Huntington With Kids: Great Things to Do in Suffolk's Historic Village

Celebrate spring at Huntington Village's annual Tulip Festival. Photo courtesy of Living Huntington

Just an hour train ride from Manhattan, Huntington Village is a quaint, four-seasons family destination on the north shore of Suffolk. From St. Patrick's Day to the Christmas season, Huntington Village is full of parades and festivals, not to mention other year-round staples. Museums, parks, restaurants, shops and play spaces make Huntington Village a picture perfect family day trip. 

For more family-friendly neighborhood fun, check out our guides to Port Washington, Glen Cove, Sayville and Port Jefferson

Ski Free All Spring with the 2019 Ikon Pass - And Save $100 on Kids’ Passes

If you hit the slopes at least one week a year, a ski pass can mean serious savings for your family. Ikon Pass is an annual ski pass that gives you access to over 30 skiing and snowboarding destinations across 12 states, 4 Canadian provinces, and 4 continents. And even better, if you buy your pass now, you get this year’s spring skiing for free!

While you might think of skiing as a quintessential winter activity, the higher temps, longer days, and shorter chairlift waits make spring break the perfect time for a family ski trip. Whether you're a bunch of black diamond die-hards or some of your gang's still all about the bunny hill, an Ikon Pass will definitely help you make the most of spring on the slopes—and since the pass for the 19/20 season literally just went on sale, you can use it for the rest of this season, as well as all of next year.

St. Patrick's Day Events in Connecticut

Photo courtesy of Stamford St. Patrick's Day Parade

It's March and you know what that means...St. Patrick's Day! While St. Patrick’s Day celebrations are often thought of as mostly adult-oriented (usually associated with pints of Guinness), there are many kid-friendly ways to celebrate the holiday with wee little ones in Connecticut. 

Family-Friendly Farm Stays: Meet the Animals and Work the Farm

Collect eggs, or just visit with the animals, during your farm stay. Photo by the author

Farm stays provide guests of all ages with a taste of farm life. Whether by milking cows and collecting eggs, or gathering fresh fruit from a pineapple plant for breakfast, families who choose to stay at a farm hotel, which might be cabin, house, or even a tent, will likely have more fun than Old MacDonald led you to believe is possible.

Time your farm stay with the kids for spring, summer, or even fall. Check out which seasonal activities might be going on before picking the dates of your farm vacation, as well as the location. We've rounded up 10 of our favorite farm "hotels" around the country, from Maine to Texas to California.

I've found that farmer-hosts have a strong desire to educate little farmers on how to live a more sustainable and balanced life. Unplug, relax, and enjoy the fruits of a hard day’s work around a campfire. Lessons learned on these farms will stay with you long after you return home. 

Find more vacation ideas and weekend getaways in our Family Travel Guide, or check out your local Farm Fun Guide for local petting zoos, harvest festivals, and pick-your-own fun.

St. Patrick's Day Free Parades for Kids on Long Island

Glen Cove celebrates its Irish heritage on March 17. Photo courtesy of the Glen Cove Hibernians

Few regions celebrate their Irish heritage better than Long Island. After a two-year pandemic pause, St. Patrick's Day parades are gearing up to step off this March with grand fanfare. 

From Rockville Centre to Montauk, from the first weekend of March till the last, Main Streets across the Island come alive with pipers, parade marchers, traditional food, music, dance, and more. Huntington itself swells with visitors on the second Sunday of March when one of the largest St. Patrick’s Day gatherings in New York State kicks off in the village downtown. That Huntington parade is dwarfed perhaps only by New York’s City’s celebration (NEEDS UPDATE), which this year is Thursday, March 17.

Most of these events are low cost or FREE, ideal for families, and appropriate for first-generation Irish-Americans or those who are just Irish for a day.

Read on for our favorites from among the parades that will take place in Patrick’s honor this month on the Island. Click through for details, including parade routes, dates, times, and more. As always see our Long Island Events Calendar and March GoList for the best in family entertainment all month long.

NYC STEM Camps: Robots, Coding, and More Educational Tech Fun

Students can test handmade robots on obstacle courses.

NYC kids who’ve been itching for the school year to be over so they can devote more time to their extracurricular technology passions are in luck. We've rounded up more than a dozen techie summer camps right here in the city, which all offer hands-on building, coding, 3D printing and more.

No matter your child’s interest, age or location, you should be able to pick out the perfect camp from our list below to fuel some summertime STEM learning. Act fast, too, if you want to take advantage of early bird pricing.

Get Ready: New York State's Biggest Indoor Water Park Opens in April

Kids will go wild for the huge new indoor water park.

The Kartrite Resort & Indoor Waterpark—billed as the biggest indoor water park in New York state—is finally opening this spring!

Since we first learned about this exciting new indoor water park in the Catskills over a year ago, we’ve been eagerly anticipating its grand opening. Originally scheduled for April 5, the resort has announced that the opening will now take place Friday, April 19, 2019

Located about 2 hours from midtown Manhattan in Monticello, NY, the Kartrite is an exciting alternative to farther-afield indoor water parks in the NYC area. Reservations are now open for April and beyond—perfect for spring break, a weekend away, or your family's summer vacation. Read on for more details, plus a peek inside the space.

Spring Break Camps for Private and Independent School Kids in NYC

NORY STEM Camp teaches kids a little bit of everything, from robotics to soccer. Photo courtesy of NORY

Most private and independent schools in NYC have a two-week spring break (as opposed to the one-week-long winter and spring breaks public school kids get), during which parents need to keep the little ones busy. Fortunately, NYC has no shortage of camp options for the private and independent school spring break, which runs from March 15 to April 1 for the 2019 school year. 

We've rounded up over a dozen programs with camp offerings during the two-week break for private and independent schools. It's always worth checking with your local play space or other neighborhood kid spot to see what's on offer. Be sure to click through to the camps' official sites for more details, including hours and pricing.

Oh, and get ahead of the game by checking out our Summer Camp Guide!

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