San Francisco, California
New York City, New York

Things to Do and Attractions in the United States

Sleeps5 Blog Articles: Washington DC: Things to Know Before You Go
Travel Games with Toddlers and Kids: Keep Them Entertained
Seattle Family Favorites
Family of 5 Shares Hotel Bathroom
College Tourcation - NC, Virginia, DC, Princeton, Boston

Also see: Hotels with a Family Room that Sleeps 5 New York City • San Francisco • Washington DC • Williamsburg • Durham-Chapel Hill • Charlottesville

San Francisco

Sandy's family of 5, with an 11 year old boy and twin 8 year old boys, went to San Francisco in the summer of 2006. You can read Sandy's reviews below.

View of San Francisco skyline

Pier 39 Fisherman's Wharf

Photo at right is of our twins watching the sea lions from platforms on the pier overlooking San Francisco Bay.

Pier 39 has lots of restaurants of varying price ranges, retail stores with chocolates, souvenires, sports team items, and jewelry, lots of snack shops selling pretzels or ice cream in giant waffle cones, and so much more. In the center between the rows of shops, are chairs set in front of a small stage with music, magic, and comedy performers. There is also a carousel. To one side of the pier are the platforms for watching about 100 very noisy sea lions, and on the other side, a 'ride' where you can be fastened to two bungee cords and jump very high! Our kids liked the arcade, and quickly spent $6 on racing video games.

Photo at left is of our twins playing a video game in the Pier 39 arcade.

Cable Car Museum

Photo is of our twins in front of a cable car display.

This museum is much larger and thorough than I expected. It has HUGE inner workings exhibits showing the cable pull system, the cable car breaking system, historical equipment and tools, and the layout of early cable car lines. Multiple large display panels explain the mechanisms. There is an exhibit of San Francisco's major earthquake events with a wall of photos. And visitors can sit in an old carriage and watch video clips telling about a cable car anniversary celebration.

Exploratorium

Photo is of our 3 boys trying some hands-on science.

There are over 100 interactive exhibits here! The atmosphere is very noisy, full of school groups, and yet big enough so we still didn't need to wait long to try the science experiences. (Yet the middle school aged kids weren't watched closely and our son's carry pack was quickly stolen when left unattended for a moment.) The museum is located in a residential area, so there is no other option but to eat in the museum cafe. The food was a bit expensive, but not alarmingly so, and offered quality entrees like chicken and rice, as well as kid-friendly hot-dog type items. Annoyingly, the cafe accepts cash only. Also, the restrooms were not kept clean and were very unpleasant. Overall, the sheer number of exhibits was amazing, and even with lunch there, the kids ran out of energy before they ran out of new science stations to try.

Ripley's Believe It or Not!

As we've all seen, there is a 'Ripley's' in every big city. We have managed to avoid them in the past, but since our Fisherman's Wharf vicinity hotel was nearby, we passed by frequently, and the kids really wanted to go in. I was very surprised that it proved to be very entertaining - providing the heartiest laughs of our whole trip! It was not much in the way of education or culture, but the kids will tell you it was their favorite San Francisco experience!

Duck Tour

Our family members all enjoy the duck tours, and we've taken them in Seattle, and Boston, too. The tourists on board are receptive to silliness, which enhances the experience. For instance, when the guides ask us to shout 'quack-quack' to people on the street as we drive by, everyone on board complies! The guides impart historical facts along the route with plenty of humor. When the vehicle is in the water, kids sometimes get the chance to steer for a moment.

Ferry Building

It was a very fun ride on a trolley to get to the Ferry Building. We were meeting family members for dinner nearby. I walked through the building with the kids, and I thought it was beautiful, with all the shops to look into, and the crowds buying wonderful foods to eat at the waterside. Yet, the kids couldn't wait to get out of there.

The kids did enjoy watching the skateboarders and stunt bicyclists who were practicing their skills on the open areas surrounded by palm trees near the trolley station right outside the Ferry Building.

New York City

Sandy's family of 5, with an 11 year old boy and twin 7 year old boys, went to New York City in the spring of 2006. You can read Sandy's reviews below.

Statue of Liberty

Sony Wonder Technology Lab

The kids, being kids, knew the Sony name of course, and looked forward to hands-on tech machines. Our travel guidebook provided a phone number to call ahead for an entry time. The slots serve to limit the number of people inside and the length of lines outside. Once our time slot arrived, there was still a bit of waiting in line (under cover in a building atrium) before we were admitted. Then more waiting while everyone had their photo taken for an id card used in some displays. The process was a bit confusing as we didn't fully understand the purpose for the id cards.

The interior was smaller than we expected, with narrow corridors that branch into stations -- rooms with computers that teach about professions or music. One area involved movie making, which the boys enjoyed. Had the kids wanted to experience every station, we would have had to wait for other kids to finish.

Disappointingly, there were just 3 large-screen racing games, which limited each visitor's time allotment to 3 minutes or so, and unfortunately, part of the clocked time limit was used for selecting your vehicle. Three other smaller screen consoles also had race games but weren't intuitive to set up, even with grown-up help, and our 7 year olds were frustrated.

One spot that provided a moment of enjoyment was a rounded hall that floated your name, read from your id card. You enter, then exclaim, "hey, there's my name!"

We sat down in a small theater that had a sign at the door indicating the next show time, and eagerly awaited the start of a short film, thinking surely it would be funny or exciting. But the film we saw was black and white, with depressing images of a young girl alone, viewed in city streets and in an empty bedroom. The voice at the end asked Why does a baby have to die? or something like that. Another parent in the audience full of youngsters was angry, and I was dismayed that organizers of an attraction geared towards young children weren't more careful in selecting an age appropriate video. Hopefully now they've added a warning about a recommended age of viewers. I'm sure all the video selections are not inappropriate.

