The Travel BuddhaPlanning a trip to New York City with teens can be a daunting endeavor. It can be challenging to balance what what activities everyone will enjoy, the time you have to spend, and the budget you have. Afterall, New York City is commonly pegged as an expensive travel destination.
In 2018, not too long before the whole COVID mess, I traveled to New York city with my teenage daughters. It was my first New York City vacation. Up to that point, the majority of my vacation travels have been focused on nature and the outdoors. I never made cities the primary destination or focal point of my travel. I had never been to New York city, and if it wasn’t for my daughters, I’m still not sure I would have visited yet. Admittedly, I was not very excited about this trip.
The New York City vacation was something I planned in response to a few relentless years of my teenage girls pining/begging about going. Without them knowing, I secured the plane tickets, made the hotel reservation, and planned the four-night vacation itinerary. I’m not sure that I’ve ever been more excited to give a gift. At their annual combined birthday party, they each opened new travel backpacks. Tucked inside the backpacks, each of them found a card with the New York City vacation details. At first there was silence, then disbelief, then excited gasps. Success!
Experiencing New York City With Teens
This trip will always be a highlight of my life, and I hope my daughters feel the same way. There was so much more to this vacation than sightseeing; it was an opportunity to spend a significant block of time with my daughters. I was already feeling the beginnings of being phased-out, replaced by friends and active social lives. It’s normal and natural and all that, but it’s bittersweet to see them grow into independence. I’m thankful that I was able to make it work.
When we stepped out of LaGuardia to find our shuttle to Manhattan, it was like stepping into a sweaty gym sock. It was hot and if the air were any more humid, we would have been swimming. I was a little concerned knowing how much walking we would be doing. The underground subway stations were transformed into dank caverns and you could see waves of heat reflecting off the pavement. It was blazing. The heat and humidity would stay with us for the whole trip but we powered through it, strategically ducking into shops to cool off, and walking in whatever shade we could find.
A New York City Vacation Will Include a LOT of Walking
We walked everywhere. Neighborhood vibes can change pretty quickly, but we never felt unsafe anywhere we went. I’m sure there was a degree of ignorance that played into our sense of security. We were aware of the increased potential for pickpockets, but overall, Manhattan felt fairly safe to us. Collectively, the three of us walked over 100 miles through the city during our four night stay. Be prepared to do some walking and make sure you bring some comfortable walking shoes (my Hoka’s made it doable #commissionsearned).
New York City Vacation Plan
I knew that a New York city vacation was not gonna be cheap, but I had to find a way to make it work on a limited budget. New York has some really lame tourist traps that are easily avoidable, but there are certain touristy must-see places and must-do activities. I wanted to ensure that I had the budget to make those work. So this trip was planned with my usual approach of getting as much vacation experience as possible while spending as little money as possible.
At the bottom of this article, I’ve included the detailed travel plan that we used for the trip.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Unrivaled Cultural Diversity | Annoying Buskers |
| Statue of Liberty | Homeless Camps |
| Jewish Delis, Bagels | Nasty Street Smells |
| Chinatown | (Micro) Little Italy |
| Times Square | Times Square |
Transportation – NYC Flight and Ground Transport
One of the unfortunate (for teenagers) consequences of trying to score low-price airfare is that the cheapest fares tend to be for early morning flights. I found a great deal flying Southwest Airlines to New York’s LaGuardia airport that departed at 6:20AM. My daughters groaned in disgust upon hearing the departure time and writhed violently when I informed that we’d have to leave for the airport by 4AM. Ugh! Why so early?! Buck-up buttercups.
For ground transport, there was no point in renting a car since New York has plenty of public transportation options available. A car would be nothing more than a burden and added expense. So, to get from the LaGuardia to Midtown Manhattan, we used a shuttle van (I found a sweet discount deal on Groupon for the van). For the remainder of our stay, we would walk or use the subway (don’t forget to grab a Metro card). The only deviation from this plan was taking the New Jersey Transit train from Penn Station to Newark Airport for our flight back home on our last day of the vacation.
