Couple w/ 2 year old going to NYC for the first time in Sept

Hello everyone. Fiancee and I are getting married in July and taking our honeymoon in Sept. 2 nights in Niagra Falls and 4 nights in NYC. I have NEVER been to NYC but have been all over the world..how crazy is that??

Anyways we will have our just barely under 2 daughter with us.

We are on a budget (arent we all) and we are probably going to book the Niagra Falls-NYC vacation package through expedia-price seems really reasonable.

The hotel we are looking at is the Hilton Garden Inn Times Square..rooms seems to be roomy and the location good. My friend recommended the Paramount but the rooms just seem to small and for a slightly lower price the Hilton seems even better.

What must we absolutely do in the 4 days we are there?

We plan on Central park, shopping, looking at maybe a boat cruise but with a 2 year old probably cannot do anything more than 2 hours.

What museums, shows do you recommend?

Is the subway system easy to figure out? I have been to London a few times, that subway system there is super easy and takes you to every corner of the city.

Also, with no rental car, what is the easiesty and cheapest way to get from JFK? Taxi? We are flying into JFK and out of LGA.

Havent booked anything yet, open to recommendations. Looking at hitting NYC Sept 22-26.

Couple w/ 2 year old going to NYC for the first time in Sept

Ok dumb question, but I suppose we are going to have to bring a car seat with us in case we take a cab? We have never travelled anywhere with her before, but it is too much hassle to find a sitter for a week, both my parents still work. I am trying to figure out how people get around town with a small child. I imagine we will be taking the subway most of the time, but I am concerned about getting from the airport.

Couple w/ 2 year old going to NYC for the first time in Sept

You don%26#39;t have to bring a car seat. You may bring one if you wish, but the laws about car seats do NOT apply to passengers in taxicabs.

I do not recommend any shows whatsoever. No one should think of bringing a two-year old to the theater.

The subway is easy enough to figure out, with the one thing that migght confuse you being the fact that in NYC some trains run express. Do a search on this site for ';Idiot%26#39;s Guide to the Subway'; and read more there.

To get from JFK, I recommend a taxi -- a flat rate of $45, plus tolls (if any) and tip. The cost of two (or maybe three -- I don%26#39;t know the small child policy) fares on the express bus from the airport to the Port Authority bus terminal near Times Square would be almost as much -- and the convenience would be worth it.

The museums to recommend depend on the kinds of things you like. Art? (and if so -- old masters or modern?) History? Dinosaurs? etc. You might also give an idea of the type of shopping you like -- hig fashion on a budget? Funky and interesting? An international flair? Fun souvenirs? etc.

First, congratulations! Now, would you like to tell us about the package you%26#39;re considering booking with Expedia. The easiest and best way to get from Niagara Falls to Manhattan is by plane from Buffalo, NY to either JFK or LGA. I%26#39;ve read that some of the packages include plane fare but what they don%26#39;t tell you is the plane is to/from Rochester rather than Buffalo, making the bus ride from the airport to Niagara much longer. Not what you want. I%26#39;m not a fan of pkgs., but if you don%26#39;t want to be bothered putting it together yourself, I understand. Just a heads up.

No problem with the Hilton Garden Inn. It%26#39;s been getting great reviews here lately. But you should also know with a 2 yr old people are often thrilled to have a 1 bedroom suite (2 rooms, a sitting room and a bedroom) so kids can nap, there are 2 tvs. etc. The Rihga Royal is a great suite hotel running a summer special for $199/night. Look at it on travelzoo.com. This hotel is also in a great location.

There has been much debate about the cfar seat issue. Bottom line, each set of parents is different. Most NYers don%26#39;t bother with dragging carseats around for cab rides. If you%26#39;re worried about the ride to/from the airport, bring your own (it could come in handy on the plane if you%26#39;ve bought her a seat). If you do a text search here for car seat or something similar, you%26#39;ll find lots of info.

I agree you can%26#39;t consider any adult show with a 2 year old. That said, there%26#39;s a baby sitting service called Baby Sitters Guild that%26#39;s gotten very good reviews if you%26#39;d consider that. Here%26#39;s a trip report from a couple with a child about the same age. At the very bottom they describe their experience with the co. There are other good tips there for you.

tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g60763-i5-k70681-l鈥?/a>

Ok, I guess what I meant for shows, is there any particular one for kids? Unless we can get a babysitter for a night, I don%26#39;t think we will going to a show, unfortunately.

The package I was looking at on Expedia, was flight from Phx-Buffalo, 4 star hotel by Niagra Falls for 2 nights (Courtyard Marriot), then a flight from Buffalo-NYC (JFK or LGA),in NYC for 4 nights, then NYC back to Phoenix. With booking the Hilton Garden Times Square for NYC we are getting a price of 1150.00 per person before taxes, for all flights and hotels. That seems reasonable to me.

I priced out the airfare seperately and came up with 396.00 per person (baby free she is just under 2) and by the time I price out Niagra Falls hotels and NYC, seems expedia was a good deal.

Is LGA a better alternative to JFK?

I will check out that babysitter service, if they are reputable I might be interested.