The Sony Wonder Lab is free, and many kids, even our cousins, enjoyed visiting. My kids thought it was 'lame'. The website link above indicates how to book tickets, but does not describe the exhibits.

Ellis Island Immigration Museum

This museum was a must-see for us, but we had no idea it would be so interesting to our kids! The main building is expansive, with large, symmetrical wings off a tiled central open floor with high ceiling (see a photo on the web page linked above). Travel through connected smaller rooms with photos and artifact displays. There is much to read about, but going room to room kept the kids from getting bored. Photos of harsh human conditions in some rooms prompt visitors to use hushed voices while speaking to each other. Large displays, some electronic, are housed in the central area, showing patterns of people movement on the planet over time. For example, a 3-D display details trends by males and females. We spent a couple hours in this museum and still didn't see everything.

From the web link above, click on Tips for Planning a Visit. You have to take a cruise from Battery Park in New York or Liberty State Park in New Jersey. The website clearly tells how to get advanced tickets and provides the security and waiting time. Beware: The line to board the ferry at the end of the day is long and the boats are packed - standing room only.

Statue of Liberty

Entry into the statue is limited - we did not have advanced purchase tickets and could not enter the base of the statue as the place was full of school kid groups. There are reader boards all around the base though, which give facts about the statue and history of the monument. We went to the Ranger station and got a Junior Ranger booklet for our 7 year old twins. Knowing the last boarding time for the ferry back to Liberty State Park was approaching, we still spent an hour hurrying to complete the booklets, helping the kids find the answers and write responses to the many pages of questions. We returned to the Ranger station, the booklets were approved by the station Ranger, and they each received a Junior Ranger badge to pin on their shirts.

See the links here and above for Ellis Island to learn about the boat transportation options.

Empire State Building

Photo is one of many views from the observatory.

From the link above, the Print Tickets Online page shows all the cost choices, and the Visitor Information page tells about the lines.

We purchased combo tickets for the observatory and Skyride, which is independently operated on the 2nd floor of the Empire State Building. You can also find more information about the Skyride on its own website.

At the start of the Skyride, we entered a waiting area and soon, a room full of 20 video screens of varying sizes and heights lit up with snazzy music and a host telling us bits about New York City. Then a door opened and we entered the ride with 5 or 6 seats in each row, theater style. Buckled up, a bar came down over our laps, and the large screen before us began the show. Kevin Bacon hosted while our seat moved a bit, simulating taking off and swooping around the city. I told Karl to close his eyes if he got dizzy! The kids loved it. The whole experience was about half an hour.

Doors on the opposite side of the theater opened, and everyone exited that space and entered a very. long. line. The line wove back and forth, separated by ropes, ushering us down a long hall, then back again. We reached an elevator where guides assisted boarding and facilited our arrival to another floor. The doors opened and we found ourselves in. another. line. Finally, we reached the top, crowded with people and shelving aisles full of things to buy. We bought a guide book that depicts the view, identifying landmarks from each vantage point, and took a few photos. Poor kids - they were so tired from waiting that they didn't have much energy left for the observatory. They were eager to depart.

Central Park

Having no specific plans, we strolled into the park just to watch people. We lingered to see the roller skaters dance, had a friendly bird watcher explain the telescope aimed at the red-tailed hawks nest and show the kids the accompanying monitor display, bought ice cream bars and sat to eat them on the staircase near Bethesda Fountain, stopped to hear an odd (as in strange) performer under a beautiful archway, and finally came upon the boats of Conservatory Pond. The boys watched other kids operate remote controls to move the sails of rented boats. It took us a while, but we figured out how to approach the boat rental kiosk lady, who put our name on a scratch piece of paper. Soon, after checking with her twice to make sure we were still on the list, she called our name and we rented 3 boats for a half hour session. The rental lady sort of left it up to us to monitor the time - it seemed everyone is on the honor system. But parents were great about knowing other kids were eagerly waiting their turn. Our kids sure didn't want the rental time to end!

In the photo, the twins are using the remote controls to operate the sail of a boat. The straps around their necks relieved my worry that the device would be dropped and either crash to the sidewalk or sink to the bottom of the pond!

Intrepid Museum

Apparently, the lines can be long, according the the website. However, we arrived in the morning and there were just a few people in line ahead of us. I know there have been exciting changes and improvements made since we visited, in 2006. But even the limited exhibits and displays on hand when we were there provided plenty of interesting history and awe inspiring machinery.

The setting is amazing - the skyscrapers of Manhattan are so close. Thankfully, we had good weather the day we visited, as the planes are on top deck. Many routes take visitors below deck for more displays. The website link above has great photos and history details. Unfortunately, admission is expensive.

Blue Man Group

Be sure to get tickets early for this show. We purchased our matinee tickets just a couple weeks before our trip, and our 11 year old had to sit down in the 'Poncho Section' while hubby, the 7-year old twins, and I sat further away. Lars was game though, and enjoyed himself immensely; we could hear his boisterous laughter from many, many rows back! The website is very informative about the sound and lights to expect, and says they recommend kids be 8 or older, and children under 5 are not permitted.

We got there by taxi and managed to flag one down afterwards, too. After the show, as we walked to find a taxi, Hubby wanted to find a bathroom. But the area around the theater isn't great. It would have been better to use the restroom in the theater before we left. We bought two beverages at the closest McDonalds so he could use the restroom. It was below street level and scary, looking like drug deals and usage happen there regularly. Thank goodness it was daylight still after the matinee show.

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