Rainy-day things to do with kids in New York
A rainy day is actually when a museum city is at its best, as long as you don't go to the Natural History Museum with everyone else. This list has children's museums built for small kids, a few free indoor spots, whole floors of library children's areas, and rides that are just as fun in the rain.
Free: the palm-filled Winter Garden at Brookfield Place in Lower Manhattan, the children's floors at the new NYPL branch and Brooklyn's Central Library, and the Staten Island Ferry (watch the Statue of Liberty in the rain from inside). Paid but worth it: the Children's Museum of Manhattan and the Brooklyn Children's Museum, the Transit Museum in its old underground station, the aquarium at Coney Island, and the conservatories at NYBG and Brooklyn Botanic Garden. Jane's Carousel in DUMBO sits in a glass pavilion and spins rain or shine.
- 28 places
- 10 free
- 27 stroller-friendly
- closest is 5 min away
28 places
Travel times from Midtown, by subway or car
NYPL Stavros Niarchos Library children's floor
5.0Manhattan · 5 min away
1.5 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Getting there: Subway B/D/F/M to 42 St–Bryant Park or 7 to 5 Av; right outside the station
Ride the elevated 7 train to Flushing
5.0Queens · 5 min away
2 h · stroller-friendly
$ · Getting there: Board the 7 at Grand Central or Times Sq and ride to the last stop, Flushing–Main St, about 35 minutes
Roosevelt Island Tramway
5.0Manhattan · 10 min away
2 h · stroller-friendly
$ · Getting there: Subway 4/5/6/N/R/W to 59 St–Lexington Av, then a 3-minute walk to the tram station
Central Park Zoo and Tisch Children's Zoo
5.0Manhattan · 10 min away
2.5 h · stroller-friendly
$$ · Getting there: Subway N/R/W to 5 Av–59 St, then a 5-minute walk
American Museum of Natural History
5.0Manhattan · 15 min away
3.5 h · stroller-friendly
$$$ · Getting there: Subway B/C to 81 St–Museum of Natural History; the museum entrance is right in the station
Staten Island Ferry (free Statue of Liberty views)
5.0Manhattan · 20 min away
2 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Getting there: Subway 1 to South Ferry or R/W to Whitehall St; the terminal is right outside
Children's Museum of Manhattan
5.0Manhattan · 20 min away
2.5 h · stroller-friendly
$$ · Getting there: Subway 1 to 79 St or B/C to 81 St, then a 5-minute walk
New York Transit Museum
5.0Brooklyn · 25 min away
2 h · carrier recommended
$$ · Getting there: Subway 2/3/4/5 to Borough Hall or A/C/F/R to Jay St, then a 5-minute walk
Jane's Carousel glass pavilion
5.0Brooklyn · 25 min away
1 h · stroller-friendly
$ · Getting there: Subway F to York St or A/C to High St, then an 8-minute walk; NYC Ferry to DUMBO
Brooklyn Central Library youth wing
5.0Brooklyn · 30 min away
1.5 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Getting there: Subway 2/3 to Eastern Pkwy–Brooklyn Museum; right outside the station
Brooklyn Botanic Garden
5.0Brooklyn · 30 min away
2.5 h · stroller-friendly
$$ · Getting there: Subway 2/3 to Eastern Pkwy or B/Q/S to Prospect Park, then a 3-minute walk
Prospect Park Zoo
5.0Brooklyn · 35 min away
2 h · stroller-friendly
$$ · Getting there: Subway B/Q/S to Prospect Park, then a 5-minute walk
Queens Zoo
5.0Queens · 35 min away
2 h · stroller-friendly
$$ · Getting there: Subway 7 to 111 St, then a 10-minute walk; paid park lot if you drive
New York Hall of Science
5.0Queens · 35 min away
3 h · stroller-friendly
$$ · Getting there: Subway 7 to 111 St, then an 8-minute walk; paid parking if you drive
New York Botanical Garden
5.0Bronx · 40 min away
3.5 h · stroller-friendly
$$$ · Getting there: Metro-North Harlem Line from Grand Central, 20 minutes to Botanical Garden station; or subway B/D to Bedford Park Blvd and a 10-minute walk
Brooklyn Children's Museum
5.0Brooklyn · 40 min away
2.5 h · stroller-friendly
$$ · Getting there: Subway 3 to Kingston Av or C to Kingston–Throop, then an 8-minute walk
Liberty Science Center
5.0Jersey City · 40 min away
4 h · stroller-friendly
$$$ · Getting there: PATH to Exchange Place, then Hudson-Bergen Light Rail to Liberty State Park; paid parking if you drive
Bronx Zoo
5.0Bronx · 45 min away
5 h · stroller-friendly
$$$ · Getting there: Subway 2/5 to West Farms Sq–E Tremont Av, then a 10-minute walk to Asia Gate; parking $20 if you drive
New York Aquarium
5.0Brooklyn · 50 min away
2.5 h · stroller-friendly
$$$ · Getting there: Subway F/Q to W 8 St–NY Aquarium; cross the footbridge from the station
Queens County Farm Museum
5.0Queens · 55 min away
2 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Getting there: Driving is easiest, with a free lot; or subway E/F to Kew Gardens and the Q46 bus
Muscoot Farm
5.0Katonah · 75 min away
2 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Getting there: About 65 minutes by car, free lot
Jefferson Market Library (Gothic clock tower)
4.0Manhattan · 15 min away
1 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Getting there: Subway A/C/E/B/D/F/M to W 4 St, then a 3-minute walk
Hunters Point Library (skyline views)
4.0Queens · 15 min away
1 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Getting there: Subway 7 to Vernon Blvd–Jackson Av, then a 5-minute walk; NYC Ferry to Hunters Point South
Brookfield Place Winter Garden
4.0Manhattan · 20 min away
1.5 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Getting there: Subway E to World Trade Center or 1 to WTC Cortlandt, connected by underground passage
Intrepid Museum
4.0Manhattan · 20 min away
3 h · stroller-friendly
$$$ · Getting there: Subway A/C/E to 42 St–Port Authority, then a 15-minute walk or the M42 bus to the end of the line
Queens Library, Flushing branch
4.0Queens · 35 min away
1 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Getting there: Subway 7 to the last stop, Flushing–Main St, then a 2-minute walk
Bronx Library Center
4.0Bronx · 35 min away
1 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Getting there: Subway B/D to Kingsbridge Rd, then a 3-minute walk
MoMath, the National Museum of Mathematics
2.0Manhattan · 10 min away
2 h · stroller-friendly
$$ · Getting there: Subway N/R/W/6 to 23 St, then a 3-minute walk (beside Madison Square Park)
💡 Good to know
- On rainy weekends the Natural History Museum is packed by 11; be there at 10 when it opens, or switch to a quieter one like the Brooklyn Children's Museum.
- Flooded stations and stopped elevators are normal in heavy rain; with a stroller, take the bus or a cab.