New York Postscript - Seeing the Big Apple with Teens

I just had to share a few great tips for anyone traveling to New York City with teens. We had such a fabulous trip! Since this is our third year in a row to visit NYC in mid June, and since we've done most of the major "tourist" things recently, we saw a few new sites this trip. Here are a few of my favorites:

National Comedy Theater - Who would imagine that you could take your eleven and fourteen year old sons out to a comedy club in New York City on a Friday night?! Our boys love stand up and improv comedy, but finding "clean" comedians can be a huge chore. We found the perfect venue! Manhattan's National Comedy Theater offers clean, and incredibly funny, comedy shows on Friday and Saturday nights. It's team improv, kind of like a comedy contest! We attended the Friday night early show and bought our tickets right before the performance. At $15 per ticket, I would say it's a great value. Our boys sat in the front row and were very involved in the performance. (If you're shy, don't sit in the front row!). If you're looking to laugh yourself silly, give this place a try on your next visit to New York.

Ellen's Stardust Diner - We wandered in off the street on Sunday afternoon and had no idea what a great time we'd have. This great diner is half Broadway musical, half American Idol. You may have to wait a few moments to place your order while your waitress belts out a tune on the microphone, but the food's worth the delay! The meals were a bit pricey (about $12 per entree), but given the fact that you're basically being entertained the whole time you're eating, it's a great family experience. One waitress sang a love song to Adam in front of the whole restaurant, and I thought he was going to climb under the table! The whole staff had great voices and singing along is encouraged! Check it out!

Apple Store Fifth Avenue - I'm about to take the plunge, so I thought I'd stop by the Apple Store and take a look at the laptops. Wow, what a great place. They have tons of products all out and available to be played with. Dad got a new iPod Shuffle for Father's Day and I convinced myself that it's only a matter of time until I switch. We had to drag the boys out of the store - they were having so much fun looking around and checking out the Mac Books. Now my only decision is...black or white?

A lot is written about traveling with babies and younger children, but not much advice is given for meeting the special needs of adolescents and teens while traveling. It's a great joy to be seeing places like New York with our boys in this new and very fun phase of their lives. Do you have a favorite spot in NYC? I'd love to hear about it in the comments, or email me at lisa@catholicmom.com - I'm already planning next year's trip!