Free Things to Do with Kids in NYC in November

It can get so expensive during the holidays, so we've gathered a list of free and fun things to do in NYC with kids in November to give your a wallet a break.

Free Things To Do in NYC in November with Kids

Le Carrousel Extravaganza in Bryant Park
Midtown West
Weekends through Sunday, November 24, 2024
Bryant Park's charming carousel serves as the backdrop for a mix of kid-friendly entertainment. Discover scientific marvels, be awed by trickery in magic shows, and see puppet shows and story times, too. Visit the website here.

Holiday Train Show at Grand Central
Midtown East
Opens Thursday, November 14
The New York Transit Museum’s Grand Central Gallery plays host to a city within a city with the display of a miniature electric railroad running over, through, and beneath some of New York’s most magnificent landmarks. Visit the website here.

Skyscraper Pictionary at the Skyscraper Museum
Battery Park
Saturday, November 16, 2024
Learn about the artistic side of architecture and discuss sketches, renderings, and all the art architects make before their buildings can be built. Then, play a game of Skyscraper Pictionary with familiar towers in New York and abroad. Visit the website here.

Design Your Own Board Game at the American Folk Art Museum
Midtown West
Saturday, November 16, 2024
Explore the handmade game boards in the exhibition Playing with Design: Gameboards, Art and Culture and then create your own! Using new and upcycled materials, families can work together to make one-of-a-kind games to bring home. Visit the website here.

Cast your Ballot 19th-Century Style at King Manor
Jamaica, Queens
Saturday, November 16, 2024
Practice writing with oak gall ink and quills while learning about Rufus King's presidential campaign. Cast your votes and help decide which produce should be grown in the museum's gardens. Visit the website here.

125th St. BID Harlem Holiday Lights
Harlem
Tuesday, November 19, 2024
The holiday season kicks off in Harlem with the 125th Street Business Improvement District's parade of Harlem Holiday Lights. The parade assembles at 125th Street and Broadway and travels throughout the neighborhood. Visit the website here.

Fall Family Movie Night: Fantastic Mr. Fox at Midwood Library
Midwood, Brooklyn
Friday, November 22, 2024
Midwood's second floor meeting room turns into a mini movie theater for a screening of Wes Anderson's Fantastic Mr. Fox (PG). Visit the website here.

Lenfest Kids: Big and Small
Upper West Side
Saturday, November 23, 2024
Thinking about small perspectives isn’t just a way of understanding cinema. It’s a way of understanding the world. Shrink down to a subatomic level in The Incredible Shrinking Man and grow to enormous size in Honey, I Blew Up the Kid, exploring techniques like rotoscoping in Gulliver’s Travels, stop-motion in James and the Giant Peach, and much, much more. Visit the website here.

Native American Heritage Month: Lenape of Staten Island in Von Briesen Park
Fort Wadsworth, Staten Island
Sunday, November 24, 2024
Explore the past and present experience of Native Americans and learn about the Lenape, connecting the cultural significance of various flora and fauna in the park to the heritage of native people. Visit the website here.

DTBK Gets Lit: Holiday Lighting Ceremony at Albee Square
Downtown Brooklyn
Tuesday, November 26, 2024
Celebrate the holiday season Brooklyn style. The Downtown Brooklyn Gets Lit: Holiday Lighting Party at Albee Square features music, dance and, of course, the countdown to the holiday lights. Visit the website here.

Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade Balloon Inflation
Upper West Side
Wednesday, November 27, 2024
The Macy's balloon inflation returns. Watching the giant balloons expand is a tradition for many NYC families—almost as important as the Thanksgiving Day Parade proper. Visit the website here.

Gobble Gobble Give at the Apollo
Harlem
Thursday, November 28, 2024
Enjoy a heartwarming day of giving back by bringing a dish of Thanksgiving-style food, gently used clothes you’ve been meaning to donate, or an old toy or book your kids have outgrown, and join the most meaningful potluck party you'll ever attend. The whole family can help with meal prep, toy, food and clothing sorting, and the Children’s Holiday Workshop, where kids create holiday crafts for families in need. Visit the website here.

98th Annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade
Upper West Side to Midtown West
Thursday, November 28, 2024
The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade marches down the streets of New York City for its 98th annual holiday celebration. Visit the website here.

Macy's Santaland
Midtown West
Opens Friday, November 29, 2024
Santa swoops back over to Macy's for visits with his littlest fans! Wander the rainbow road to his workshop, where you'll meet jolly old St. Nick. Share your wishlist before receiving a special gift and posing for a keepsake photo. Visit the website here.

Small Business Saturday Tree Lighting in Park Slope
Park Slope, Brooklyn
Saturday, November 30, 2024
JJ Byrne Park lights up with holiday cheer as Park Slope's Small Business group hosts its annual tree lighting event, complete with hot chocolate from Chela, churros from Simple Loaf Bakehouse, Christmas tunes from Music by Patrick, Bubbledad, and—of course—Santa! Visit the website here.

Concrete: From the Ground Up at the Skyscraper Museum
Battery Park
Saturday, November 30, 2024
Have you ever wondered how concrete buildings are made? A read aloud of Larissa Theule’s Concrete: From the Ground Up is followed by a child-friendly lesson on what concrete is made of and how it is used to make skyscrapers. This program includes a hands-on activity where kids make concrete buildings out of air dry clay. Visit the website here.

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