Please Help! Ideas for Planning a NYC Vacation!

NYC is expensive. Period. That is a LONG drive with three children to be in the City for essentially 36 hours. NYC as a tourist "is" Broadway and museums/shopping. You could "splurge" and spent an entire day b/w Central Park and the Museum of Natural History. If you do the entire thing, it takes a full day. It's pricey, but would be fun for your kids. The Bronx Zoo is another full-day option.

**NYC in July is HOT!** I know that I'm being negative here, but living in the Hudson Valley and working in Westchester I can assure you that there is NOTHING inexpensive surrounding the City (including gas). This is going to be an expensive trip and an incredibly long drive to go somewhere that is not "kid friendly on a budget".

Just a thought.... why not bring the family to the Hudson Valley for the weekend? It's much less expensive and very family-friendly. There are so many things to do here and you could stay in a quaint town like Rhinebeck or Staatsburg for much much less!

Free things to do in NYC visit the M and M store in Times Square, visit the Toys R Us and the FAO Schwartz, the ferry, Central Park, other parks Bryant, Washington Square, look for street fairs that weekend. There will be CROWDS and LINES can you leave the twins with a relative and just have a fun weekend for 3 people who will enjoy and remember it? Mine son LOVES the train but at 18 months he did not like crowds or the noise of the subway, Hope you have fun!

I've never stayed at a US one, but when I was in England, I stayed at a youth hostel. I know they have one in midtown Manhattan, but don't know what it's like. I think they're very basic - just beds, maybe a common room with a TV. It might be worth checking because it would be REALLY cheap, but maybe too spartan.

Otherwise, train travel is pretty easy - see what goes into Penn Station and work out from there. Perhaps 1/2 hour out would be nice travel-time wise. The subway is very convenient to use for traveling around the city; taxis are ok, but more expensive.

Feel free to e-mail me at ____@____.com for more info - I used to live in NJ and work in NYC.

Even if you stay outside the city, somewhere in Queens, for example, (Long Island City, Flushing, etc.) chances are you will still find room rates to be over $100 a night - I just did a quick search and the hotels (and motels) I saw were consistently more than that. I suggest you go to Orbitz or Expedia websites - you may be able to find a deal there, or at least read other comments from people regarding various accomodations. NY Magazine also had a good article on budget hotels in Manhattan, although, again, they are not under $100 per night. I don't mean to rain on your parade, but to be practical, a trip to NYC for 5 for a weekend on a budget is going to be rather difficult to achieve. I really like Krista's suggestion about the Hudson Valley - so mellow and so much to do with the kids. I would save NYC for an adult getaway sometime!
ps happy birthday :)

I just went to NYC last month. We stayed at the holiday in midtown. definitly a 2 star hotel but the rates were 4 star. sigh..... your estimate of finding a hotel for $150 might be unrealistic. however if you stay in new jersey you can take the path train for like $2.50 cents each way. and the hotel will be a lot cheaper. the carriage ride is fun. we did it. the rates for that are $50 for the first 20 minutes. they will take you longer but it is more money. cost us $80 for about a half hour ride. we did the bus tour thing. pretty cool if you get a good tour guide. you can get on and off all over the city. the statue of liberty was fun but way more walking than I had planned. time square was a blast. my son was performing at carnegie hall so we did that as well. we went to the cake boss place in hoboken. next time we go we will be staying in hoboken.

Staying in NJ might give you a hotel room for less.

One key about the museums - most people don't know but the main museums are "suggested donations." I believe that anybody can afford it should pay the full price, but if you love museums and this is your big trip donate what you can and enjoy! Especially if you have a kid who loves art, and if it is a hot day.

I also vote for Little Italy. I'm a native and a summer evening in little italy is still one off my favorite things to do. You can eat there or go a block or two in any direction and eat in chinatown. Neither is very expensive if you choose right.

As to the rest of your itinerary. You are already overbooked for a single weekend with 18 month old twins. Summer in NYC is very hot, people are right, so be prepared. Other than that - ENJOY!

hotel accomodations in NYC are just plain expensive. but for a fun, free outing while here, try taking the staten island ferry. you catch it at the ferry terminal in lower manhattan, it takes you across the harbor, and you can see the NYC sky line (lower manhattan) and the statue of liberty. feel free to get off and explore staten island, or just get right back on for a return trip.

the museum of natural history's general admission price is a "suggested donation" if you don't buy any of the special exhibits, feel free to put in a fiver for the five of you. same is true for the metroplitan museum of art.

for more inexpensive NYC tips, google NYC and 9.99. Its a program on a local public tv station with ideas for how to do NY for under $10 a day.

have fun and enjoy.

That's a really short trip. Great free/cheap things are Chinatown, Little Italy, Central Park. The Museum of Natural History is FANTASTIC and the $16 admission is a 'suggested donation'. You can pay what you are able to. The subway is clean, safe and the fastest way to get around. However, many stops are not stroller accessible. So if you have carriers/slings bring them, wearing the 18 month olds will make it much easier. It can be hot but July is better than August.