Our New Years trip to New York City
Paradise Falls Family have recently returned from a wonderful festive trip to New York over New Year. In today’s post we provide a brief rundown of what a trip to New York at this time of year is like and how we enjoyed this as a family.
Make sure to check out the rest of the website where we’ve gone into more detail on how you can spend your time New York including a more detailed summary of family friendly activites, dining options and what you can get up to at Christmas and New Year.
What did we book? We booked 5 nights in New York flying from London Heathrow to JFK departing on 28th December and returning on 2nd January. We travelled during the kids’ Christmas break from school so it fit really well for us. We managed to get our flights with our airmiles so these were pretty cheap despite the time of year, and then stayed at the Lotte New York Palace. Normally this would be outside of our price range but we found that hotels away from Times Square to be surprisingly good value at this time of year, so we took our chance to treat ourselves.
What can you get up to in New York at this time of year? Visiting New York over the Christmas period is a really special experience, particularly for families. New York features in many classic Christmas movies, so for kids it can be a really exciting experience seeing all of the fun magical places and activities that they’ve seen on screen. One of our favourite things to do is to go ice skating and there are some iconic locations in New York. We love the Rockefeller Centre but the Wollman Rink in Central Park is wonderful too, as is Bryant Park. A Christmas show is also special and we loved the Radio City Rockettes Christmas Spectacular. Regardless though wherever you go in the city there are wonderful decorations and spectacular Christmas trees to enjoy.
Did we enjoy staying at the Lotte New York Palace? We love staying at the Palace, and this was our third stay but our first since we had children. We found it to be just as special and we loved staying here as a family. At the same time though with it being an incredibly busy time of year, we did find it a little busy and so the service perhaps not quite as strong as we’d normally expect. For this reason we’d say if you get a good deal then go for it, but if not there are plenty of other good options in the city.
Would we recommend a family trip to New York? Without a doubt yes. New York is our favourite city in the world and we love coming back here again and again. Fortunately our kids seemed to love it as much as we do so we’ll definitely be back. It can be a full on trip though with so much to do and usually so little time to do it. For this reason we’d maybe wait until your kids are a little older and can walk a fair distance, as well as appreciate the sights and exciting activities on offer. Ours were around 10 and 8 when we first visited and we’d say this was a perfect age for their first trip.
What are our top tips for a family trip to New York?
Plan your time carefully and well in advance. Some activities book up and are not all located in the same part of the city so think carefully about how to spend your days. For example we always have a day downtown to cover this all in one go, and then usually divide the rest of the days between our activities in midtown, booking any key shows or activities in advance to build our days around them. We tend to use Get Your Guide (https://gyg.me/oFMjsPf1) or Viator (vi.me/2ORtn) with our affiliate links provided.
Alternatively use a Go City pass. Normally we don’t go for tourist passes such as these, but with so many bookable activities in New York, its a no-brainer. We made use of this to book several activities and saved quite a bit of money.
Be prepared for changeable weather. Summers in New York can be incredibly hot, while winters are incredibly cold. In fact with the wind-chill on our recent trip the temperatures were colder than we’d experienced in Lapland. This really wasn’t comfortable so pack layers, gloves, hats, scarves etc. Also be prepared for rain - heavy rain when you’re out shopping can really put a dampener on your day.
Stay in midtown. Some hotels may appear cheaper or fancier in other parts of the city. However midtown is where you’ll want to spend most of your time. You won’t thank yourself for a long journey at the end of a busy day of sightseeing so pick your hotel in midtown carefully.
Make the most of the jet lag. If you’re travelling from the UK like us you’ll be up at 4am for the first few days. Make the most of this, visiting places while they’re quiet or getting out and about. There’s so much to see even before places properly open! Also make sure to visit Times Square first thing in the morning - it’s empty at this time of day and we have some wonderful pictures here.
Check the schedules for the top sports teams. We LOVE catching a game in New York - baseball, NFL, basketball, ice hockey. There’s usually something going on. Seeing a game in Madison Square Garden is a special experience the whole family can enjoy.
Don’t be afraid to try the subway. We were put off for years but took the plunge on this latest trip and found it to be safe, convenient and cheap. Just take the same precautions you would on any public transportation in a major city.
Budget carefully. New York is an expensive trip so budget accordingly while you’re there. Make sure you have money set aside for the activities you want to enjoy plus plenty for dining and souvenirs. That being said there are ways to save money - for example using the subway and eating sensibly - see our guide for more on dining options.
Be prepared to walk. New York is a massive city with so much to see that you’ll inevitably walk your socks off. It’s worth it though!
Watch out for scams. We’ve seen an increase in tourist scams since we first visited. These include the tuk tuks buzzing around the city, the characters roaming and photo bombing in Times Square and some of the food trucks dotted around the city. We were recently charged over $100 for a hot chocolate on our credit card so use cash where possible and always confirm prices!
And finally, HAVE AN AMAZING TIME! New York is the most amazing city on earth and we love coming back here again and again. Head over to our instagram page if you want to chat or get more advice on your trip, or visit our YouTube channel for our vlog series covering our family visits.