nyc with teens

My husband and I will be bringing our kids to NYC, it will be their first visit. I want to take my kids to a show and some cool restaurants, I am not interested in hard rock or the like. also my daughter will be turning sweet 16 that week and want to plan something special.

Also, should I go cheap on the hotel or cough up more for more upscale.

I am open to all suggestions

nyc with teens

First, do a search in the search forum above for ';teenagers';. I have been twice with teens, and planning my third trip with 2 of them this spring. First, a lot depends on what they enjoy and how long you will be there. The hop on/hop off bus tour is a good way to start for an overview of the city. I think they would enjoy eating and shopping at places in Soho and visiting Chinatown. I would suggest staying in the midtown/Times Square area with teens because they will enjoy the area at night and it is within walking distance to so many things. Spend some time at Central Park, the MET, walking around 5th Ave. and go to Rockefeller Center and do the NBC Studio tour. When in the downtown area, visit WTC site and St. Paul%26#39;s Church, and take the Staten Island Ferry for a close up of Statue of Liberty without the long lines. Has your daughter been to a Broadway show? That would be special. Maybe give us a little more specifics regarding their interests. :)

nyc with teens

A few non-chain/non-tourist trap-type restaurants that would be cool for teenagers include

La Luncheonette, 130 10th Ave. in Chelsea (funky French bistro)

The Vinyl Diner, 754 9th Ave, between 50th %26amp; 51st St in Hell%26#39;s Kitchen (a combination American diner pan-Asian place with a memorable mosaic decor)

The Cowgirl Hall of Fame, 519 Hudson Street in the West Village (very good southwestern food in a lively intentionally-kitschy setting)

You don%26#39;t say when you%26#39;re coming. Prices change depending on season. I think the issue is more picking a hotel with decent sized rooms if there are 4 of you. A 1 bedroom suite some where can yield 2 queen beds in the bedroom and a queen sofabed in the living room. Have a look at the Salisbury, the Affinia Manhattan or any of the Affinia hotels.

For a show, maybe Rent or Hairspray? Look on broadwaybox.com to see if there are discounts available. (If they don%26#39;t cover your dates, wait, they likely will).

Agree with PontMarie that you can do better than Hard Rock. The Film Center Cafe could be fun and not too pricey. If you%26#39;re coming in winter, take them ice skating in Central Park. Maybe a nice silver something from Tiffany%26#39;s for the birthday girl?

Re: cool restaurants. NYC is a great way to smaple cuisines from around the world. And most international and ethnic restaurants are cheap enough so you won%26#39;t feel so bad if they cringe and say ';Eeeeeeewwwww!';. Search for info and reviews of all these on www.Menupges.com

Here are some ideas:

Afghan Kebab House in Hell%26#39;s Kitchen

Vynil in Hells Kitchen (American food, but cool atmo!)

(Basically, anything on 9th Ave bet 42nd and 55th in Hell%26#39;s Kitchen will be a good bet.)

Republic Pan-Asian in Union Square

Haveli Indian in East Village

Vaselka Polish in East Village

Hummus Take-out, Middle Eastern in Greenwich Village

Hi-Line Thai in Meatpacking District

John%26#39;s of Bleecker Street in West Village - TRUE NYC pizza!

Acme Southern in East Village

Great Jones Cafe in East Village

Basically, anything on Bleecker Street or MacDougal Street will be great for the whole family. Cafe Reggio, Cafe Figaro and others at Bleecker and MacDougal are great cafes for people watching.

For a few more $$, enjoy the endless Brazilian meat buffet at Charascuria Plataforma in Midtown west.

For trendiness, go to Coffee Shop on Union Square.

This is my first time posting on a forum, sorry for the vague info.

we are arriving the week of spring break for three nights , have not found a hotel yet and my dates are flexible.

The restaurants you mentioned so far sound FAB!!! My kids both appreciate culture and I am italian so food is so important for the experience :). My daughter is thinking about art school as she has talent and wants to get into design, so we will have to incorporate her interest in our visit- i am sure it would not be difficult..

My son is 12 , his interests include sports and science fiction and fantasy (lord of the rings),and he is a bit of an actor. I have been to nyc-(grad of FIT) but its been a long time.