Kids in the city
On the Upper West Side, Central Park and the natural history museum are a short walk away. Brooklyn Bridge Park gives children room to run after a day on the subway.
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New York City has five boroughs. Most first-time visitors stay in Manhattan, but Brooklyn and Queens have their own neighborhoods, museums and waterfronts. Book near the subway line you will actually ride.
Times Square, the Broadway theatres, Rockefeller Center and Grand Central are all in Midtown, a few blocks apart. It has the most hotels and the most subway lines. It also has the crowds and the street noise. Farther south, Chelsea and the Flatiron District sit between Midtown and Lower Manhattan, with the High Line and Madison Square Park.
Lower Manhattan is the base for the 9/11 Memorial, Wall Street, the Brooklyn Bridge and the Statue of Liberty ferries. Greenwich Village and the Lower East Side are better for evenings out. The Upper West Side and Upper East Side line Central Park and its big museums. Both are quieter and more residential after dark.
Across the East River, Williamsburg has restaurants and music venues, while DUMBO and Brooklyn Heights face the Manhattan skyline. Long Island City in Queens has waterfront parks and quick subway trips to Midtown. The nearest station matters more than the borough. Some Brooklyn and Queens addresses are a long ride from the Manhattan sights.
You don’t need a car in New York. The subway runs all night, buses cover the gaps, and for a short cross-town trip walking is often faster. Summers are hot and humid. Winter brings freezing nights and sometimes snow. Leave travel time between sights in different boroughs.
Stay around Times Square for the Broadway theatres, the 7 train and most other subway lines. Midtown East is closer to Grand Central and Rockefeller Center. The streets stay busy late. A room facing a major avenue can be loud, so look at the block before you book.
Around here: Times Square, Grand Central Terminal, Rockefeller Center, Bryant Park
The High Line, Chelsea Market and the galleries are in Chelsea, west of Sixth Avenue. The Flatiron area around Madison Square Park has good subway lines running uptown and downtown. Pick Chelsea for walks along the Hudson. For a trip spent mostly uptown, stay close to a subway station.
Around here: High Line, Chelsea Market, Madison Square Park
The Financial District is close to the 9/11 Memorial, the Battery Park ferries and the Brooklyn Bridge. Several subway lines meet here, but Midtown is still a train ride away. The streets around Wall Street empty out after office hours. For dinner, the Seaport and Tribeca have more going on.
Around here: 9/11 Memorial, The Battery, Brooklyn Bridge, South Street Seaport
These two neighborhoods sit on either side of Central Park. The Upper West Side is close to the American Museum of Natural History and Lincoln Center. The Upper East Side has the Metropolitan Museum of Art and Museum Mile. Both are calmer at night than Times Square. How fast you get downtown depends on your subway line.
Around here: Central Park, American Museum of Natural History, Metropolitan Museum of Art, Lincoln Center
DUMBO and Brooklyn Heights have East River views, Brooklyn Bridge Park and brownstone streets you can walk for hours. Williamsburg is farther north, with restaurants, shops and the L train into Manhattan. Some waterfront hotels are a long walk from the nearest subway stop.
Around here: Brooklyn Bridge Park, Washington Street, Brooklyn Heights Promenade, Williamsburg
Long Island City has hotels near Queensboro Plaza and Court Square, with several subway lines into Manhattan. Gantry Plaza State Park looks across the river at the Midtown skyline. Hotels by the stations get you into the city fastest. The waterfront is nicer for a stroll but farther from the trains.
Around here: Gantry Plaza State Park, Queensboro Plaza, MoMA PS1
The best walking weather runs from April to early June and again in September and October. Midsummer is hot and sticky, and winter is cold enough for snow. Holiday weeks pack Midtown. If you want to sleep away from those crowds, stay in a quieter neighborhood.
JFK and LaGuardia are in Queens. Newark Liberty is across the Hudson in New Jersey. From JFK, the AirTrain runs to the subway and the Long Island Rail Road. From LaGuardia, you take a bus to the nearest rail station. Amtrak arrives at Penn Station. Grand Central has Metro-North and Long Island Rail Road trains.
13 mi from downtown
From the terminals, the AirTrain goes to Jamaica, for the LIRR and the subway, and to Howard Beach, for the A train. Take whichever one gets you closer to your hotel.
8 mi from downtown
The free Q70 LaGuardia Link bus runs to Jackson Heights–Roosevelt Avenue and Woodside, with subway and LIRR connections. The M60 bus serves Upper Manhattan.
9 mi from downtown
AirTrain Newark links the terminals with Newark Liberty International Airport Station, where NJ Transit trains go to New York Penn Station. On a late flight, check that both are still running when you land.
The Upper West Side is close to Central Park and the American Museum of Natural History. Brooklyn Heights is good for waterfront walks, though the Manhattan museums are a subway ride away.
Central Park, the American Museum of Natural History and Brooklyn Bridge Park. For a longer day out, the Bronx Zoo and Coney Island are in other boroughs.
It is convenient for a Broadway show, but crowds and late-night noise can make bedtime hard. Look one or two subway stops away if sleep matters more than the theatre walk.
Ask how many beds the room has and how many people it sleeps. With a stroller, ask about elevators, and find out whether your subway station is step-free.
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