During our time in the New York City area, my kids and I enjoyed riding the train from the northern suburbs into Manhattan. One of our favorite places to visit was the Children’s Museum of Manhattan on West 83rd Street. Founded under the name GAME (Growth Through Art and Museum Experience) in 1973 during a deep fiscal crisis in the city, the museum became the Children’s Museum of Manhattan (CMoM) in the 1980s. My kids and I became part of the 325,000 annual visitors to the museum. We purchased an annual pass and go stop by free as many times as we wanted, but regular admission is only $12 per person over the age of 1.
The Children’s Museum of Manhattan contains five floor of fun plus an outside City Splash exhibit that is open during warmer weather. In the basement of the museum is an exhibit called Frolic!, which is exclusively for kids under the age of 5. Both my kiddos loved climbing aboard a replica of a 1970s Volkswagen minivan, and my daughter enjoyed sliding down a Rolling Stones-inspired tongue slide. Both my preschooler and toddler liked crawling around the soft foam butterfly and whimsical mushrooms. Frolic! was my favorite exhibit at the museum because both my kids could play in the safe space without a lot of direct supervision.
The main floor of the museum features a changing exhibit space. When my kids and I first visited the Children’s Museum of Manhattan, my daughter loved playing with the cars and ice skating rink in the Little Apple exhibit. The newest exhibit is America to Zanzibar, which includes innovative hands-on experiences and fascinating objects, images, and information from over 50 countries.
The next floor of the Children’s Museum of Manhattan contains the Adventures with Dora and Diego exhibit, which is geared towards kids between the ages of 2 and 6. Although he is only 1, my son especially enjoyed exploring a cave, a beach, and the rainforest in the Diego exhibit. My daughter had fun in Dora’s house, playing drums and pretending to cook Latin American foods.
On the fourth floor of the Children’s Museum of Manhattan was my second favorite exhibit space: PlayWorks. PlayWorks combines play with learning to help young children build their physical, social, math, art, science, literacy, and problem-solving abilities. The space is geared towards children from birth through age 4, so both my kiddos loved the exhibits. My daughter enjoyed playing on the fire truck and in the sand box. My son loved the infant area and sliding down a small slide after climbing up some carpeted stairs. He also really liked playing with Alphie, a giant talking dragon who “eats” letters.
The top floor of the museum contains the EatSleepPlay exhibit as well as a few other smaller play spaces. Both my kids like playing with the NYC Green Cart and meeting the Super Sprowtz, a team of super-powered vegetable heroes and explore the benefits of fruits and vegetables. All of us also enjoyed the Play Center in which we learned about the power of pedaling, running, balance, and jumping together as a family.
If you are ever in the New York area near Manhattan with kids, definitely check out the Children’s Museum of Manhattan. Do take public transportation to get to the museum because parking is hard to find and expensive. If you are coming from the north or the south, the subway stops at 86th Street, leaving you with only a short three-block walk. At $12 per person over the age of 1, the museum is reasonably priced for Manhattan. Kids of all ages will love exploring the interactive exhibits that get children moving, building, pretending, and learning!
For more information, visit the Children’s Museum of Manhattan website.
Image Credits
Family Fun in New York City: Children’s Museum of Manhattan © 2016 Heather Johnson
Children’s Museum of Manhattan © 2016 Heather Johnson
Frolic! at the Children’s Museum of Manhattan 1 © 2016 Heather Johnson
Frolic! at the Children’s Museum of Manhattan 2 © 2016 Heather Johnson
America to Zanzibar at the Children’s Museum of Manhattan 1 © 2016 Heather Johnson
America to Zanzibar at the Children’s Museum of Manhattan 2 © 2016 Heather Johnson
Adventures with Dora and Diego at the Children’s Museum of Manhattan 1 © 2016 Heather Johnson
Adventures with Dora and Diego at the Children’s Museum of Manhattan 2 © 2016 Heather Johnson
PlayWorks at the Children’s Museum of Manhattan 1 © 2016 Heather Johnson
PlayWorks at the Children’s Museum of Manhattan 2 © 2016 Heather Johnson
PlayWorks at the Children’s Museum of Manhattan 3 © 2016 Heather Johnson
PlayWorks at the Children’s Museum of Manhattan 4 © 2016 Heather Johnson
PlayWorks at the Children’s Museum of Manhattan 5 © 2016 Heather Johnson
PlayWorks at the Children’s Museum of Manhattan 6 © 2016 Heather Johnson
EatSleepPlay at the Children’s Museum of Manhattan 1 © 2016 Heather Johnson
EatSleepPlay at the Children’s Museum of Manhattan 2 © 2016 Heather Johnson