60 upcoming events · 25 local studios
Sandwiched between Central Park and Riverside Park, the Upper West Side is one of those Manhattan neighborhoods where having a small kid actually makes daily life feel easier, not harder. Both parks put playgrounds within a short walk of nearly any address, and Riverside Park in particular has a quieter, more neighborhood feel than the tourist-heavy stretches of Central Park. Hippo Playground and River Run Playground are two longtime favorites for the under-five set, with sandboxes, sprinklers, and room to run. On rainy days, the Children's Museum of Manhattan on West 83rd Street is a reliable fallback for toddlers. The American Museum of Natural History, one of the studios listed here, runs programming aimed at young kids too, so the same institution that becomes a school-trip staple is already on your radar at age two. The 1/2/3 and B/C trains run through the neighborhood, which means you can get to other parts of Manhattan without a car, and the wide, tree-lined sidewalks make pushing a stroller on a Tuesday morning genuinely pleasant. Weekends here feel residential and unhurried, the kind of place where other parents at the playground probably live two blocks away.