FAO SCHWARZ (10am-9pm)

Salute the live toy soldier as you enter this iconic three-story toy store with high-end toys, life-sized stuffed animals, giant Transformers, lots of demos and crazy candy. Dance on the giant piano made famous in the movie Big on the mezzanine.

AMERICAN GIRL (11am-7pm)
Explore immersive environments for historical and contemporary high-end dolls including a 1970s pod chair, 1980s arcade and a surfboard on waves. Shop tons of dolls and accessories, design you own doll or visit the salon for girl & doll hair styling, manicures & ear piercings. Reserve tea at the cafe for a special experience.

NINTENDO (Mon-Thu 11am-8pm, Fri-Sat 10am-8pm, Sun 11am-7pm)
Explore two-levels of everything Nintendo. Say hi to life-size Mario, Luigi and Bowser, try the newest Switch games, shop games, accessories, apparel, and other items featuring everyone’s favorite Nintendo characters and see historical items including original systems and game boys and cute figurines.

Also visit the LEGO store around the corner.

Take photos with taxis, subway stations, the Statue of Liberty and other NYC icons built out of LEGOS. Make mosaics, create a custom Minifigure, look for hidden treasures in the enormous Tree of Discovery and shop for exclusive sets, hard-to-find bricks and elements that you can select by hand at the rainbow Pick A Brick wall. Don’t miss the detailed replica of Rockefeller Center with lots of whimsical vignettes.

Go on a 20-minute interactive, immersive journey into the LEGO Brick Lab with innovative technology that brings walls, floors and ceilings to life with light, sound and music. Build a creation with an exclusive set of bricks, scan and watch it become a living part of the Brick Lab ($15, includes brick set, reserve online). Choose from outer space or NYC themes for a trippy digital experience.

Find more brick-inspired fun at Legoland Discovery Center in nearby Yonkers and Legoland New York, about a 1 hour drive north.

Dog-lovers can explore canine-related artwork with cutting-edge technology and interpretation, plus items from the library, archives and collection of the American Kennel Club headquarters.

HIGHLIGHTS:
🐶 See canine-related paintings, ceramics and other fine art & artifacts
🐕‍🦺 Explore AKC registered breeds at an interactive table
🐩 Discover which dog breed looks most like you through visual recognition software

CURRENT EXHIBITS:
🐕 The AKC Museum of the Dog at 40: And the Collectors Who Made It

✏️ Pick up activities and worksheets in the library, including a Breed of the Month craft.

Wednesday-Sunday 10 am–6 pm
Pets welcome Friday 6–8 pm ($5)

Take a spectacular soaring ride for a unique bird’s-eye view tour of the Big Apple. Hang suspended 30 feet in the air and glide over NYC’s iconic skyline and landmarks while inside a 180-degree, 40-foot projection dome featuring 8K aerial footage that creates the sensation of flight.

Also see a film by award-winning documentarians Ric Burns and James Sanders, narrated by Jeff Goldblum, showcasing NYC’s history and its global impact. Enter a re-creation of the city’s first subway station at City Hall circa 1904, a fully immersive theater with visual and special effects.

Journey through NYC’s vibrant pop-cultural evolution in seven distinctly themed galleries – Finance, Skyline, TV/Radio, Fashion, Music, Broadway and Film – featuring historic artifacts, memorabilia and engaging educational displays.

The ride has a 40 inch height requirement, but the film and galleries are open to all.

Experiential toy store Camp’s new floor features interactive and immersive art experiences. Free to enter – no tickets necessary – just pay as you go for art projects.

A $40 CAMP Craft Pass ticket includes 2 craft activities or 1 Splatter Room experience go full Jackson Pollock (smocks provided) and take home a 16-inch canvas masterpiece. Also make slime, paint a ceramic, create spin-art, tie-dye anything and other crafts with all-you-can-dream buffet of supplies including pom poms, googly eyes, glues, glitters, pipe cleaners of every color, pretty patterned washi tapes, stick-on gemstones and more.

Advance reservations recommended, but drop-ins welcome as space permits.

Also play and shop on the 2nd floor with a slide, scooter track, sequin disco cabin, giant truck, and a curated selection of toys, books, and clothing.

Tuesday-Sunday 10 am – 5 pm

Learn a variety of spy skills in an interactive museum and experience for all ages.

