A benefit of living in Fairfield County is the ability to hop over to New York City to check out a world-renown museum or famous Broadway show, but this can quickly deplete your entertainment fund. Here are a few ways to take a bite out of the Big Apple without breaking the bank.
First things First: Where to Park? For a long time, I was intimidated at the process of getting into New York City. While the train is a great option when traveling solo, it is much more difficult with three children in tow. After paying a ridiculous amount to park in the city, I was elated to discover a few tips to save some serious cash. First, Groupon often offers parking coupons, such as $34 for 24 hours through Icon Parking Systems. No Groupon available? No problem! Just download the free Best Parking App. It provides up-to-date parking rates all over the city and includes coupons and reservations.
What To Do for Little or No Cost… Along with checking out the always-free parks of New York City (at least when the weather is warmer), there are also pay-as-you-wish museums. Don’t let the “suggested” prices confuse you. The cost is completely up to you. We love taking our kids to museums and setting our price allows us to leave if our children are out of sorts. Our favorites are The American Museum of Natural History and The Metropolitan Museum of Art. There are also great activities completely free of charge on certain days of the week. The world-famous Bronx Zoo is free on Wednesdays, the New York Aquarium is pay-as-you-wish on Friday after 3pm, and The Brooklyn Children’s Museum is free on Thursdays from 3-5pm. For a complete list of the free and pay-as-you-wish locations in NYC, check out the NYC Arts List.
The Broadway Lottery: Want to know a fantastic way to see some of the greatest shows on Earth without paying the big bucks? The Broadway Lottery System helps make NYC shows affordable and accessible to the general public. Many shows, including Aladdin, Matilda, and Wicked (complete list at Playbill), host a lottery rush, in which the box offices sell a select numbers of tickets for each showing at a deeply discounted price (most tickets are between $30-$40 each). My kids love going to Broadway shows and these discounts help me justify taking them. Each lottery is unique, but the ones I have attempted have all worked very similarly. Two-and-a-half hours before the show everyone enters their names on a piece of paper at the box office (a crowd usually forms so it is easy to find). After 30 minutes of submissions, they draw names and provide each winner two tickets at the discounted rate. We have won dozens of tickets to multiple shows through the lottery system, but we do enter almost every time we are near Times Square.
Things to note:
- Some lotteries are cash only.
- Most seats are partial view but close to the stage and quite the experience.
- Children 4-years-old and up are able to enter the lottery, which increases your chances of winning.
- You don’t always win, but it is fun to try. We always have a back up activity in case we do not win.
- You must be there in person at the time of the drawing and you need your ID to claim tickets (you can provide your own ID for your child).
- For more information about the lottery system and specifics on each show that participates, check out Playbill.
Not feeling lucky enough for the lottery? The Theatre Development Fund (TDF) is another fabulous way to save on Broadway Shows. A TDF Membership is available to full-time teachers, full-time students, members of the armed forces, retirees, and many others. Membership allows you to purchase tickets online for up to 70% off the full price. TDF also makes discounted tickets available to the general public with its TKTS Ticket Booths. Located in Times Square, South Street Seaport, and Brooklyn, these booths allow you to purchase “same-day Theatre Tickets at up to 50% off.”
I know I have only scratched the surface on the multitude of free and inexpensive activities in New York City. How do you save money on a day trip to the City?
