Family hotels near Central Park, by side of the park
Written October 2026
Which side of Central Park to sleep on with kids, and which hotels have a room for the whole family.
Sleep on the south side if the zoo and the carousel are the point, on the Upper West Side if it's the Museum of Natural History, and on the Upper East Side if it's the Met. That's the short answer. Central Park is 2.5 miles long, and a four-year-old does not walk the length of it, so the side you pick decides which half of the park you actually use.
The south end has the zoo, the carousel, Heckscher Playground and the Wollman Rink. The west side has the Museum of Natural History and Diana Ross Playground at 81st Street. The east side has the Met and the Ancient Playground at 85th Street, plus Billy Johnson Playground down at 67th. Each hotel below says which of those it's closest to, measured in a straight line from our map pin, so a real walk is a little longer.
Then there's the room, because this is New York. We kept to hotels with a real answer for three, four or five people: a suite with a door, a kitchen, bunks or a second bedroom. If you want the whole city and not just the park, the best family hotels in New York covers Midtown, Times Square and Brooklyn too.
Short on time? The zoo and carousel: the Lowell, the Plaza or Loews Regency. The Museum of Natural History: the Lucerne or Hotel Beacon. The Met: the Mark. A kitchen in every room: the Lowell, Hotel Beacon, the Gardens Sonesta or AKA Central Park. A family of five: the Empire, the Lucerne or Loews Regency.
How we picked
These are hotels near the park's edge that each have a suite, a kitchen or connecting rooms to point to. Distances are straight-line from the hotel's pin to the nearest gate or playground.
Central Park South: the zoo, the carousel and Heckscher
This is the pick for little legs. The Central Park Zoo, the carousel and Heckscher Playground are all a short walk from the south edge, and you can be back at the hotel for a nap without a subway ride. What you give up: the museums are about two kilometers north, and the rooms here lean grown-up.
The Plaza
Fifth Avenue at Central Park South
Why we picked it: Closest hotel here to the south gate, so the zoo, carousel and Heckscher are a short walk, and it has two- and three-bedroom suites.
The closest of any hotel here to the park's south gate: about 0.4 km to the zoo and Heckscher Playground and about 0.5 km to the carousel. For a bigger group, the hotel has multi-room suites, including two- and three-bedroom ones, and the Eloise Suite for any kid who knows the books.
The hotel says cribs can be requested. It doesn't suit anyone planning a museum-heavy trip: the Museum of Natural History and the Met are each close to 2 km away, which is a cab or a bus.
- Cribs
- Yes
- Connecting rooms
- Yes
- Suites
- Yes
- Pool
- No
AKA Central Park
West 58th Street off Fifth Avenue
Why we picked it: The apartment pick on the south side: a kitchen in every unit and a second bedroom, a few blocks from Heckscher Playground.
The apartment pick on the south side. It's serviced apartments (studios, one- and two-bedroom suites and penthouses) and every one has a kitchen, so breakfast doesn't need a restaurant. A second bedroom is the real find in this part of town.
Heckscher Playground is about 0.4 km away, and the zoo and carousel are about 0.5 km. It's an apartment building more than a hotel, so it suits a longer stay and not a family that wants a lobby with things going on.
- Suites
- Yes
- Fridge
- Yes
- Kitchenette
- Yes
- Laundry
- Yes
Mandarin Oriental, New York
Columbus Circle
Why we picked it: The indoor pool and connecting rooms suit a rainy day, and the Columbus Circle corner works best for the west half of the south end.
The rainy-day pick, with an indoor pool and family rooms and connecting rooms you can ask for. It's on the southwest corner, so it works best for the west half of the south end: Heckscher Playground is about 0.6 km and the carousel about 0.7 km.
The zoo is about 1 km, so it's the longest walk of the south-side hotels, and the stroller push down Central Park South adds up. It doesn't suit a budget, and it's not the one if the zoo is the whole plan.
