world presenting a changing array of plays, circus acts, dancing, puppets, and surprises at The New Victory Theatre.

The New York Aquarium includes a coral reef and an African lake, walruses, sharks and a sea lion show. Baseball fans can enjoy a game at the MCU Park, home of the Brooklyn Cyclones.

MoMath, the National Museum of Mathematics, is an award-winning museum that highlights the role of mathematics in illuminating the patterns and structures all around us. Its dynamic exhibits, galleries, and programs are designed to stimulate inquiry, spark curiosity, and reveal the wonders of mathematics. The museums innovative exhibits will engage visitors of every age!

This iconic Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) has a wealth of family programming covers a wide age range and includes tours for kids, child-friendly movies and other event.

Check out historic fire engines and equipment at the New York City Fire Museum with stories of firefighting from the days of bucket brigades to hand pumps, horse drawn steam engines to high-tech fire boats. The museum is housed in a 1904 triple bay firehouse with its sliding doors, brass sliding pole and winding staircase intact.

Looking to experience nature and art in a unique urban oasis on the Hudson River, check out Little Island, a new public park, located in Hudson River Park. Watch the sunset, grab a bite, and take a moment to leave the bustle of the city behind.

Learn about the days when this area was a bustling port with its piers crowded with ships from around the world at the South Street Seaport. Stroll through a collection of shops and restaurants with spectacular water views.

Many attractions in Central Park were created especially with kids in mind. There are 21 playgrounds throughout the Park, each with its own unique theme, design, and type of play structures. Don’t forget to take a ride on the Central Park Carousel or in a rowboat on the lake from the Loeb Boathouse. Younger children can also enjoy the storytelling that takes place each summer at the site of the Hans Christian Anderson Statue.

Calling all secrete agents. At SpyScape, you can explore hidden worlds, break codes, learn how to jump, climb, and dodge fun immersive challenges developed with CIA experts. This high-tech museum showcases extraordinary gadgets with stories and experiences that bring them to life.

Theatre is a big part of what makes New York Shine! The city is bursting with talent that even the youngest among us can appreciate. At the best Broadway shows for kids, everyone in your crew will be captivated. The Lion King, Aladdin, and Wicked are just a few examples of amazing shows that will engage the whole family!