NYC can be a costly vacation destination full of Broadway shows, fancy restaurants, high end shopping, and tourist attractions. Or it can be affordable. I took 6 kids to NYC and didn’t spend much more than I would on a camping trip.

For the first day, we camped and took a train into Penn Station. Once we got there, we spent the morning in Lower Manhattan. We started out at the 9/11 Memorial before the crowds hit. It’s crazy to me that September 11th happened before the kids were born, it just seems like it wasn’t that long ago. After seeing the memorial, you can take the Staten Island Ferry, which is completely free, for a round trip ride past the Statue of Liberty, followed by a walk across the iconic Brooklyn Bridge. You can spend the rest of the day seeing Grand Central Station, Times Square, and going on a free tour of the Federal Bank of NY’s gold vault.

On our second day in NYC, we drove in and parked on the street in front of American Museum of Natural History next to Central Park. It is free parking there, a rare find in New York. Their museum admission is considered a donation, so if you get tickets at the counter instead of ahead of time online, you pay what you wish. We showed military ID and they wouldn’t take a dime from us. The museum is massive and you can easily spend all day there. Depending on how much time you have, you can either head over to Central Park after the museum, or you could spend a whole other day at the park. They offer free guided tours of Central Park out of the Central Park Conservatory.

Because we only had a couple days, our fun stopped there, but if you’re staying longer, or even staying right in the city, do a Google search for events happening while you’re there. Pretty much any time you go, you can find free outdoor concerts, live music, or movies playing in parks or at beaches. Like many places, a lot of the museums have free admission either one day a week/month, or after a certain time of day. So if there’s somewhere specific you want to go, look into that ahead of time. Our family loves kayaking and had considered doing the free kayaking and canoeing on the Hudson River. Check the hours ahead of time, they vary by day and time of year.

There are tons of other free activities for adults, but I went with my 6 children so I skipped the things they either couldn’t do due to age restrictions or activities that would bore them.

Happy traveling! Leave a comment, ask a question, and stop back again tomorrow!

*pic- Feb 2015 in Big Bird’s nest, Strong Museum