Play Day

Kid-friendly places in New York

60 places: 54 playgrounds and things to do, 3 hotels, 2 restaurants and 1 café.

Hippo Playground

Your kid can splash by the hippo sculptures in summer, play in sand and try the slides under shady trees.

Ancient Playground

Your kid can cross pyramid-like structures, try the slides and play in sand near The Met.

Battery Playscape

Your kid can try granite slides at different heights, scramble through tree houses and experiment with sand and water.

Bella Abzug Park Playground

Your kid can climb through the rope dome and talk through the play tubes beneath the shade canopy.

Billy Johnson Playground

Your kid can race down the long granite slide, cross a rustic bridge and try a net climber.

Bleecker Playground

Your kid can use the classic play equipment and seasonal water area, with a public restroom close by.

Catbird Playground

Your kid can try age-sized climbing structures, swings and the enclosed seasonal sprinkler.

Chelsea Waterside Playground

Your kid can climb the 64-foot pipefish-shaped slide and cool off around the water features in warm weather.

Clement Clarke Moore Park Playground

Your kid can climb at the small playground and run through seal-shaped sprinklers in warm weather.

DeSalvio Playground

Your kid can choose a climber sized for crawlers, toddlers or bigger kids, then try the rope web and slides.

Dinosaur Playground

Your kid can admire two giant dinosaur sculptures, climb the play structures and cool off in the seasonal spray.

Erie Canal Playground

Your kid can climb the tree-house-style structure, swing and cool off at the seasonal sprinklers.

Heckscher Playground

Your kid can splash at the seasonal water feature, climb the rock-like structures and use a separate little-kid play area.

Hell's Kitchen Park Playground

Your kid can use the smaller tot play area or climb and swing in the older-kid space.

Hester Street Playground

Your kid can choose the smaller gated play area or tackle the tall rope climber and twisting slide.

Imagination Playground at Burling Slip

Your kid can build with big loose foam blocks, move sand and try the seasonal water feature.

Kowsky Park Playground

Your toddler can explore a small, quieter play space before a picnic under the shady trees.

Minetta Playground

Your younger kid can try low swings and climbing pieces in a gated play space, with a summer spray shower.

Pearl Street Playground

Your kid can switch between age-sized climbing structures, dig in the sand and splash when the water play is running.

Pier 25 Playground

Your kid can climb the play structures, swing and splash at the seasonal water features beside the river.

Pier 26 Science Playground

Your kid can climb inside giant sturgeon, slide back out and explore how fish live in the Hudson.

Pier 51 Playground

Your kid can climb a pretend boat, dig in sand and splash in the seasonal stream by the Hudson.

Rockefeller Park Playground

Your kid can explore big and small climbing areas, sandboxes and a hand-powered merry-go-round near the waterfront.

Seward Park

Your kid can play in the park’s playground and cool down at the spray showers in warm weather.

Tarr Family Playground

Your kid can climb the tree-house structures or play in the younger-kid area across the bridge.

Teardrop Park

Your kid can slip down the long slide, hop between rocks and play in the sand and seasonal water area.

Tompkins Square West Playground

Your kid can swing and try sensory-friendly play in a shady park with room to picnic.

Washington Market Park

Your kid can choose among three age-varied playgrounds, run across the lawn and look for butterflies in the garden.

Washington Square Park Toddler Playground

Your toddler can play on ground-level equipment in a designated smaller-kid area beside the park.

West Thames Park Playground

Your kid can climb, swing and dig in the sand, with water play when the season is on.

Hotel Beacon

Your kid can sleep in a suite with a separate living room while you use the kitchenette for meals.

Children's Center at SNFL

Your kid can settle into a colorful reading space, browse picture books and join a storytime program.

FAO Schwarz Rockefeller Center

Your kid can explore toy demonstrations and take a turn dancing on the giant floor piano.

High Line at West 23rd Street

Your kid can follow the old elevated train tracks, spot public art and take a break on the lawn near 23rd Street.

Little Island

Your kid can explore winding paths and boulder scrambles, then find free morning play or performances when scheduled.

Parm Upper West Side

Your kid can build a pasta dish from the daily kids menu in a casual dining room.

Open until 10:00 pm
Pier 84 at Hudson River Park

Your kid can experiment at the interactive fountain in warm weather and picnic on the pier lawn.

Serendipity 3 Upper East Side

Your kid can choose from the kids menu and share a towering frozen hot chocolate or sundae.

Open until 12:00 am
The Met 81st Street Studio

Your kid can play music on a marimba, experiment with light and try hands-on art materials.

American Museum of Natural History

Your kid can stand under the giant blue whale, see dinosaur fossils and explore the butterfly exhibit.

Open until 5:30 pm
Central Park Carousel

Your kid can ride a carved horse or take a gentler seat in a chariot on the historic carousel.

Central Park Zoo

Your kid can watch sea lions swim, spot penguins through the glass and meet goats in the small zoo area.

Children's Museum of Manhattan

Your kid can paint at a mural wall and try hands-on play spaces built for ages 0 to 6.

Color Factory NYC

Your kid can move through colorful hands-on rooms and play in a giant blue ball pit.

DiMenna Children's History Museum

Your kid can use interactive displays to explore New York history and join hands-on programs.

Closed · opens Tue 11:00 am
Edge at Hudson Yards

Your kid can look through a glass floor 100 stories up and pick out landmarks from the outdoor sky deck.

Ellen's Stardust Diner

Your kid can hear the singing waitstaff perform Broadway-style songs while eating diner food.

Open until 12:00 am
Intrepid Museum

Your kid can sit in a helicopter cockpit at the Exploreum and see aircraft on a real carrier deck.

Le Carrousel at Bryant Park

Your kid can take a gentle spin on the small carousel animals and use the nearby creative corner.

Lotte New York Palace

Your kid can stay in a roomy family suite and, if booked, enjoy the hotel’s Little Royals treats.

Museum of Chinese in America

Your kid can learn Chinese American stories through museum objects and join a story or art activity when one is scheduled.

Museum of Jewish Heritage - Courage to Act

Your older kid can follow young people’s stories through interactive scenes about the rescue of Jews in Denmark.

Pier 62 Carousel

Your kid can ride a hand-carved Hudson Valley animal, from a duck to a bear, beside the river.

SeaGlass Carousel

Your kid can ride in a glowing fish and imagine swimming through an underwater world.

Sloomoo Institute NYC

Your kid can test slime textures and scents, then mix a custom slime to take home.

South Street Seaport Museum

Your kid can step aboard a tall ship, turn the wheel and try hands-on activities about life at sea.

Tenement Museum - Meet Victoria Tour

Your kid can ask a costumed interpreter about life as a young immigrant in a 1916 tenement.

The Jewish Museum

Your kid can try a simulated archaeology dig and explore the tactile art wall at the learning center.

The Mark Hotel

Your kid can use the hotel’s coloring kit and borrow a stroller for a Central Park outing.

The Met Fifth Avenue

Your kid can explore the Temple of Dendur and see knights’ armor, then sketch a favorite work.

Nearby locations