For our return flight home, we again flew Southwest, but departed from Newark New Jersey since it was way cheaper than flying out of LaGuardia or JFK. It was convenient enough to get to the airport using the NJ Transit train (and AirTrain) noted above. It was my first time at the Newark airport and unless it’s changed drastically in the past few years, it was like being stuffed into an overpopulated prison yard or refugee camp. It was still worth the money saved to fly out of Newark, but just barely worth it.
Accommodations – Our Hotel in Midtown Manhattan
One of the key ways to keep the price down on the accommodations was to avoid weekend nights (Friday & Saturday). I booked all four weeknights at the Hampton Inn Manhattan-Madison Square Garden.
The hotel is just west of the Little Korea neighborhood in Midtown Manhattan. The central, reasonably-safe location, free breakfast, and decent price made it an easy choice (more about why I like the Hampton Inn hotel chain). The location offers quick, walkable access to the subway, Penn Station, and a great variety of restaurants. Finally, the view from our hotel room was nothing short of amazing…ly mediocre, but we didn’t plan to spend much time there anyway.
Attractions – Fun Things To Do in New York City with Teens
There are so many things to do on a New York City vacation that it will make your head spin. I’ll start off with the highlights that we enjoyed most and what I would recommend you look into for your New York City vacation plan.
Chinatown
New York’s Chinatown is a vacation within a vacation. From the moment we came up from the subway, we were immersed in a vibrant Ameri-Asian community. We arrived relatively early in the morning and watched as restaurants collected their food deliveries, and people hustled about getting ready for the day. We enjoyed just walking around looking at the Asian-inspired architectural elements and checking out the shops. It’s a worthwhile stop when you visit NYC.
If you have the time, you may want to to take more organized and informed tour of Chinatown. The highly-rated Chinatown walking tour is reasonably priced and only lasts 2 hours, so you’ll have plenty of time left to check out more of NYC.
Top of the Rock – Rockefeller Plaza
When visiting New York City with teens, this is one of the best attractions you’ll find. There are many options to view New York City from above, but I can’t imagine you’ll find a more central, impressive view than the view from Top of the Rock. I considered the Freedom Tower observation deck, but the view from central Manhattan can’t be beat. You’ll see both rivers, a great view of Central Park the Plymouth Building, the Empire State Building, and much more. For us it was likely to be a once-in-a-lifetime experience, so, although pricey, it was worth it. There are some options to get discount admission to the Top of the Rock.
The Statue of Liberty (via The Staten Island Ferry)
Some people will gripe that the Statue of Liberty really isn’t worth it, but I think those people are goofballs. Sorry naysayers, it’s totally worth it. It was reassuring and heartwarming to see her standing there, imagining what it must have been like for so many others in our history to see her for the first time. It was also heartwarming to know I didn’t pay one American penny to see her.
It’s no big secret that the Staten Island Ferry a free way to see the Statue of Liberty, but it’s also a fun little ride with commanding views of Lower Manhattan. You’ll see her from a little distance, but that was fine with me because the price was on-point.
Roosevelt Island Tramway
Since we’re discussing the finer points of unique low-cost transportation, it would be a grievous oversight if I didn’t recommend the Roosevelt Island Tramway. What a unique and fun way to see more of the city (at the price of a subway ride)! If you have kids, or adults that act like kids, they’ll love it. The cable-driven tramway will lift you up and over the East River to Roosevelt Island where you can check out some some more great NYC views. There’s even a great little place to grab a bubble tea, juice, or ice cream while you’re there.
DUMBO, Brooklyn
DUMBO is just across the East River from Manhattan not far from the Brooklyn Bridge, but directly under the Manhattan Bridge. In fact, the name DUMBO is an acronym for “Down Under the Manhattan Bridge Overpass.” It’s a bit of an uppity area, but still cool. It’s also home to the insta-famous, uber-photogenic Manhattan Bridge photo opportunity below, which scored me extra points with the teenage daughters. What I thought would be a low-point on our New York City vacation turned out to be a highlight. BOOM! If you’re visiting New York City with teens, DUMBO is not to be missed!
Dumbo is a great place for photos. I recommend hiring a professional photographer to get some quality photo portraits taken here.
Central Park Bike Ride
I found a great Groupon discount for bicycle rentals near Central Park. We covered a lot more ground on bike and the three of us toured a sizeable portion of the park that day. With secluded woods, massive granite outcroppings, huge ponds, and open fields, the park has amazing natural diversity. You can easily find yourself in a quiet corner of the park feeling a million miles away from it all. It’s also a great place to just sit and admire the surrounding skyline.
