Frugal Mama » Travel & Transportation

36 Fun, Free Printable Travel Games to Entertain the Kids on Your Next Trip

Amy — Fri, 07 Oct 2011 11:46:12 +0000

Traveling with kids. It can be trying. And hilarious.

(Here we are on our last trip to Italy.)

I know how it feels, so I rounded up as many games as I could — from paper dolls to pinwheels, mazes to maps. You can see them all at Parentables:

36 Fun, Free Printable Travel Games to Entertain the Kids on Your Next Trip

Hope you get some good ideas!

The Real Cost of Buying a New Car

Amy — Fri, 09 Sep 2011 17:28:48 +0000

The average car payment is $500 per month. Most people live with a car payment their whole lives, and besides housing, it’s their largest expense.

Our used cars in front of our used house

A Multi-Millionaire or a New-Car Owner?

If you invested $500 per month from age 25 to age 65 in a mutual fund averaging 12 percent (the eighty-year stock market average), you would have over $5 million, says Dave Ramsey, best-selling personal finance author and host of the Dave Ramsey radio show. That is why Ramsey thinks that “taking on a car payment is one of the dumbest things people do to destroy their chances of building wealth.”

I have just finished reading Ramsey’s Total Money Makeover and I was inspired. I love how he spells out a plan of attack for getting out of debt and then saving money for the future.

Buying a new car or leasing a new car seems pretty normal these days, but since Ramsey is passionate that new cars are a bad deal, I thought it could be a good topic for discussion.

But Who Can Buy Cars with Cash?

So how do you buy a car if you don’t finance it? You could put $500 in a piggy bank for just ten months and you would have enough for a $5000 used car, says Ramsey. Or 20 months for a $10,000 used car (which happens to be the kind of car I drive). You can read more about my car in this article I wrote at Parentables: How I Saved $11,000 on My New Car (and You Can Too).

My 2003 Honda Pilot

Granted, Dave Ramsey is an anti-debt zealot. But even though he is now a multi-millionaire and he clearly loves cars, he refuses to buy a new car. If you’ve read The Millionaire Next Door, you’ll know that the average millionaire drives a second-hand car.

Ramsey thinks it’s because people who are smart with money are not going to buy something that loses over half its value in the first four years. That is almost $100 per week in lost value, and to understand the concept, Ramsey suggests we open our window on the way to work once a week and throw out a $100 bill. So even if you are not paying interest in a car loan, the new car deal is still costing you dearly.

What about Leasing?

I looked into leasing the last time we needed a car, because I didn’t really get if it was a good deal or not. Consumer Reports and Smart Money magazine think that leasing a car is the worst way to get a car, and Ramsey shows us why.

Leasing is the car industry’s largest money-maker because, even though you are technically renting the car, the dealer is also charging you interest. So your monthly lease payment not only covers the loss of the car’s value as you drive it, Ramsey explains, but it includes hefty interest that you pay for that new-car smell. “The auto industry lobbyists are so powerful that the law does not require full lender disclosure,” according to Ramsey, but he estimates that the average interest rate is 14%.

Then there are the charges for going over the allotted mileage and the penalties for “excessive wear and tear,” which they supposedly get you for every time.

You Can Still Have Fun with Cars

Mark with a small fleet of his cars

There’s something with men and cars. From the age of one, my son Mark has been obsessed, and his little brother is equally fascinated. J.D. Roth of Get Rich Slowly is very open about his obsession with Mini Coopers. Ramsey still loves cars but he pays cash, and he buys (expensive) used cars.

I agree that if something gives you great pleasure, you should either make room in the budget or save up (not go into debt). My husband drives an Audi TT, a darling little sportscar, which he got for a great price used from eBay. It was eight years old when he bought it, but in great condition, and it continues to make him happy.

So I’m not saying that love of material things is bad. But there are smart ways we can satisfy our desires.