I guess we will leave the carseat at home. She will be flying on our lap.

Thank you for all help.

I checked out the Rihga Royal but that rate is only good for a week or 2 in July. Then it was 400/night. Seemed like a nice hotel though.

LGA is closer to Manhattan so taxi will be faster and cheaper. That said, Jet Blue is a great airline with individual tvs at each seat and they fly into JFK.

The pkg price sounds good, especially if it includes any tour or transportation from Buffalo to Niagara Falls. If not, you should check on that.

There%26#39;s a Disney theater called the New Victory that%26#39;s good for kids. Not sure at 2 it%26#39;s ideal though. newvictory.com

Children under the age of 4 are not allowed in Broadway shows.

I will look into transp. from Buffalo to Niagra. Might rent a car since I have 2 free day coupons anyways.

Sounds like LGa airport is much less hassle.

Won%26#39;t do a show unless we can do a babysitter. One of my coworkers is a broadway dancer and he is moving back to NYC in Sept..so maybe I can finagle him into babysitting for us for a night :) He has an apt right in Times Square.

First of all, congratulations on your upcoming nupital.

I just came from new york, spending 7 days there. I had 2 boys with me, age 10 and 12. They were tired, so was I.

I flew into LGA and out of JFK. LGA is much more convenient and closer than JFK. I paid about $30 for the taxi from LGA to a hotel close to Grand Central.

Taxi fare would differ depending on the traffic.

Out to JFK, we took taxi to the subway station where I don%26#39;t have to transfer, spent $7 for it Then straight to

the exit I am suppose to get out for JFK (which really did not cost me any, cuz I had 7 day metro cards).

But then I had to take the Air Train to go to the shuttle service area to get to my hotel. This cost me $12.50 for all 3 of us. (it is suppose to be $5 per head, got a ';group';discount.) Taking the subway to JFK was not hard at all. We all had one luggage to pull. We did fine. I think it would have cost us $51+ in taxi. So we really did not save much. But wanted to do it for an experience, wanted to have a glimpse of how other New Yorkers live.

I stayed at Murray Hill East, on 39th and Lexington.

3 blocks from Grand Central. I did it through Priceline.

Paid $150 per night plus tax for 5 nights. It was a great location, not noisy. Came with a kitchenette, so it really came in handy. Always ate breakfast in the room, heated up the leftover dinner or something. Because of the time difference, always got up late.

the room was quite large by NY standard. had a queen size bed and a sofa bed, so worked out great for us. This hotel is not a luxury hotel by any means, but it served us well. Just great location, away from the busy section of the town, yet easily accessible to subway and bus.

Central Park is just a hop away on the bus. Lots of things to do with kids, playgrounds, zoo...went there on Sat, and there was some stuff going on, so the kids got to participate on many free activities.

I wouldn%26#39;t recommend any museums or the plays. IWe did Natural Hx Museum, Met Museum of Arts..... it was too much for them. Way too many people, food was excellent on the both locations, though.

Overall, I don%26#39;t think NY city is good for little ones, they can be overstimulated...

went to Century 21 for shopping, too many people. this is near Ground Zero. Statue of Liberty is good, it would be nice for you have the ticket on hand, order online. went there on a weekday without a ticket and there was a longlonglong line for people without the tickets. so went back on Sunday around noon, and there was no line... go figure that one.

did empire state building, went right before the sunset, so was able to enjoy both the day and night view of the city. It was okay, just throngs of people..

But do not do the skyride, what a ripoff. it was so lame.

Do the street fair on Sunday. its fun.

I enjoyed the Jewish Museum, not on this trip, on a previous trip. and just loved it.

Went to see Phantom of Opera. tickets were sold out, but got the standing ones. It was like $24.oo per head. Had to stand up, but found some empty seats, so one of my sons were able to sit down most of the time. Dont%26#39; recommend it. Too tiring.

Do grand central terminal, I thought things were interesting there..

Went to Toys are Us in Times Square. There is a ferry wheel that your child might be interested in.

Went to the NY City Public Library, it was very impressive.

Did China town, little Italy, Soho... really nothing to talk about. If you have been to SF, and visited China town and Little Italy, just skip them.

I do recommend doing double decker bus tour.

I didn%26#39;t do it this time, but I did it previously and was worth the money.

Well, good luck..

Thank you for your help!

We booked at the BW Hospitality house.

Right now who is actually going on the trip is up in the air. My new husband may not even be able to go, so I might be on my honeymoon by myself lol. He is awaiting a killer job offer and if this trip interferes with it, he can%26#39;t go. If thats the case, I am going to skip the Niagara Falls part and just go to NYC with my sister and friend, and then I will not be bringing our 2 year old. Me having to handle her on my own that far away from home would not be a good vacation.

I have decided that TOTR at Rockerfeller Center is the place to see the city, the free staten island ferry to see SOL.

No interest in Chinatown, you have seen them once you have seen them all. Same with Little Italy.

The double decker tour sounds fun..we might do that one.

I also want to see the Museum of Science-with the dinosaurs and planets, that sounds really cool.

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