First trip to NYC with 2 little kids

Hi there,

We are a fmaily of 2 adults and 2 kids (age 3 %26amp;6).My husband has a conference in whiteplains and we are joining him.Just needs some tips about where to stay.I was thinking about staying in NYC and my husband commutes using the metro but he is not comfortable leaving me in the city by myself with 2 kids..because of the stories we hear that NYC not that safe.

I just want to make sure that I take advantage of the time while he is at the conference is there anything in whiteplains that is kid friendly .How about using the metro with the kids is that safe?? Any recommendation will be very helpful as this is our first trip to NY .

Thanks

First trip to NYC with 2 little kids

Hi

You will be safe in New York city. White plains is nice but not like the city.

Here is one place you can go

http://www.ryeplayland.org/

Have a look at this hotel (example) on the upper west side. In manhattan if you change your mind.

http://www.milburnhotel.com/families.html

I would also suggest reading trip reports etc.

tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g60763-i5-k473208-鈥?/a>

First trip to NYC with 2 little kids

Hundreds of thousands of women are living, and working daily in Manhattan. The Manhattan of CSI NY and Law and Order exist only on TV. In fact, there have been a number of articles about the number of people who are raising families in Manhattan. ( years ago once a couple had kids they moved to the suburbs for grass and family life) At any given time you will find women alone on public transportation with their children. As already said, there is really no much to do in White Plains. Have you looked in the search section or stickies to find out about families who have visited with little kids and what they have done.

I%26#39;m not sure why your husband would assume that White Plains is any more safe than NYC, nor why you seemingly agree and accept that.

We don%26#39;t have a ';metro';- we have a subway, and people of all ages take it day and night. It%26#39;s not as if this is a city where women stay locked inside with their children while the men go out and work.

You hear ';stories'; about New York. Funny, I have heard all kinds of stories about the sort of people who live in the upper midwest. Shall we swap a few, and then both agree that foolish, baseless stories invented by the ignorant and believed by the gullible and the uniformed are not things that sensible people use as the foundation for their plans?

Alice: I think the original poster meant that her husband would take the metro north to white plains while they stayed behind in the city. At least that%26#39;s how i read it.

The city is perfectly safe. Probably even safer then Rochester. Use common sense and you in the kids will have a great time.

I grew up right outside of White Plains and worked there for years. It%26#39;s hard to believe the changes that this city has seen. There are new hotels, malls and Mamaroneck Avenue has a good supply of restaurants. However, in comparison to New York it%26#39;s pretty boring indeed.

I have no idea who told you that New York isn%26#39;t safe. For the past decade or so, it%26#39;s been the safest city in the country. This is a stereotype that is woefully out of date, and simply not true. You and your kids will be safe in both the city and the subway. Your six year old will love the subway, all kids do.

One of the things that New York has done very well lately is upgrade its playgrounds. Here is a list of various playgrounds for the younguns:

nymag.com/urban/鈥laygrounds1.htm

To get from White Plains to NYC you take MetroNorth. Here is the schedule for White Plains

as0.mta.info/mnr/schedules/sched_results.cfm

moon716, please know that you and your children (and husband) have nothing to fear. I live in Columbus, OH and I would not hang out in our downtown area by myself at night, let alone with my child, but as for NYC...............absolutely no apprehension about it. I often travel to the city on my own and have never felt unsafe in any way while walking around after dark. My husband and I are taking our 4 yr old daughter to the city this summer for her first visit. I will not hesitate to take her out by myself if hubby chooses to stay at the hotel or do something on his own. Riding the subway is absolutely safe and there is no reason to be fearful. It%26#39;s a shame that so many who have never experienced NYC have no idea how ridiculous the notion is that the place is unsafe. Use common sense and you will have no problems.

As for a hotel, I reco quikbook.com. Great site and you can usually find some really good deals on there, at least I have. Good luck and enjoy planning!

Thanks for everyone who gave helpful information.

Some of the posters seem like they are offended by what I said about NYC not being safe.

First My husband does not think whiteplains is safer,simply he wants us within close proximity in case anything happens,and also I don%26#39;t think we still live in the middle ages where men go to work and women don%26#39;t...please people use some common sense before jumping into conclusions.I gave a brief descripition but not my life story..for whomever got very defensive it makes sense for both parents to be together when you have a special need kid that is one of the info I did not include in my post.Yes I would love to take the kids to NYC and have fun but with the restrictions I have (an autistic kid that runs away if not bound to a stroller)doesn%26#39;t make cruising around NYC by myself so appealing.Yes NYC might be safe but from what I know it is very busy you have thousands of people on the street with a blink of an eye I might lose my kid that what makes it unsafe for my kid.

we have decided to stay 2 nights in whiteplains and 2 nights in NYC.What area in NYC is the best for the kids? Around central park or midtown?

Whatever you do at home with your kids, you can do in NYC.

However, New York City can be sensory overload for many people...lots of colors, lights, crowds, noise, lots of movement, etc. If your kids aren%26#39;t used to that kind of %26#39;busy%26#39; environment, you might just have to plan a bit carefully for a day in the City. You%26#39;ll find much here that will engage your kids. What do your kids enjoy at home?