And after all this talk, I can see the writing on the wall. One day we will have more (I hope a lot more) money, but if we’re smart, we’ll still be buying used cars. Oh well, that’s OK. I’m one of those weird people who doesn’t even like the new car smell.

For more on how to save money on cars, there is Dave Ramsey’s video Drive Free, Retire Rich. Or if you are thinking of saving even more money by bypassing the car completely, J.D. Roth recommends How to Live Well Without Owning a Car.

So what about you? Do you love new cars? Do you think you could be swayed into buying a used one if you could get rich slowly? Let us know in the comments!

How to Wash Your Clothes on Vacation

Amy — Thu, 28 Jul 2011 15:27:44 +0000

Unfortunately I now know a lot about this topic. While I would take a coin-op laundromat any day, that wasn’t possible on our recent trip to Italy, so I saved even more money by washing our clothes the old-fashioned way.

I have some tips on how exactly to hand-wash your clothes while traveling at Parentables, as well as some handy travel laundry products you can pack to make the experience as quick as possible.

Even though scrubbing shorts with shampoo in the sink didn’t figure into my image of our trip, the upside was that I didn’t have to deal with the post-vacation laundry pile-up.

For more, see How to Hand Wash Clothing While You’re Traveling

and

8 Essential Products for Washing Your Clothes on Vacation.

If you have any pearls to add on this topic, please share in the comments. Thank you!

Frugal Mama Splurges: an Italian Beach Vacation

Amy — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 12:00:16 +0000

After 24 hours of travel which included:

2 car trips
3 shuttle buses
1 airport tram
3 flights (2 nearly missed)
1 hunormous French airport

3 security check-ins
1 lost (and found) suitcase
7 carry-ons
1 stroller, and
a 6-hour layover in Milan, in which we managed to find an airport hotel and get 2 hours of sleep,

we arrived at this sort of utopia on the coast of Sardinia.

As we drove into the resort, past the riding horses and the team of golf carts that take people to their rooms, some clinging like cacti to the mountainsides, I felt peace.

With just the sound of the sea, birds twittering, and the distant thop-thop of tennis being played, I realized that a major source of pollution in modern life is noise.

This is a splurge for us. The last time we came to Italy was two years ago for Enrico’s brother’s wedding when, in a tragic turn of events, his mother was at the same time dying of a major heart attack.

Last summer we used Enrico’s vacation to move to Syracuse, and we made the tough (but ultimately happy) decision to send our daughters, then 6 and 8, by themselves to visit their grandfather.

Now before Enrico’s new job begins, it was our chance to take a family trip to Italy. Sardinia, prized for its white sand, turquoise waters, and rocky Mediterranean landscape, was not a budget choice.

But to Italians like my husband, who normally settles for the almost-muddy waters of the Adriatic coast, this is the true “mare.” His family has a tradition of going every ten years — 1970 (when Enrico was still a bun in the oven), 1980, 1990. 2000 was skipped due to our wedding, but we made it back, even if 21 years late.

1. Vacation means different things to different people.

I feel like such a party-pooper saying this, but as I confessed on my Facebook page, a beach-centric trip is not my ideal vacation. After spending my teenage years wanting to get “black,” I’m no longer a fan of sunning. And all that greasy cream, wind, cold saltwater, swim gear, and sand that sticks everywhere — twice a day every day for two weeks — is just not my idea of paradise.

But when you have the joy of sharing your life with a partner and sharing children with grandparents, you make compromises for the common good.

I love seeing my father-in-law holding his granddaughters’ hands as they walk toward the water. Luke’s chubby thighs covered with sand. Enrico making castles with Mark. And it’s a rare treat to laugh and catch up over dinner with Enrico’s brother, our sister-in-law, and their new baby.

Sure, I’m not exploring new places, but in an all-inclusive resort, I don’t have to deal with transportation issues, tipping, searching for the perfect restaurant, and finding ways to entertain the kids. There are always plus sides to appreciate, if I choose to.

