Looking for winter family fun without breaking the bank? We’ve got you covered! Winter in New York State means exploring dazzling ice palaces, traversing magical landscapes, experiencing world-renowned museums, and so much more. Get the family out of the house and get ready to make unforgettable memories with these 13 affordable winter weekend activities.
Lace up your skates
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Lace up the skates and glide into classic winter fun at ice rinks throughout the state! During the colder months the Empire State Plaza transforms into the Empire “Skate” Plaza with free ice skating and $5 skate rentals. On Saturdays, skate rentals are free! Buffalo’s Canalside is a treasure trove for year-round fun, especially when the ice rink returns for winter. Go ice skating ( $8/adults, $5/kids (12 and under), rentals $5) or curling ($15/person). Looking to try something new? Ice at Canalside‘s iconic Ice Bikes ($13/half hour) are a must-do along with the ice bumper cars ($8/ride). Step into a winter snow globe in Brooklyn at Prospect Park’s LeFrak Center with two connecting open air ice rinks. Weekend admission is $15.25/person and weekday admission is $10.60. Rentals cost $10.35.
Attend a magical winter festival
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Add some magic to your winter weekends! The Saranac Lake Winter Carnival (January 31 – February 9) has been a snowy season staple since 1897, making it one of the oldest winter carnivals in the country. This year’s carnival theme is “Music Legends,” bringing with it all kinds of icy fun like fireworks, live music, and an iconic sparkling ice palace (pictured), all for free! Immerse yourself in holiday magic in Coney Island at Luna Park’s Frost Fest (November 23 – January 1, free admission) with classic rides, games, attractions, holiday lights and décor, photos with Santa, holiday shopping, festive food options, and an outdoor ice skating rink. Lake George celebrates winter with a jam-packed, free, four-weekend carnival in February that includes activities like a polar plunge, hot chocolate bar, and more. Join in on free family fun at the Grafton Lakes Winter Festival (January 18) with snowshoe and kicksled adventures, local food trucks, and horse-drawn wagon rides!
Explore world-class museums
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If the family prefers to opt indoors, spend the day exploring world-class exhibits at New York museums! If you’re looking to entertain the little ones Buffalo’s Explore & More Children’s Museum offers admission for $13/person (age 1+) and features interactive exhibits that encourage learning through play. Bring the fun to new heights at the Cradle of Aviation ($18/adults, $16/child (2-12) and seniors (62+)) in Garden City, where you can explore eight exhibit galleries filled with 75 air and spacecraft. The Strong National Museum of Play ($25/person (age 2+)) in Rochester is a fun destination for everyone, whether you’re traveling with teens or littles. For older children, the Buffalo AKG Art Museum ($22/adults, $10/youth (6-18), $20/college students, seniors (62+)) is an unforgettable visit with an amazing collection of modern and contemporary art. The museum also offers pay-what-you-wish admission on the first Friday of every month, family tours on select dates (free with admission) for younger children, and free drop-in art-making classes for kids and teens.
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Explore New York’s magical winter landscapes on a hiking, snowshoeing, or cross-country skiing adventure. In the Thousand Islands, Wellesley Island State Park (free admission) transforms into a snowy wonderland, making it an amazing destination for family fun with snowshoeing and cross-country ski trails and hiking trails for a variety of levels. Be sure to stop by the Minna Anthony Common Nature Center for educational displays, wildlife sightings, and special events. With 65,000 acres of sprawling landscape and spectacular views, Allegany State Park (free admission) in Salamanca is New York’s largest state park, filled with winter adventure. Follow one of the hiking, snowshoeing, or cross-country ski trails, where you may discover local wildlife, sparkling lakes, or an enchanting covered bridge. Explore the Spa City’s 2,200-acre Saratoga Spa State Park with 12 miles of snowshoe and cross-country ski trails as well as a variety of hiking opportunities that lead you past the park’s 21 naturally-occurring mineral springs. You can even rent snowshoes for $10 from the park office.
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Escape the cold and spend the day in a botanical tropical oasis. The Buffalo & Erie County Botanical Gardens ($16.50/adults, $15/seniors (62+), students (13+), $9/ kids 3 -12, free for 2 and under) is home to countless garden sanctuaries, filled with amazing architecture and horticultural treasures from around the world. Check out the annual poinsettia exhibit (through January 6) or the garden’s event schedule for family-friendly activities like Feed the Fish days ($22/adult, $16/child), build-your-own terrarium workshops (February 19 and 22, $25/ticket, ages 5-12), and more. The Brooklyn Botanic Garden ($22/adults, $16/seniors (65+), students (12+), free for kids under 12, and Pay-What-You-Wish Winter Weekdays: Tuesday–Friday, December–February) houses more than 12,000 types of plants spread throughout 52 acres of indoor and outdoor gardens. Looking to get into the holiday spirit? Experience the magic of Lightscape (value night prices are $24/adult and $12/child (3-12)), now through January 5, 2025, where the gardens turn into an enchanting illuminated wonderland.