* Test code-making and code-breaking skills in digital Encryption Challenge, lying and lie-detection skills in a Deception Challenge, observation skills in 360° degree Surveillance Challenge and  strategy and agility in a cool laser tunnel Special Ops Challenge. Scores are recorded in an online spy profile, resulting in an assignment to a spy role like Hacker or Special Ops.

* Also explore the history of spying with artifacts like Edward Snowden’s telepresence robot, a U2 spy plane camera and flight suit, micro bugging devices and lots more. Learn about the FBI Double Agent who sold secrets to the Russians for 22 years, and the young Spycatcher who brought him down. Encounter an original Enigma from WWII and tap out messages on a replica. Learn about the fascinating world of hacking (including a deceptively cute rainbow kitty).

*‍In the new Batman experience, become a key actor in a real-time interactive adventure featuring iconic DC characters in a Gotham City mystery that plays out in the real world around you ($29/adult, $32/ages 6-14 or $58/adult, $44/ages 6-14 for both experiences)

* All ages are welcome and there is lots to touch and explore, though younger kids won’t understand much of it.

Buy online to avoid $5 onsite fee.

Enter the story of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland through whimsical painted art installations that play with perspectives of art and reality. Fall down the rabbit-hole into a world of giant playing cards, secret rose gardens, and multicolored mushrooms. Sit on the Queen of Hearts’ throne. Ride a rocking horse in a golden field as giant magical flowers bloom. Bask in the light of glowing lanterns and become the Mad Hatter at a Tea Time with painted cakes of all shapes and sizes.

Every inch of the massive, multi-floor 26,000 square foot  exhibit is hand-painted, from the floors to the ceilings, using Alexa Meade’s signature 3D painting style which makes the world appear to be a 2D work of art. Tickets include a complimentary deck of limited edition playing cards designed by Alexa Meade, and special surprises.

On Sunday mornings from 10 am – 1pm, join Mad Hatter’s Family Adventure, with music, magic and Alice photo-ops.

🍽 Stay for themed drinks and snacks at the painted Wine Bar and Café (no ticket needed).

🛍 Take home parts of the immersive experience at the gift shop, from roses painted red, to clothes covered in paint, to one-of-a-kind works of art by Alexa Meade.

📕 Continue the experience a home (or under a tree) with the a copy of Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland with Artwork by Yayoi Kusama.

Candy Land comes to life in a 24,000 square feet interactive art installation made of candy. Find favorite sugarcoated delights throughout over 17 colorful environments including a confetti room with candy-farting pigs, a zipline, New York-inspired candy artwork, an infinity mirror room, Sugar High Theater and a marshmallow pit. Remind your kids the marshmallows are not edible, but lots of samples throughout the experience.

Visit the highest viewing point in midtown Manhattan at am immersive observatory experience featuring multiple unique experiences.

Experience a trippy mix of transparency and reflectivity in mirrored observatory ‘Air,’  an immersive art experience designed by Kenzo Digital. Sort of like an infinity room with cityscapes. See yourself above the clouds – literally and figuratively in ‘Unity,’ an immersive cloud projected room. Step out onto transparent glass 1,063 feet above Madison Avenue in ‘Levitation’  sky boxes. Take an all-glass elevator with a transparent glass floor (‘Ascent’)for $20 extra.

Bring sunglasses; the reflective materials used throughout can blind.  Wear comfortable shoes (stiletto heels, steel toe boots, sports cleats, etc not permitted) and pants or shorts (the floor is mirrored).

Eat and drink at Après, a sky-high lounge and cafe with globally-inspired fare and innovative cocktails and mocktails. Choose from an indoor seating area with a fireplace and a stunning outdoor terrace with an open-air bar.

Wed-Mon 9 am–10:30 pm
Closed Tue

This touring exhibition celebrates the iconic moments, characters, settings, and beasts as seen in the Harry Potter film series and the Wizarding World through immersive design and technology. This unique in-depth exhibition features powerful storytelling, innovative, interactive technology and original props and costumes.

Experiences include the Hogwarts Castle Gallery, featuring an immersive multimedia experience with dementors, the use of a Marauder’s map, the whomping willow and more; Hagrid’s Hut and The Forbidden Forest with an interactive Patronus charm; a Hogwarts Houses gallery that will prompt you to select your own house complete with the iconic Sorting Hat and photo opportunities; Quidditch drills; wand battles and actual classroom galleries that will be filled with costumes, creatures and props.

Strollers not permitted.

See our guide to more NYC Harry Potter experiences.