2. You can’t take it home with you.

Really? All this money spent and all we get to take home is a t-shirt? Yet of all people, I know that good feelings from positive experiences have been shown to last longer than the good feelings from material things.

After a week passed here in no time, it was my wake-up call. I told myself: make good memories, enjoy everything you can about this time, focus on what you love (and ignore the things you don’t care for).

If your vacations are anything like ours, you know that they aren’t always ideal, paradisiacal, super-fun fests. But that’s OK. Vacations are generators of family legends — even if it was the time you got locked out of the room, threw up on the boat, or accidentally said something obscene in a foreign language.

You can’t get your money back, so you might as well get your money’s worth.

3. Some people have to be forced to relax.

It guess it’s appropriate that, after spending much of my 20s as an alcoholic, I would start off my 40s as a workaholic.

My father always wanted me to find a career that I loved so much I didn’t want to take a vacation. Dare I say, I think I’ve found it?

Yet, I grant that it’s been good for me to have to walk up and down a steep hill to the lobby with a laptop that weighs as much as a small alligator in order to get online. I’m spending more time reading and thinking about long-term goals, like the book I’d like to write.

So even if I don’t think I need a “vacation,” I see that a change of scene and routine can help me to think about things in a new light, give me time to reflect on how things are going, and to focus on the big picture.

To avoid making myself look even more like a dull Jack, I’m going to stop here and ask about you.

I’m curious: Do you like the kind of vacation where you can just melt into a lounge chair? (Is that even possible after kids?) Or do you like the kind where you feel like you are on an adventure? And, finally, do you think vacations are worth the money we spend on them? Let me know in the comments!

Plan a Weekend Getaway with the Girls — You Won’t Regret It

Amy — Thu, 02 Jun 2011 13:22:36 +0000

It all started five years ago when some friends and I met up at our 15th college reunion. Every year since then we have managed to get away for a few days, and here we are at our 20th reunion last weekend.

This article I wrote for Parentables tells about our experience and gives some tips for planning your kids-free trip.

Few things feel as good as spending a couple of days relaxing with friends. Especially when, in real life, conversations are more like snippets truncated by, “He hit me!” and relaxing means collapsing in bed with a stack of mail.

Read more at Parentables, where I blog twice a week.

Avoid These Nasty Surprises When Booking Hotels

Amy — Fri, 20 May 2011 15:41:24 +0000

Please head on over to Parentables to read the full text of this article I wrote about my funny, and not so funny, recent experiences with lodging.

When was the last time you stayed in a dive motel? For me, it was just three weeks ago, and I’m still grossed out.

I had gone down to Washington, D.C. on a solo house-hunting trip, and in order to avoid paying $250 a night for a city room, I found space in an Alexandria Days Inn for just $70.

Barefooted teenagers grasping Big Gulps stared at me as I walked past trashed rooms with my little rolling suitcase and mom sweater set. Inside the room, the carpet was gummy with grime, as was everything else, and the phone and bedside lamp were broken.

How a Family of Four Can Enjoy a Spa-Like Vacation in Niagara Falls for Under $200 a Day

Amy — Tue, 10 May 2011 18:41:23 +0000

What is it about water that melts away stress? We just moved to a city just three hours away from Niagara Falls, and after seeing it for the first time in a quick day trip, I knew I had to come back. Yes, water is soothing, but there was something about the power of those falls that was magnetic.

So when my father-in-law from Italy came to visit this month, I found two rooms in a new hotel overlooking the falls for just $113 per night. The rooms had a Jacuzzi tub, two luxurious double beds, a flat-screen television and free Wi-Fi. Plus the hotel was within easy walking distance of tons of restaurants, cafés, attractions, and even casinos.

Head over to Parentables, where I blog twice a week, to see the rest. Thank you!

