Staten Island Ferry
We headed into the Big Apple by train and caught the Staten Island Ferry. The 5 mile, 25 minute ride also provides a majestic view of New York Harbor and the Statue of Liberty for FREE!!! This was our main reason for taking the ferry. We wanted the kids to see the Lady Liberty. But with it so cold out we loved that the ferry provided a heated inside area where we could also rest our feet! (so much walking !!) We caught the ferry at the perfect time too. We had gorgeous views of the harbor and Statue on the way to Staten Island. The Staten Island Terminal features a wide range of shops and restaurants, and an outdoor plaza. We were able to grab lunch here before taking the ferry back to Manhattan. It had started snowing and our return trip (and did not stop the entire day) you could not see a thing in the distance! Once back on the mainland we walked around the Battery and grabbed Starbucks to warm up!
From Battery Park we explored Manhattan and the Financial District. There are so many spots of interest to see including the NY Stock Exchange and Federal Reserve Bank. Lower Manhattan we were able to see City Hall, the Chamber of Commerce Building as well as Federal Hall all the while the kids played in the snow! One of my favorite things to do anywhere we go is just walking up and down the streets and immersing myself into the surroundings.
We made our way from the Financial District to Little Italy and Chinatown. By this time it was getting later. The time was flying by it seemed like. It always does on the last day! Had we been early I would have loved to grab a "snack" in Chinatown. As we walked through Little Italy Nick picked out a place we were going to eat dinner. OMG it was amazing! Probably the best dinner we have ever had and to think he just randomly picked it! Since it was to celebrate my birthday too we splurged a little bit more than we would normally do on food. Plus we were in New York City so why the hell not!!
After dinner we had to see Rockefeller Center one more time. The Christmas tree is freaking amazing at night. Add the snow that was falling and it was picturesque. We took in all the sights and sounds trying to soak in all the memories. Oh and did a little shopping. I spotted a scarf at Top Shop that I had to have. But I waited til the last day to make sure I still had some birthday and Christmas money left haha. We were all sad to see the trip come to an end but it was late and kids were exhausted from all the walking we did
The next morning we were up bright and early to catch our flight home. We landed back in the Bluegrass State in time to catch my Cats tip off. While we waited to board our flight I created a Kroger's clicklist to pick up for that evening since we were coming home to an empty fridge and pantry(best invention ever!!). I am so thankful that we were able to take our kids on this trip. All the extra 3rd shifts and sleepless days to be able to provide all the memories we so worth it. I was worried that since this was their main Christmas present they might miss all the extra gifts from us and Santa that would have been under the tree that they would be upset Christmas morning! But I should not have worried. No one missed anything (plus they still got a few things) because we were still on an NYC high. We all can't wait to go back!
Check out my other posts for our trip:
day 1
day 2
NYC Travel Guide
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