If you want to learn more about the park as you go, this Central Park bike tour is a great option.
High Line
The High Line is a repurposed elevated subway train line. The track where subway cars once raced between buildings, has been converted into a walking path with gardens, trees, and art. It’s kind of surreal walking down a natural-seeming path that is surrounded by buildings and city activity. It was a free and fun way to get us to our next destination, The Chelsea Market.
Chelsea Market
My daughters loved the Chelsea Market (I enjoyed it too). The girls had a great time walking around the historic building while checking out shops selling hip local art, jewelry, and fashion. There are some other shopping options to keep middle-aged men interested as well.
What We’d Skip on Our Next New York City Vacation
The good news is that there weren’t any attractions that were terrible on our New York City vacation. Below are some of the things we did and would most-likely skip on a subsequent vacation. If you have the time and energy to spare and think you’d enjoy these places, then by all means, check them out.
Radio City Music Hall
In all fairness, Radio City Music Hall was only planned as a quick passing visit from the outside. I’m sure there’s much more to it but we weren’t really interested in the first place.
Little Italy
I thought it would be bigger (that’s what she…). Italian culture reduced to half a block of (what may be very good) restaurants and souvenir shops. Hey – fugetaboutit!
Wall Street
Interesting to see if you’re already passing through, but certainly not a destination within the city (unless you’re Gordan Gekko).
9/11 Memorial & Museum
I’m torn on this one. I did want to go, but I also did not. I thought it was important that we go, so we went. I am glad I was able be at the memorial and spend a few minutes reflecting, remembering, and paying our respects to all those who were murdered that awful day. I was surprised at how much sadness, anger, and disgust was still tucked away within me and bubbling-up inside (and I didn’t even know anyone there personally).
We opted to skip the museum entirely and I did my best to stuff the dark feelings away. It is a heavy place to be. I mean no disrespect to any the heroes who were there that day or thereafter. It’s possible to argue that there was an even greater amount of humanity and heroism that day than barbarism.
Restaurants & Dining – Some NYC Food & Dining Highlights
To save costs, we limited how much we dined out. We did eat at some food courts and other restaurants, but below were the standout dining spots on our New York City vacation.
Sarge’s Delicatessen
No trip to New York City with teens is complete until you’ve had a meal at a famed New York City deli. I’m not going to even try to argue which New York deli has the best blah, blah, blah. I’m guessing none of them suck. So, if you want to argue that Katz’s or Liebman’s or some other deli is better, you win. I have no idea if Sarge’s is the best in New York, but I do know that everything we ate was hot-damn good and I’d eat it again. I felt like the food was reasonably priced for the the huge portions and excellent quality we were served. Nom-nom-nom.
Baz Bagel & Restaurant
This was a really good, but unexpected, finds in the Little Italy neighborhood. Baz Bagel was the perfect cozy stop for lunch. The bagel sandwiches we had were made to perfection. Baz serves huge, soft New York bagels made in the exactly-right consistency and bite. I’m glad this place is nowhere near where I live because I would consume dangerous amounts of bagels with lox and cream cheese.
Itinerary – Our New York City With Teens Vacation Plan
Visiting New York City with teens is one of the best ways to experience the city. Here is the actual travel plan for our trip to New York City. The formatting may be a little wonky in places due to the way this copies out of the TripIt app. I promise you, I did my best to clean it up as much as I could.