A Family Road Trip Packing List to Make Everyone Happy

Amy — Tue, 05 Apr 2011 15:29:56 +0000

We’ve just returned from another seven-hour road trip with four kids ranging from nine months to nine years. Car trips can be a surprisingly fun routine-buster, especially if you have all your traveling supplies. More at Parentables…

More at Parentables…

Prepare for a Family Vacation with this Pre-Trip Checklist

Amy — Wed, 30 Mar 2011 01:38:15 +0000

I often feel like I earn a vacation in the few days leading up to one. Tying up loose ends and packing for a whole family can be a Wonder Womanly task. Then there’s worrying about the empty house.

Believe me, I’ve had my share of homecomings with newspaper landslides, crackly plants, and overstuffed mailboxes. Now I use this simple checklist, so I can relax and start acting like I’m on vacation. More at Parentables…

More at Parentables…

Guide to New York City on a Budget, with Kids

Amy — Fri, 25 Mar 2011 01:30:26 +0000

New York is the kind of place where just walking around is a cultural adventure. Sure, you’ll want to splurge on a few tourist attractions, but to keep costs down, just pretend you’re a New Yorker.

I’ve lived in New York for nine years (and with three children and no money). Here is how we made our dollars stretch far. More at Parentables…

More at Parentables…

Looking for a Hotel Discount? Try These 5 Useful Tricks

Amy — Wed, 23 Mar 2011 01:29:15 +0000

In See How Easily You Can Find the Best Deals on Hotels, I talked about why I love Hotels.com. Yes, Hotels.com has a low price guarantee, but can you make the deal even sweeter? I tried out some of these tricks and found the answer was — yes. More at Parentables…

More at Parentables…

How I Saved $11,000 on My New Car (and You Can, Too)

Amy — Wed, 23 Mar 2011 01:14:32 +0000

Used, new, or leased? That was the question my husband and I wrangled with when we moved from New York City, where we had zero cars, to upstate New York, where we needed two.

Even though we had bought used before, I was dazzled by shimmery new crossovers like the Chevy Traverse. Hubby was tempted by the idea of a new car every few years by leasing. More at Parentables…

More at Parentables…

See How Easily You Can Find the Best Deals on Hotels

Amy — Tue, 22 Mar 2011 01:34:28 +0000

With four children, we have officially outgrown couch-surfing and even guest-room sojourning. Luckily I discovered that life is not over when you need a suite. Read more at Parentables…

10 Tips for Planning Plane Trips with Kids

Amy — Wed, 16 Mar 2011 14:26:57 +0000

Flying can wreak havoc on your budget, but sometimes it’s necessary. Maybe you’ve got a can’t-miss wedding. Maybe your love of traveling is why you scrimp and save.

Whatever the reason you choose to wing it rather than wheel it, there are ways to keep expenses from exploding.

We’ve always lived far from our parents, so my husband and I have been flying with our kids before they had teeth. And we just booked five tickets to Italy to see my husband’s family. Whew, that kind of took my breath away.

Here are my tips for containing costs, fresh from the trenches:

1. Don’t Finance RushMyPassport.com

If you are traveling outside the U.S., check expiration dates and apply now.

If your children are under 16 years old, keep in mind that both parents need to be present when applying for a passport. Most post offices offer passport service, and some will even take your photos. Check the State Department’s Passport Center for all the rules.

2. Be a Planner. A Serious Planner.

If you want to use frequent flyer miles, book your tickets a year in advance.

It sounds crazy, but you’ll end up squandering miles if you wait. For example, Delta only reserves a few seats to Europe on each flight at the rate of 60,000 miles. Tickets get increasingly “expensive” as the departure time gets closer. By the time we were ready to book our Italy tickets (four months in advance), the fare had doubled to 120,000 miles per ticket.

3. Do Like the Frugal Traveler

The New York Times’ Frugal Traveler recommends using Kayak to search for the cheapest flights and Hotels.com for lodging.

