What are some good things to do in NYC (besides the obvious statue of liberty, empire state bldg. etc)?

going with a family of 4 and have been there before. We're looking for something the whole family would enjoy. it could be a little different from the norm. (we're adventerous) but we want to stay in manhattanWhat are some good things to do in NYC (besides the obvious statue of liberty, empire state bldg. etc)?
It depends on when you are going--i.e. what time of year, what time of day.



Among the places my friends and my ex and i used to go with our kids were:



Museum of Natural History

http://www.amnh.org/

--you could spend hours there alone--and the subway from I think Penn Station goes right there, and up....no walking outside.



United Nations

http://www.un.org/english/



-and then Roosevelt Island tram--

http://www.ny.com/transportation/ri_tram鈥?/a>

The Tram is really a gorgeous and unique way to see the City, and not that expensive. It goes over the River to Roosevelt Island. You can eat there, just stroll along the river on the opposite side of the skyline and feel very safe, or just turn around and come right back....



The Museum of Radio and TV-

http://www.ny.com/museums/MTR.html

where you can watch 2 hours of Tv that the whole family can eahc pick out up to their own 4 shows-so if one of you loved Taxi, another loved I Love Lucy, one wanted to see what Howdy Doody or Roy Rogers might have been like and the other wanted to see highlights of last year's Super Bowl, you'd each be able to....but you would have to be at the Museum by 10-10:30 to buy viewing times around 12-1 so you did not spend your whole day inside....and then maybe walk along 5th Avenue, see the window shops. My son loved going to the Plaza to see where Home Alone was shot. We would then go to Centrasl Park and especially when it was dark, take a hansom cab ride around the park, or start walking back towards midtown, and eat either at Carmine's---great family style restaurant,

http://www.carminesnyc.com/



or Ellen's Stardust Diner

http://ellensstardustdiner.com/index.htm

where the waiters and waitresses are aspiring B'way musical performers so they stop in the middle of service to sing, and the ambience is great (but at holiday time, it can be very crowded and noisy, but it is good food, low prices, and great entertainment at diner prices)....It took us all day for that...





Once we parked in Brooklyn and walked across the Brooklyn Bridge,

http://www.nyctourist.com/bridge1.htm

took the train back to our station after visiting City Hall,

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York_Ci鈥?/a>

and then drove back over the bridge.



If you like history--then downtown-Federal Plaza where George Washington was sworn in as President, the Stock Exchange on Wall Street, the Canyon of Heroes where the tickertape parades are and look at who had one, the 9/11 Memorial Museum, opposite Ground Zero.



If your kids like Medieveal type of things, allllllll the way uptown-The Cloisters Musem is up on the bluffs.http://www.ny.com/museums/cloisters.html



The Cloisters is the medieveal part of the

Metropolitan Museum of Art-another great place to go--http://www.metmuseum.org/visitor/index.a鈥?/a>



Then there's ChinaTown...great authentic food and the Lower East Side for great sense of the early immigrant.What are some good things to do in NYC (besides the obvious statue of liberty, empire state bldg. etc)?
I would definitely pick up a copy of TimeOutNY or visit their website at www.timeoutny.com the week that you will be visiting (new issues come out on weds. or thurs.). It will have events, street fair locations, etc. for the time you are there.



Also, I would suggest:



- Staten Island ferry - free ride, about 20 minutes each way

- Explore Central Park (the zoo, the castle, rowboats, strawberry fields, etc.)

- Serendipity - dessert place

- Museum of Natural History