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Snow tubing offers thrills, chills, and fun for the whole family! Revel in mountain town vibes in Saranac Lake and cruise down the gentle, family-friendly slopes of Mt. Pisgah, where a two hour tubing session costs $25/person. Plus, the mountain even has two adjacent runs for races, a rope tow to bring you back up to the summit, and lights for night tubing! Find high-flying fun just under an hour from Albany at West Mountain in Queensbury. Feel the wind on your face as you zoom down the tubing park’s 850-foot run with a 100-foot vertical drop ($35/adult, $25/child (12 and under)). When you’re ready to go again, the magic carpet ride lift will bring you right back up to the top. In Ellicottville, you’ll find a world-class ski scene and spectacular snow tubing opportunities at Holiday Valley. For $30/person, fly down the 20-lane slope as many times as you want for two hours and the conveyor lift will deliver right back to the top of the hill. There’s even a “Li’l Tubers” section for children under 42 inches ($12/child).
With 50+ ski areas, the most out of any state in the country, there’s no better place to hit the slopes than New York State. Make family memories on the mountain without breaking the bank with the SKI NY Free for kids program passport, where third, fourth, and fifth graders can ski for free with the purchase of an adult ticket. The passport includes 31 of the state’s renowned resorts including Belleayre in the Catskills, Whiteface in the Adirondacks, Dry Hill in the Thousand Islands, Peek ‘n Peak in Chautauqua-Allegheny, and many more!
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Not only are live performances a great way to warm up for winter, it also promises an unforgettable experience for the whole fam! The John W. Engeman Theater in Northport hosts a variety of shows year-round in their children’s theater including Frosty (through December 29), Frozen Jr. (January 25-March 2), and Diary of a Wimpy Kid The Musical (March 22-April 27). Tickets for shows in the children’s theater start at $20. As one of the world’s most renowned performing arts centers, a show at Lincoln Center is one you’ll never forget! A variety of choose-what-you-pay kids performances and free and low-cost performances for all ages are offered throughout the winter season including Teatro Al Vacío’s “Close,” multi-instrumental quartet, Invoke, and more. Plus, the David Rubenstein Atrium also has an ever-changing lineup of free performances year-round. If you’re looking to get a good deal on a Broadway show, NYC Broadway week takes place from January 21-February 9, where you can get 2-for-1 tickets.
Go fishing for a great time
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Get out into nature, make memories, and spend quality time with family on a fishing adventure in New York State! February 17-18 is one of the state’s free fishing weekends, where you don’t need to buy a license to fish. With more than 7,500 lakes and ponds, 70,000 miles of rivers and streams, and coastline galore, there’s all kinds of places to cast a line in New York, whether you’re an experienced angler or it’s your first time fishing.
Travel back in time
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Take the family on a journey they’ll never forget – through time! At the renowned American Museum of Natural History ($30/adult, $18/child (3-12), $24/senior (60+)) in New York City, travel through more than 40 galleries, diving into the natural world and universe through popular exhibits like the T. Rex Fossil, the 94-foot blue whale model, or insectarium. The museum also offers pay-what-you-wish admission for New York State residents with ID. In Albany, a visit to the New York State Museum is free and you can explore the famous Cohoes Mastodon skeleton, which dates back to the last Ice Age.
Make animal friends
From fluffy alpacas to vibrantly-colored fish, New York’s cutest critters are waiting to meet you! As the third oldest zoo in the country, the Buffalo Zoo $21.95/adult, $15.95/children (2-12), $18.95/seniors (65+)) is open year-round and home to all kinds of unique animal friends including giraffes, sloths, sea lions, and more. Zoo New York ($12/adults (13-65), $9/child (3-12)), open weekends throughout the winter, in Watertown is the only zoo in the world dedicated to species that are, or once were, native to New York State. Schenectady is home to Via Aquarium ($21/adult (13+), $15/child (3-12), $19/senior (62+)), where you can admire more than 2,000 sea creatures like stingrays and sharks. Stop by Buck Brook Alpaca Farm (admission is $10/person) in the Catskills to meet the farm’s 100 alpacas on a guided farm tour ($15/person). You can even take the alpacas for a walk for $28/person.
Become a firefighter for a day
Got a little one who wants to be a firefighter when they grow up? Let them be a firefighter the day and explore the FASNY Museum of Firefighting in the Hudson Valley or the Nassau County Firefighters Museum on Long Island! Let imaginations run wild at the FASNY Museum’s hands-on, interactive exhibits like the bucket brigade, virtual fire engine driving, and Jr, Firefighter challenge, as well as historic exhibits displaying more than 60 firefighting apparatuses. Found on Garden City’s Museum Row, the Nassau County Firefighters Museum has exhibitions showcasing historic and contemporary memorabilia and equipment as well as interactive exhibits for kids. Plus, visitors can experience how to handle a real working fire, from alarm activation to “knocking down” the flames.
Climb the day away
What better way to tire out the kids than by taking them on a climbing adventure? The Mt. Van Hoevenberg rock climbing center ($15/hour, $5/hour shoe rentals) has more than 1,500 feet of climbing space for all ages and levels. The Niagara Climbing Center ($25/day pass, $10/kids day pass) has a variety of walls and routes spread across 6,000 square feet of climbable terrain. Try out the Palisades Climbing Center’s ($27.99/person for sky trail adventure) indoor ropes course (it’s one of the tallest in the country!), featuring 75 different challenge elements. There’s even a special course for the littles ($11.99/child (under 42 inches)) with age-appropriate climbs and obstacles.
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