I have found both of these sites to be the most effective and user-friendly. Budget travel sites like Priceline and Hotwire will get you even cheaper rates, but since you don’t know exactly what you are getting until you pay, I don’t use them for family trips. Traveling with kids is unpredictable enough!

4. Try the Crystal Ball

Check out Bing’s Fare Predictor to see whether your ticket’s price is predicted to go up or down.

Of course the tool can only estimate, but since fares do fluctuate all the time, it’s worth trying.

5. Bank Your Bonus

Make sure you earn miles on every flight you take, but keep your frequent flyer accounts to a minimum.

For example, United, US Airways and Continental are partners, so only sign up for the miles program of one of these airlines. Enroll every child for an account where he can earn points too. Hey, every mile counts!

6. Babies are Frugal. Kind-of.

Children under the age of two usually fly free, if you don’t mind holding the wiggle-worm for those two … four … eight … hey, even ten hours, if you’ve got a sister in Argentina, like me.

It’s usually not possible to book your “lap infant” online, so you’ll have to call to make her reservation. (Note: If a child doesn’t pay for a ticket, she can’t earn miles. Darn.)

7. B.Y.O.T.

Telephone and ask questions if you need a human, but Book Your Own Ticket online to avoid a booking charge (such as $25 per ticket).

Also check in online to save a few bucks on baggage fees. You can print out your own boarding pass, scan it at a kiosk at the airport, get your baggage tags from an airline employee, and then drop your bags at a baggage drop.

8. Cradle on Board

If you are going on an overnight flight with a baby, ask about the availability of a bassinet.

The bassinet is attached to the bulkhead seats in front of the dividing wall. Most people also like the extra legroom, but there are a few downsides: you can’t stow toys and snacks under the seat in front of you and there may be a huge glowing movie screen over your baby’s bed.

9. Reward Yourself

Use your miles-earning credit card to pay for the tickets. Many cards will give you double or triple miles on travel purchases.

10. Unload Your Baggage

Most airlines will charge you for any checked luggage on domestic flights and anything past the first one on international flights.

See if you can rent, borrow or beg the stuff you need at your destination. See my other tips on minimizing the damage of luggage fees.

Finally, Something Free

Now for some good news. Strollers and car seats usually fly free of charge, and they don’t count toward your baggage allowance.

Also, you can “gate-check” your stroller right before you get on the plane and pick it up right as you get off the plane.

And, hopefully, from there, it’s just smooth sailing.

Do you fly with kids? What are your pre-trip strategies? Let me know in the comments section.

Photo credits: wing, boy.

5 Ways to Rack up Frequent Flyer Miles–Without Buying a Ticket

Amy — Sat, 12 Mar 2011 02:16:52 +0000

It’s hard to be a frugal mama while married to an Italian guy. Especially when it comes to travel. Going back to see the in-laws is a required pilgrimage every one to two years, and while Italy is certainly no second-rate destination, my measly 401K sometimes wishes that summer vacations were more the minivan-and-cooler variety.

That’s why I think frequent-flyer programs are the best travel invention in the past 30 years. I mean, who doesn’t love a free ticket? Even though nothing will rack up points as fast as a round-trip to Rome, there are plenty of wallet-friendly ways to pile up miles.

NYC with Kids on the Cheap (Downtown & Beyond)

Amy — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 14:28:39 +0000

This article is the final part in a series about visiting New York with children:
Part 1 | General Travel Guide
Part 2 | Uptown & Midtown

Here are our family’s favorite wallet-friendly destinations below 42nd Street and beyond the island of Manhattan.

West Village

The charming, Euro-flair West Village has a special place in my heart as Jane Street was my first home in the City, back when I was young and single. While kids might not get as much out of wandering down the quarter’s crooked, brownstone-lined streets, there are a few playgrounds (with restrooms) you can bribe them with, such as the strategically located Bleecker Playground or the maritime-themed Pier 51 Playground in Hudson River Park.

