Travel - Garland,TX

I haven't travelled with teens yet,but have been to NY several times. It's fabulous- so much to see and do. It really depends on your interests. Statue of Liberty and Museum of History are great for everyone. It's easy to get half price tickets as long as it's not a specific show you would like to see. If you are set on a certain show I'd buy in advance. Walking around China Town is really fun, and Central Park. I take the subway when I go - it's cheaper than taxis and I think it's a great experience.

I'm a New Yorker, born and bred.
Take the ferry from Battery Park which goes to both the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. Take a picture of the statue, but STAY on the ferry. Spend your time at Ellis Island. You can see the statue better from the boat anyway. Before you go, have your boys read, "The Orphan of Ellis Island" whose main character is a boy about their age. You can get it on audio and play it in the car or load it on their ipods if they won't sit and read it. Once they get a couple of chapters in, they should be hooked. You do have to go early to the ferry, and I think you can buy tickets online ahead of time.
The circle line runs a short (45 minute) cruise from the East Side (sorry I can't remember exactly where) which is a good way to get a feel for the city if your legs need a break.
Assign the boys each a day to be activities director - let them research and pick the itinerary, including restaurants. That way they can't blame you for picking boring stuff to do all the time. :) If they have trouble getting started, try going back to their favorite movies which take place in NY - anything from Muppets Take Manhattan to one of the action/suspense movies where terrorists are trying to set a bomb off in the city. They might like to see some of the places in the movie.
The Empire State Building is expensive and has long lines. They've just opened the Top of the Rock at Rockefeller Center as a city observation spot. A friend of mine said it was cheaper, less crowded and just as good a view.
My favorite night view of the city lights is on the return trip of the Staten Island Ferry (which I think is still free). Just hop on the ferry, then be the first off and run right around at the terminal on Staten Island and get right back on. You see the Statue of Liberty on the way out and the city at night. Subway to South Ferry.
Definitely ride the subway; it's by far the best way to get around.
You'll have a great time.

S.

We went for a week to NYC in Feb. 09, with our then 9, 6, and 3 year olds. The first thing that shocked me was just how much walking is required in the city! You are literally walking all day long, which is pretty neat, but if you're not used to it, it can be exhausting. I would highly recommend that you start now thinking about ways to do more walking around home, and bring the kids with you, or just take long walks as a family. And invest in shoes that you'll enjoy walking around in all day.

The second thing that shocked me was just how expensive it was to do *anything*. It is completely worth getting a weekly subway pass for everyone. We were only there 6 days, but the pass paid for itself within 3-4 days, especially since the best hotel rate we could find was in Brooklyn, which meant crossing a tunnel everyday to get into the "city". We loved the "slice of life" experience we had in Brooklyn, too: the local delis, just walking around and people watching. We spent 1/2 a day doing that (technically, everyone else did, I had a bum ankle, and was resting before going into the city for our show that evening).

Definitely wait to do the half-price window, but be flexible in your plans, either for which show(s) you'll see, or on which day.

If you like musicals, there's a great diner just off Broadway where local talent performs major hits from Broadway musicals, nearly constantly during the dinner. That talent is also the waitstaff. It is very interesting, very up close and personal with the actors, who are all working to get on Broadway. We ate there for several meals!

If you want to do a Statue of Liberty tour, get in line first thing in the morning. Plan on being at the ticket office 30 minutes to an hour before it opens, just to be able to be sure to get a tour that day. We did not plan ahead on this one, you may be able to purchase advance tickets online. Hubby and children spent a couple of hours in line, only to realize they were not going to be able to get on the ferry that day. They went to the Empire State Building instead, and had a great time.

Have fun!! I wish I could go again!

I went 2 years ago on a trip with my daughters class (9th-12th graders). Some of the things we saw and the kids enjoyed as well: The Metropolitan Art Museum, Rockefeller Center, St. Paul's Church at Ground Zero (very moving), Grand Central Station, Central Park - the Dakota is right across the street (where John Lennon lived), Grants Tomb was cool and free. We walked around Columbia University, Juliard, the library. St. Patricks Cathedral (you could spend a day just looking at all of the beautiful churches). I definitely agree with what Stephanie said about Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty. And we did take the ferry to Staten Island at night - gorgeous view of the city. I'm not sure about the show tickets, we had ours in advance. There are lots of places to eat that your kids will enjoy, Bubba Gumps has good food and there are street vendors everywhere. The biggest thing that will make your trip easier and you will see more is to plan in advance, don't wait till you get up in the morning to decide what to see that day. And I agree with the other poster also, start a walking program now. We had so much fun, I love NYC. Have a great time!

For sure go to the half price red box in time square. There will be many choices, but you will have to wait until 5 or so to buy. Walking around Time Square is enjoyable in itself. Avoid China Town late at night, but Little Italy is beautiful in the evening hours. Enjoy!

Sounds like a fun trip! We love, love, love NY. A great place to eat, if they like pizza is John's Pizza, there are many locations and there is one near broadway on ____@____.com I think. Patsy's pizza is also great. You can google for them. The Natural History Museum is great and they have an amazing planetarium. You can also subscribe to time out/time out kids e-mail which will give you lots of great ideas. http://newyork.timeout.com/ All the fire stations love to have visitors and most sell NYFD shirts which are a cool souvenir. The subway and bus are the best ways to get around. There is a huge Nike experience store and also an NBA experience store, which are pretty cool. I think MTV and ESPN have stores too. If your boys are gamers there is a Nintendo World Store http://www.nintendoworldstore.com/. Another awesome museum is the Intrepid Air, Sea and Space Museum http://www.intrepidmuseum.org/

As far as broadway shows if you want to see something specific you should not count on getting tickets from the discount window in times square. Also you will probably have to spend an entire day in line there to get tickets at all so be prepared for that. You can google for discount theatre tickets and probably find some that way. http://www.nytix.com/Broadway/DiscountBroadwayTickets/TKTS.

If your boys like cupcakes, skip Magnolia and go to the Buttercup Bakeshop, awesome cupcakes http://buttercupbakeshop.com/. The owner is actually one of the original Magnolia owners. The city is just amazing and just being there will be entertainment enough. Enjoy your trip!