With summer on its last legs, parents around the country are desperately trying to squeeze in a final opportunity to do something special with their kids before school starts again in September. Fortunately, Labor Day weekend provides a prime opportunity to get everyone together and enjoy an exciting vacation the whole family will love. Instead of heading to your usual haunts this year, try visiting Manhattan with your kids—not only will you find countless activities for parents and little ones alike, you’ll make memories the whole family will treasure for a lifetime:

The Top 5 Reasons to Visit NYC This Labor Day Weekend

Check out a Night at the Museum Tour at the American Museum of Natural History:

By Candice Shaffer of Algin Management , Madison Realty Capital, Modern Spaces, The Belnord, Brooklyn Point and The Bryant

Museums can be fun for the whole family, and they’re also great tools for making your kid a better learner, too. Fortunately, Manhattan is home to one of the most exciting museums in the country—as well as one that’s accessible and not overwhelming for neurodiverse children: the American Museum of Natural History. Better yet, AMNH offers nighttime tours, meaning that, after a long day of excitement, you can peruse its silent halls at night for a calming, pre-bedtime activity.

Catch the West Indian Day Parade:

While not in Manhattan itself, the West Indian Day Parade is well worth the trip to Brooklyn. The parade, which takes place every year on Brooklyn’s Eastern Parkway, is a colorful celebration of New York’s large West Indian population. Fortunately, from the exciting dance numbers to the rousing music, this is a perfect event for kids of all ages and ability levels, too.

Visit the Tenement Museum:

While Manhattan may seem like it’s virtually all glassy high-rises and elegant pre-war buildings today, it wasn’t always that way. If you want to get your kids to appreciate the history of the city they’re so fortunate to visit (or just get them to realize how lucky they are to live where they do), take a visit to the Tenement Museum on the Lower East Side. This unique museum highlights the squalid conditions in which many of New York’s poor and immigrant families were forced to live to get by, as well as providing visitors an appreciation for the contributions these populations made to the diverse city New York is today.

See the Washington Square Park Art Exhibit:

If your kids love art but can’t always make it through an entire fine art museum and you’re eager to encourage their creativity, the Washington Square Park Art Exhibit will help them get their fix. This exciting outdoor event combines artists creating art in real-time (perhaps even offering a rare opportunity to get a family portrait session in), as well as plenty of the city’s best under-the-radar artists selling their work.

Go see The Intrepid:

What better way to celebrate the strength of the American worker than by visiting one of New York’s most impressive monuments to modern ingenuity? This aircraft carrier is the perfect place for high-energy kids to get some fresh air while learning some of the history of the armed forces. And fortunately, for kids who just can’t get enough of technology, there are exhilarating exhibits on everything from submarines to air travel.