Visiting New York City with kids is such a fun trip with all the educational opportunities , broadway shows and food exploration ! It can be overwhelming to decide where to go and what to do and hours can go into planning your trip. Below we share our 3 day itinerary for exploring NYC with kids .
We packed a lot into our 3 day stop in New York City on our East Coast road trip , but it was so much fun! Check out all the things to do in New York with kids!
Day 1
2pm – Check in at Railroad Terminal for the New Jersey Ferry
Ellis Island and Statue of Liberty
4:45pm – Arrive back at Railroad Terminal and drive to the RV park
5:15pm – Get on the Liberty Harbor Ferry to head over to the Wall St Ferry
Walk across the Brooklyn Bridge
Julianna’s For Pizza
Brooklyn Bridge Park Basketball Courts and Swings
Brooklyn Heights Promenade
Time Out
Washington Street/Water Street Picture
World Trade Center Path Station to take the train back to New Jersey
If you have time be sure to add in the Escape Game too!! We love escape games!!
Ellis Island
Since we were staying in New Jersey we parked on the New Jersey side ferry for Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty. (We had to buy tickets ahead of time and had a timed entry in order to get in).
They have a metal detector and a lot of security as you are getting on the boat so plan time for that.
We checked in at 2pm and got on the boat and headed to Ellis Island first. They said with a 2pm checkin you couldn’t do both Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty – that sounded like a challenge to me :). We had to do a pretty quick tour of Ellis Island and definitely could have spent more time exploring. But we didn’t want to miss the boat that would take us to the Statue of Liberty.
We took about 1 hour to explore Ellis Island – but really 2 would have been better – or even 3 if you really want to spend time reading everything there. It was a cool experience and our kids were really into it too. It is such a great way to learn about United States history and how/why we are the country we are today.
If you can make it where you aren’t rushed I would recommend that. You can check out tickets and departure times here .
Statue of Liberty
From Ellis Island, we got on the ferry to the Statue of Liberty . This was confusing to me. But it is exactly how it works. If you are coming from the New Jersey side and want to do both you will start with Ellis Island. Once you are done there you get back on the ferry to go to the Statue of Liberty.
If you are coming from the New York side (Battery Park) you would start with the Statue of Liberty first and go to Ellis Island second. And to be honest, when you check in at the ferry I would ask and confirm this is how the ferry is running that day. Also, be aware of the times the ferries go or ask before you get on so you know when to be out to pick the ferry up for the next destination.
Here is a good map of how the ferries run .
We got off, walked around the front of the lady liberty and took some pictures, and walked back to get on the ferry. We did this all in 20 minutes. Which meant the ferry never left but was just there the whole time loading people up to take them back.
This worked for us since we wanted to catch the earlier ferry back to New Jersey to head over to Brooklyn still that night.
It was a fast walk to make the 20 minutes work but we did it. With more time we would have explored the museum and the gift shop. Again if you have time I recommend giving this time to explore without feeling rushed. We were basically running to get back to the ferry.
The ferry brought us back and we drove and dropped the truck off at the RV park and walked over to catch the 5:15 pm ferry to New York City – which was right outside the RV park at Liberty Harbor Ferry.
We would go from Liberty Harbor Ferry which was a 1 minute’s walk from the RV park to the Wall Street Ferry drop-off. We bought our tickets on the NY Waterway app and just showed those to the boat worker when they pulled up at the stop. Here is a link to our route .
Here is where you buy your tickets: NY Waterway. You are looking for the Liberty Harbor Ferry if you are staying at the Liberty Harbor RV Park.
Brooklyn Bridge
From there we walked to the entrance of the Brooklyn Bridge walkway and made our way across. Here is a map of where we walked to get on the Brooklyn Bridge .
We started on the Manhattan side which is at: right across the street from City Hall Park, along Centre Street. You can check out the map here. Also, look for the signs that point you in the right direction to get on the walking bridge NOT the driving bridge.
They are 2 very different things. The walking bridge is just that. Just for walking. You are basically walking over the cars that are driving across the bridge on a completely separate walkway.
The bridge is about 1 mile across. It is a nice pedestrian walking area. They even have a separate area for bikes so you don’t have to worry about that. There are also a lot of great places to stop to grab pictures.
When you reach Brooklyn you are in the Dumbo neighborhood in Brooklyn which is a trendy area with great restaurants and outdoor activities.
Juliana’s Pizza
Once in Brooklyn, we headed to Juliana’s for pizza. Juliana’s is owned by pizza legend Patsy Grimaldi who use to own Grimaldi’s pizza. We loved Juliana’s and it felt like a local pizza shop. Plus the pizza was good!
Brooklyn Bridge Park Basketball Courts and Swings
After that, we checked out the basketball courts and swings at the Brooklyn Bridge Park – with the NYC skyline in the back. These are public courts and anyone can play. Just the week before an NBA player was there playing a pick-up game.
They also have an astroturf soccer field and swings. All overlooking the New York Skyline.
Brooklyn Heights Promenade
After checking out the courts we walked on the Brooklyn Heights Promenade taking in the NYC skyline at night. It was a beautiful walk.
Time Out
We headed to Time Out a collection of restaurants located in a building. There was an awesome variety of different types of food and restaurants. Since we had already had pizza we got some Ice Cream at the Sugar Hill Creamery.
Washington Street/Water Street Picture
Next up we grabbed a picture at the Washington Street and Water Street intersection spot – one of the favorite street photo places in the Dumbo area of Brooklyn.
We headed back across the Brooklyn Bridge at night and to the World Trade Center PATH station to take the PATH train back to New Jersey and the RV Park (it was a 5-block walk from the Grove PATH station to the Liberty Harbor RV Park). Since the ferry wasn’t running anymore and because this option was a lot cheaper than the ferry. Be sure to check out the great views of the city!
If it seems like that was a lot of walking it was! But we truly feel that walking around a city is a great way to really take in the sites and the vibe of the area.
Here is a map of what we did in Brooklyn .
Day 2
Bike Central Park
5th Avenue and Shopping
St. Patricks Cathedral
Rockefeller Center
Time Square
Dinner: Haru Sushi
Dessert: Juniors
Lion King on Broadway