- Cribs
- Yes
- Connecting rooms
- Yes
- Suites
- Yes
- Fridge
- Yes
- Kitchenette
- Yes
- Pool
- Yes, indoor, heated
The Upper West Side: Natural History and Diana Ross Playground
Stay here for the Museum of Natural History, and for the park's best-known west-side playground, Diana Ross at 81st Street. The blocks are quieter, but the zoo and carousel are a bus or a long walk south.
The Lucerne Hotel
West 79th Street
Why we picked it: Closest hotel here to the Museum of Natural History and Diana Ross Playground, with a two-bedroom Family Suite for a family of five.
The closest hotel on this list to the Museum of Natural History (about 0.45 km) and Diana Ross Playground (about 0.5 km). The Family Suite has two bedrooms, one with a king bed and one with a queen, with a living area between them. That puts a family of five in one suite with a door that closes.
The hotel's FAQ lists a crib or Pack 'n Play on request, subject to availability. It doesn't suit a family built around the zoo: that's about 1.8 km south.
- Suites
- Yes
- Fridge
- Yes
Hotel Beacon
Broadway at West 75th Street
Why we picked it: Every room has a kitchenette, which makes it the west-side pick for cooking a meal after a day at Natural History.
The kitchen pick on the west side. Every room has a kitchenette, and the suites add a living room with a sofa bed. The Natural History museum is about 0.6 km away and Diana Ross Playground about 0.7 km.
There's no pool, so it doesn't suit a family who wants a swim after a museum day. The zoo and carousel are about 1.4 km south.
- Suites
- Yes
- Fridge
- Yes
- Kitchenette
- Yes
- Pool
- No
- Free breakfast
- No
- Laundry
- Yes
The Empire Hotel
Across from Lincoln Center
Why we picked it: Halfway down the west side, so you can reach both the carousel and Natural History without choosing one end of the park.
The middle of the west side, which makes it the one for kids who want both halves. The carousel and Heckscher Playground are each about 0.7 km away, and the Natural History museum about 1.3 km.
The Corner Suite has two queen beds and a separate living room with a sleeper sofa. The One Bedroom Double Suite is made of connecting rooms: a bedroom with two double beds, a living room with a sofa bed, a wet bar and two bathrooms. It doesn't suit anyone who wants a kitchen, since the wet bar is the closest thing.
- Connecting rooms
- Yes
- Suites
- Yes
- Fridge
- Yes
The Upper East Side: the Met, the zoo and the Ancient Playground
The east side splits in two. The southern half, around 63rd Street, is a short walk from the zoo. The northern half, around 77th, is a short walk from the Met and the Ancient Playground. Both are quiet, residential and a long way from Times Square, which suits a kid who falls asleep in the stroller by 7pm.
The Lowell
East 63rd Street
Why we picked it: Closest hotel here to the Central Park Zoo, with a kitchen in every room and connecting rooms for a bigger group.
The closest hotel here to the Central Park Zoo, about 0.3 km, with Billy Johnson Playground about 0.7 km. Every room has a kitchen, many of the rooms can be connected, and the hotel offers babysitting and family rooms for a bigger group.
It doesn't suit a family who wants a pool. The Met is about 1.6 km north.
- Connecting rooms
- Yes
- Suites
- Yes
- Fridge
- Yes
- Kitchenette
- Yes
Loews Regency New York
Park Avenue at East 61st Street
Why we picked it: The east-side pick for five or six: a two-bedroom suite listed for up to six, and connecting rooms guaranteed through its program.
The family-of-five pick on the east side. The Park Avenue Two-Bedroom Suite has a king bed in one room and two double beds in the other, and the hotel lists it for up to six people. Its Connecting Comfort program guarantees connecting rooms when you book them. Cribs are available on request, and the restaurants have kids' meals.
The zoo is about 0.4 km away, and Billy Johnson Playground and the carousel are within a kilometer. It doesn't suit a family that wants a kitchen: a suite here is a bigger room, not an apartment.
