Things To Do With Kids in the Bronx

The Bronx has the biggest zoo, the best botanical garden and the only real beach you can reach by subway and bus.

The big two

1. Bronx Zoo — go Wednesday for pay-what-you-wish admission (all-inclusive tickets still cost extra). Start at the Children's Zoo before the crowds.
2. New York Botanical Garden — the Everett Children's Adventure Garden and the Holiday Train Show in winter. Grounds-only admission is free on Wednesdays and early Saturdays for NY residents.

Parks and water

3. Orchard Beach, Pelham Bay Park — the "Bronx Riviera," calm water and a big playground. The landmark pavilion reopened in May 2026 after a long restoration. Lifeguards on duty 10am-6pm through September 13, 2026.
4. Pelham Bay Park — the largest park in NYC; trails, fields, and the Bartow-Pell Mansion.
5. Van Cortlandt Park — a lake, a nature center and easy flat trails.
6. Crotona Park — pool, playground, and the lake loop.

Indoors and free

7. Bronx Museum of the Arts — always free.
8. Wave Hill — gardens, art, family art projects on weekends; free hours in the off-season.
9. Edgar Allan Poe Cottage — 20 minutes and a great hook for older kids.
10. Bronx Children's Museum, Mill Pond Park — small, warm, built for under 8.

Food and ballgames

11. Arthur Avenue — the real Little Italy; the indoor Retail Market is stroller-friendly.
12. Yankee Stadium — kids' area behind center field; weekday day games are the cheap ones.
13. City Island — feels like a New England fishing town, 40 minutes from Midtown.

Know before you go

• Bronx Zoo Wednesdays are busy — arrive by opening and enter at the Bronx River gate.
• Orchard Beach parking fills by 11am on hot weekends; the Bx12 SBS bus runs right to it.
• Both the zoo and NYBG are enormous — bring the stroller even for kids who "don't need it."