The Downing Street Playround, with its jewel box-like setting, is near my favorite pizza place: No. 28 Pizzeria at 28 Carmine Street. Outside of visiting Naples, this is about as close as you’ll get to tasting real Italian pizza. The owners and staff are Italian, and in true Neapolitan style, they only accept cash.

For a real Italian gelato to finish the experience, walk right by the lines at pricey G.R.O.M., and get a just-as-authentic scoop at Cones.

Another fun itinerary in the (far) West Village is a jaunt through the gritty yet glamorous Meatpacking District to the High Line, a park created on an old elevated railroad track (above 10th Avenue from Gansevoort to 20th St). Enjoy some unusual views of Chelsea’s post-modern architecture and the Hudson River, then grab a bite at Bill’s Bar and Burger. If you go in the late afternoon, you might catch some of the debauchery of the — believe it or not — decadent brunch party scene of the Meatpacking District.

Soho

These days Soho is more of a chic adult playground than an artsy quarter of cafes and funky shops, but there are still some vestiges from its more bohemian past.

For kids I would recommend the wacky and totally hands-on Children’s Museum of the Arts (182 Lafayette St. between Broome and Grand Sts.). Besides all the messy paints and other art activities, they even offer their own take on a ball pit — great for getting the wiggles out if it’s yucky outside. On Thursdays from 4-6 pm, the museum has a pay-what-you-wish admission policy.

When it’s time for grub, try Delicatessen for “international comfort food” like cheeseburger spring rolls, fish and chips, and some fun desserts like the candy-bar sundae. Its open-air and casual vibe all year-round is great for families.

Statue of Liberty and Waterfront Parks

First of all, if you’re going to visit the Statue of Liberty, you must get reservations ahead of time, or expect to wait for an hour or two in line.

You’ll still have to go through a serious security checkpoint, but that didn’t stop us from bringing our own picnic food. You can buy lunch on the island, but the food is greasy and overpriced, and there are plenty of tables and grassy areas for eating your own spread.

While nothing can compare to seeing Lady Liberty up close, you can get a gratuitous side view (and comfortable boat ride) on the free Staten Island Ferry.

Even if you decide to stay on terra firma, the gorgeously landscaped Battery Park is a great place to spend a few hours, taking in the sea air and the views of the financial district skyscrapers (and Lady Liberty, of course). The Park, which extends all the way up to Tribeca, where it is joined by the Hudson River Park, offers several cafe’s as well as playgrounds.

Two museums in the area have free hours: the Museum of Jewish Heritage (free on Wednesdays from 4–8pm) and the National Museum of the American Indian (always free).

Wall Street and South Street Seaport

Also down at the tip of Manhattan island is the financial district and the seaport. There is something deliciously atmospheric and sobering about the cavernous streets in this historic part of town, where money and power soak the air.

For a more light-hearted vibe, head over to see the tall ships docked at Pier 17 at South Street Seaport. There is plenty of boat action on the river to entertain kids and, on the other side of the cheesy mall and food court, is a man-made beach in the summer.

In the summer, Water Taxi Beach, sponsored by the boats that shuttle from Manhattan to Brooklyn, Queens and New Jersey, offers the unusual experience of sand-sifting-through-toes and Brooklyn-Bridge-gazing. The temporary beach even has a putt-putt golf course and a dance floor, which comes to life after dark with the over-21 crowd. The food is reasonable (if mediocre), but if you want to consume elsewhere, we found the management was okay with allowing our kids to just play in the sand.

The seaport area can be a bit touristy, but if you wander off the beaten path, you can get a real feel of old New York. Reminiscent of other historic seafaring districts like Annapolis, the Seaport has a distinct Colonial flavor that you won’t find anywhere else in New York.

An added plus? TKTS now has a ticket booth here, so you can score half-price tickets to a Broadway show in plenty of time for dinner and a subway ride up to Times Square.