New York City, August 2019 Aug 12 – 22, 2019 | |
Sun, Aug 18 | |
| | 4:00 AM CDT Drop Off PARK ‘N FLY |
| | 5:55 AM CDT XXX to LGA Southwest Airlines |
9:00 AM EDT Arrive New York (LGA) | |
| | 9:30 AM EDT SUPERSHUTTLE |
| | 12:00 PM EDT Arrive Hampton Inn Manhattan-Madison Square Garden Area Check-In: 12:00pm 116 West 31st Street, New York NY 10001-3401, US 12129479700 |
| | 12:30 PM EDT $1 Pizza |
| | 1:45 PM EDT Times Square / Gulliver’s Gate 1:45pm to 2:45pm |
| | 3:00 PM EDT Rental Bike NYC (Groupon) 40 W 55th St, New York, NY 10019, USA 3:00pm to 3:25pm |
| | 3:30 PM EDT Central Park Bike Ride 3:30pm to 5:00pm |
| | 5:15 PM EDT Rental Bike NYC (return) 40 W 55th St, New York, NY 10019, USA 5:15pm to 5:30pm |
| | 6:00 PM EDT Sun Sweet Fresh Market 838 6th Ave, New York, NY 10001, USA +1 212-532-8383 |
Mon, Aug 19 | |
| | 9:00 AM EDT Chinatown/Little Italy 2306 Voorhies Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11235, USA 9:00am to 12:00pm |
| | 1:35 PM EDT Radio City Music Hall 1260 6th Ave, New York, NY 10020, USA 1:35pm to 1:45pm |
| | 2:00 PM EDT Top of the Rock 30 Rockefeller Plaza, New York, NY 10112, USA 2:00pm to 3:00pm |
| | 3:15 PM EDT St Patrick Cathedral 5th Ave, New York, NY 10022, USA 3:15pm to 3:30pm |
| | 4:00 PM EDT Grand Central Terminal 4:00pm to 4:30pm |
| | 5:30 PM EDT Sarge’s Delicatessen & Diner 548 3rd Ave, New York, NY 10016, USA +1 212-679-0442 |
Tue, Aug 20 | |
| | 9:00 AM EDT Staten Island Ferry 4 South St, New York, NY 10004, USA 9:00am to 10:30am |
| | 11:13 AM EDT NYC Ferry – Wall Street Ferry to Brooklyn Bridge Park - Pier 1 Depart Wall Street Ferry Pier 11 / Wall St., South Street, New York, NY, USA 11:25 AM EDT Arrive Brooklyn Bridge Park – Pier 1 2 Furman St, Brooklyn, NY 11201, USA |
| | 12:10 PM EDT Dumbo Brooklyn 39-21 Washington St, Brooklyn, NY 11201, USA 12:10pm to 12:20pm |
| | 1:00 PM EDT Starbucks 67 Front St, Brooklyn, NY 11201, USA +1 718-855-0856 |
| | 3:00 PM EDT Brooklyn Bridge walk to Manhattan 18 Centre St, New York, NY 10007, USA 3:00pm to 3:30pm |
| | 4:30 PM EDT 9/11 Memorial & Museum 1 Bowling Green, New York, NY 10004, USA 4:30pm to 6:30pm |
| | 7:00 PM EDT Gogi Grill - Chelsea 599 6th Ave, New York, NY 10011, USA +1 917-261-4688 |
Wed, Aug 21 | |
| | 10:00 AM EDT High Line 5861 High Line, New York, NY 10001, USA 10:00am to 10:30am |
| | 10:00 AM EDT Washington Square Park / NYU 10:00am to 11:00am |
| | 10:30 AM EDT Chelsea Market 75 9th Ave, New York, NY 10011, USA 10:30am to 12:00pm |
| | 12:15 PM EDT NYU Neighborhood 12:15pm to 1:15pm |
| | 2:00 PM EDT Central Park / Sheep Meadow 2:00pm to 4:30pm |
| | 6:00 PM EDT The Plaza Food Hall 1 W 59th St, New York, NY 10019, USA +1 212-759-3000 |
| | 7:30 PM EDT Roosevelt Island Tramway 7:30pm to 8:30pm |
Thu, Aug 22 | | 8:00 AM EDT Depart Hampton Inn Manhattan-Madison Square Garden Area Check-Out: 11:00am |
| | 9:00 AM EDT PENN STATION NY – Penn Station – NJ Transit Depart Penn Station – NJ Transit 2 Pennsylvania Plaza, New York, NY 10121, USA |
| | 9:30 AM EDT NORTH JERSEY COAST LINE - Newark Liberty Airport stop Depart Newark Liberty Airport stop Newark Liberty Airport stop |
| | 9:50 AM CDT AIRTRAIN TO TERMINAL - newark airtrain p4 stop to p4 hotel shuttles Depart newark airtrain p4 stop p4 |
| | 12:05 PM EDT EWR to XXX Southwest Airlines , Terminal A, Gate 14 |