The Intrepid Museum in New York City |
Are you looking for a New York City museum that’s great for kids? A trip to NYC presents a unique opportunity to visit famous museums and learn more about the world around you. But when you’re traveling with kids, just any museum won’t do. Not many five-year-olds will want to spend hours staring at paintings!
The Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum was definitely designed with kids in mind. It is a floating museum aboard a decommissioned aircraft carrier, the USS Intrepid, docked at Pier 86 in New York City. The museum is full of interactive exhibits, entertaining displays, and real-life military craft. It’s a lesson in history and science too!
The Intrepid Museum has a number of eye-catchers, including a real British Airways Concorde and a former Cold War submarine, the USS Growler. You can go inside both. For a real thrill, take your kids up into the bridge of the ship and let them sit in the captain’s seat!
The flight deck is full of aircraft including fighter jets and helicopters. My husband, an airline pilot and enthusiast of all things air and space, was thoroughly impressed by the variety of aircraft on display. Kids and grown men alike will not want to miss theA-12 Blackbird (precursor to the famous SR-71) or the space capsule replica.
The ship’s hangar deck is packed with educational exhibits for kids. They are hands on, requiring participants to push buttons and pull levers to make things work. One crowd pleaser demonstrates how the shape of the wing helps airplanes fly. Your future little mechanical engineer will love peering into the cross section of a jet engine.
As someone who is less taken by war planes than my husband, my favorite part was seeing where the thousands of crew lived, worked, and slept as part of this “floating community.” It was fun to explore the network of berthing areas and mess decks, and the kitchen where cooks prepared meals in massive quantities. I found it interesting to compare the state rooms of high-ranking officers to the sleeping areas for enlisted sailors.
Another bonus about the Intrepid Museum is its location and great views. From the flight deck, we admired the buildings of Manhattan and the scenery of the Hudson River.
The Intrepid Museum is sure to be a big hit with your kids and a great kid-friendly choice among New York City museums.
Guest Article: Andrea Reese and her husband, Randy, are New York City residents and world travelers. Together they have created the website www.essential-new-york-city-guide.com to share their city and offer in-depth information on what to see and do in the Big Apple.
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