- Cribs
- Yes
- Suites
- Yes
The Mark Hotel
East 77th Street
Why we picked it: The east-side hotel nearest the Met and the Ancient Playground, with a two-bedroom suite and connecting rooms for five.
The one for the Met, about 0.5 km away, and the Ancient Playground, about 0.4 km. The Two-Bedroom Suite has a king bed in one bedroom and a queen in the other, with a second bathroom. Connecting rooms are offered across most room types, so a family of five can end up next door to each other.
It doesn't suit a family hoping to be near the zoo: that's about 1.1 km south.
- Connecting rooms
- Yes
- Suites
- Yes
- Fridge
- Yes
The Gardens Sonesta ES Suites
East 64th Street
Why we picked it: A full kitchen in all 132 suites makes it the east-side pick for a long stay, though it sits the farthest from the park.
The most kitchen for the space. All 132 suites have a full kitchen, from a junior suite with a sleeper sofa to one- and two-bedroom suites, and the two-bedroom apartments are the ones for four to six people. It's a good fit for a long stay with a laundry day built in.
The zoo is about 0.8 km away, but you cross several avenues to get there, so it's the farthest from the park of the hotels here. It doesn't suit anyone who wants the park outside the door.
- Suites
- Yes
- Kitchenette
- Yes
Which room to ask for
For a family of four, look for a one-bedroom suite with a sofa bed or a room with two double beds. For five, ask for a two-bedroom suite or connecting rooms, and ask whether a rollaway fits the room you're booking before you count on one.
Walking to the park with a stroller
Walking across the park from one side to the other is slow with a stroller. If your hotel is on one side, plan your day on that side, and take the crosstown bus (66th, 79th or 86th) when you want the other. The zoo and carousel are mid-park at the south end, and the museums sit right on the edge, so you don't need the subway for most of this.
Questions
Which side of Central Park is better to stay on with kids?
The south side if the zoo, the carousel and Heckscher Playground are the plan, since they're all within a short walk. The Upper West Side if you want the Museum of Natural History and Diana Ross Playground, and the Upper East Side for the Met and the Ancient Playground. Pick the side of the museum you care about most.
What is the best hotel near the Central Park Zoo and carousel with kids?
The Lowell is the closest, about 0.3 km from the zoo, and every room has a kitchen. The Plaza is about 0.4 km from the zoo and 0.5 km from the carousel. Loews Regency is about 0.4 km from the zoo and has the bigger suites.
Can you walk to the Museum of Natural History from a Central Park hotel?
Yes, from the Lucerne (about 0.45 km) or Hotel Beacon (about 0.6 km). From the Empire it's about 1.3 km, and from the south side it's close to 2 km, which most kids will want a bus or a cab for.
Which hotels near Central Park fit a family of five?
The Lucerne's Family Suite has a king bedroom and a queen bedroom. Loews Regency's Park Avenue Two-Bedroom Suite is listed for up to six, and The Mark and the Gardens Sonesta have two-bedroom suites. The Empire's One Bedroom Double Suite is made of connecting rooms with a sofa bed.
Which hotels near Central Park have a kitchen?
Every room at the Lowell and Hotel Beacon has a kitchen or kitchenette, and so does every suite at AKA Central Park and the Gardens Sonesta. The Empire has a wet bar, not a kitchen.
Can you walk to the Met from a Central Park hotel?
From The Mark, yes: it's about 0.5 km, with the Ancient Playground on the way. From the south end it's closer to 2 km, so plan on a bus.
Photos
The Plaza: Paweł Marynowski / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0 (CC BY-SA 3.0) · Mandarin Oriental, New York: OptimumPx (Public domain) · The Lucerne Hotel: Eden, Janine and Jim from New York City (CC BY 2.0) · Hotel Beacon: Jim.henderson (CC BY 3.0) · The Empire Hotel: Jim.henderson (CC0) · The Lowell: ajay_suresh (CC BY 4.0) · Loews Regency New York: Jim.henderson / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 (CC BY-SA 4.0) · The Mark Hotel: Mig Gilbert from Brighton (CC BY-SA 2.0)
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