Five Faves - 6.28
a quick trip to NYC with my son
I have been dreaming about taking my kid to New York since he was a baby.
I was born in New York and have been multiple times a year since we moved, and I’ve always imagined how fun it would be to take my kids to experience the city I love and continue to be awed by.
It was incredible. You know one of those experiences where everything goes right? This was it. So our day was 100% a highlight reel, but it was so so so worth it.
I usually prefer to drive into the city to have flexibility upon departure, but traffic was pretty awful driving down, and I’d reached the point of deciding to train from Stamford. From points north, Stamford is a great place to take the train from, because there is both a local and an express Metro North train, and you can usually catch something every ~20-30mins. There’s also convenient and reasonably priced parking connected to the terminal.
The whole trip started on the right foot, when we were able to catch the train I thought for sure we’d miss with traffic, and the car was basically empty. My son loves different methods of transit, and we probably could have turned around right then and he’d have been happy for riding the train.
We had dinner at EJ’s Luncheonette (a favorite from my childhood), had a great celebrity sighting and then went to our hotel. I chose the hotel based on cheapest point redemptions, and landed on the Moxy in Times Square. I love the Moxy as a brand and am a Bonvoy Loyalist, but I’m not a fan of Times Square. However, the Moxy was PERFECT for what we needed. The room was bigger than I was expecting, and came with a $20/day credit at the cafe as well as 2 tickets per day to either a boat tour or the Museum of the City of New York. We took advantage of the boat tour tickets, and I would 100% stay at this hotel again.
Big Day in the City!
We woke up and headed out on our adventure on Thursday morning, and we got so lucky with good weather and great attitudes.
Times Square - we hit up Times Square first thing on Thursday morning, and got there right before 9am, we were the first ones up the stairs and my son thought it was pretty cool. Crowds are my nightmare, so early was definitely the move for me.
Central Park - From Times Square we took the train uptown and got off a stop before the American Museum of Natural History. We walked a bit through the park and my son was entranced by all of the different parts.
American Museum of Natural History - We got in line right before 10am, but had bought tickets in advance. We asked a docent what her take was, and she recommended going right up to the 4th floor, so we followed the expert advice. We were alone up in the Dinosaur area for a while, which was awesome. My son was in awe of how big some of the skeletons were. We had 11am tickets to the Encounters in the Milky Way, and it was so cool. My son isn’t super into space, but if you have a space obsessed kid, this is for you for sure. We then went to the whale and explored the rest of the museum. We spent ~2hrs in the museum, which felt right for us, and we headed out and got a hot dog before the Met.
Pedicab - My son will probably tell you this was his favorite part of the whole day, but he was dying to take a pedicab. We were quoted some absurd prices for the ride across the park, but with some negotiating, made it over to the Met.
The Met - We entered through the Uris Education Center with no line, and headed straight to the Temple of Dendur. I thought my son would be really into the Temple of Dendur, but he wasn’t super into it, he was much more excited by the Arms and Armor room and the American wing. He loved the furniture. The museum was very busy by the time we got there, and we were only there for a bit more than an hour.
Carousel - From the Met, we headed downtown to the Seaglass Carousel. My sister recently sent it to me, and when I showed my son some options, he thought this one seemed cooler than the Central Park Carousel. It was pretty cool, but we didn’t spend a ton of time in Battery Park, and headed back to the West Village to get some ice cream before our boat tour.
Boat Tour - We did a Liberty Boat Cruise, mostly because it was free, and my son was desperate to see the Statue of Liberty. We picked 5pm tickets, and this time worked out well because it was cooling down by the second half of the cruise, otherwise it was boiling hot. The views were incredible, but I will say the amenities on the boat were just ok. I would never have done this if not for my son being so excited about it, but honestly it was pretty cool.
Pizza - From the Boat Cruise, it was time for dinner, and we got some slices at Bleeker Street Pizza. My son declared it “the best pizza he’d ever eaten.”
FAO Schwarz - From pizza we went back uptown to FAO. My son was dying for a souvenir, and why not take him to the Mecca. It was overwhelming and overstimulating, and I know why my parents called it the “Toy Museum” when we were kids.
From FAO we went back to the hotel - 12hours and 25k steps later, we watched some Ghostbusters, and went to sleep!
The next morning, we woke up, got Bagels at Liberty Bagels, a donut at Daily Provisions and then walked the High Line. My son was awed by the Vessel, and thought the High Line was so cool. We then went back to the southern part of Central Park to walk around before catching the train back to the Stamford.
Overall, everything on this trip worked out so well, and I’m incredibly grateful for it. We had such a ball, and I am so grateful to have been able to spend that time with my son. He was such a great traveler, and I can’t wait to do that more with him!
What’s For Dinner:
Monday - Peanutty Pork and Brussels
Tuesday - Ground Chicken and Pineapple
Wednesday - EJs Luncheonette
Thursday - Bleeker Street Pizza
Friday - In RI
More A Day In Her Life:
This week - What an incredibly insightful conversation with Rachel Hochhauser! She’s a true multi-hyphenate, and her take on becoming an author like she’s always wanted, really resonated.
One Year Ago -
Two Years Ago -
Three Years Ago -
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I love this so much! I do a solo trip with my son every year and it’s always a blast!
saving all of these for future visits! we love the museum of natural history! did you feel like there was enough for your little to do/look at at the met?