Chinatown

Kids will be duly impressed by the foreign-country quality of Chinatown. We love wandering around, gawking at the beautiful Chinese lettering on all the signs, the curvy red-roofed architecture, and the colorful markets selling all sorts of unusual fruits, vegetables and sea creatures.

Adults and kids alike will love browsing the Pearl River emporium: a kind of Chinese department store chock full of curiosities, trinkets and practical items that won’t blow your budget.

If you’re in the area on a weekend, a memorable experience is doing brunch, Chinese-style, in one of the many dim-sum palaces. One of the most popular — also delicious and economical — is Jing Fong (20 Elizabeth Street between Bayard and Canal Streets), which we visited with a New York friend from Beijing. The Vegas-banquet-style room is humongous and carpeted, so noisy kids won’t make a dent. It’s easy to get intimated by the throngs of people waiting outside and the apparently arbitrary seating process (with loud speakers and a long escalator leading you up to the dining room when it’s your turn), but the place has buzz.

For another cheap and fun place to eat in Chinatown, my Chinese friends also recommend Quickly Shabu Shabu, where you can get Chinese fondue (meat cooked in hot broth) and bubble tea.

If you’re looking for an indoor activity, the Museum of Chinese in America is free on Thursdays from 11 am to 9 pm.

Bronx

There are many more things to see in this borough, but if you have limited time and/or tolerance for kid schlepping, most people focus on the two gems: the New York Botanical Garden and the Bronx Zoo.

The New York Botanical Garden, designed by the same landscape architect as Central Park, is grandiose and a delight for the senses. There is a children’s garden and educational center, as well as trams which ply through the park and pavilions for picnics. And it’s cheap too: adults $6 and children (2–12 years) $1. Plus admission is free on Wednesdays and from 10 am to 12 pm on Saturdays.

The Bronx Zoo will surprise with its majestic old-world architecture, as well as its vast leafiness. Fully updated with all sorts of exhibits and attractions (including a carousel, monorail and delightful children’s zoo), the Zoo will add another facet to your sense of New York. Wednesdays is pay-what-you-wish.

We liked getting to the Zoo via the plush BxM11 express bus, which makes stops along Madison Avenue between 26th and 99th Streets, then travels directly to the Zoo’s Bronx River entrance (Gate B). The 2 and 5 subways will also drop you off (just 2.5 blocks away from the Asia Gate).

Brooklyn

Of course Park Slope is the place to be if you are raising children in Brooklyn, but here are some other ideas for experiencing the quieter side of New York.

The Brooklyn Heights Promenade is fantastic for its picture-perfect views of Manhattan and the Statue of Liberty. Dream of being a New Yorker as you gaze at the neighborhood’s elegant brownstones, and wander along Montague Street where there are plenty of quaint places to grab ice cream, pizza or burgers.

Brooklyn Bridge Park is another fun destination right on the water, under the Manhattan Bridge, hence the moniker DUMBO (Down Under the Manhattan Bridge). The park also puts on a free summer outdoor movie series with some kid-friendly choices, and net fishing is organized by the Coastal Marine Resource Center.

If you like amusement parks, you might want to make the trek out to Coney Island. It will take you an hour (or more) by subway from Manhattan, but if you are not familiar with East Coast boardwalk beaches, it’s worth the haul. It’s a little run-down, with empty lots interspersed with family-run fun fairs, but it all adds to the colorful montage that is — in the words of a New Yorker my husband met — “big, funky New York.”

On Fridays from 3-5 pm, the New York Aquarium (right next to the amusement park) is pay-what-you-wish. Combined with a jaunt to the beach to dip your piggies in the water, it makes for a festive day. And the kids will be in heaven.

This article is the final part in a series about visiting New York with children:
Part 1 | General Travel Guide
Part 2 | Uptown & Midtown

Photo credit: South Street Seaport