Want to see Macys Parade 2010!!!

What a fun trip you have planned! I remember another family asking this same question around this time last year. I managed to dig up the reply about where the best place is to watch the parade. Here is the link:
http://www.trekaroo.com/talk/topic/macys-parade-suggestions-new-york-city-new-york

As for fun things to do along the way....here are some highlights

St Augustine, FL - Alligator Farm
Jacksonville, FL - Jacksonville Zoo, Kids Kampus
Savannah, GA - Devil's Fork State Park
North Carolina - Greensboro Children's Museum, Lazy 5 Ranch
Virginia - Colonial WIllamsburg, Virigina Aquarium, Monticello
DC - Market Square in Old Town Alexandria...so much to see in DC....the usual - White House, Pentagon, Smithsonian Museums
Baltimore, Maryland - Baltimore Aquarium
Philadelphia - Please Touch Museum, Franklin Institute and then the usuals, Liberty Bell etc. Italian Market

And then you are in New York!

A little tip on using Trekaroo to plan road trips. You can use the map on any activity list page to plan road trips. Click the check box "Find activities when I move map" and you can drag the map along the route you are taking. Then the map will display any activities that are within the boundaries of the map. You can also zoom in and out.

You can also book mark all the activities that you find interesting and see all the activities displayed on your bookmarks map in your passport. Have fun.

Hi - I live in NYC so was trying to think of some good places here for you to visit. One thing about the Thanksgiving Day parade - the best part for kids tends to be the blowing up of the balloons the day/night before. They do it around the block of the Natural History Museum(81st and Central Park West). We took our son last year and he was almost one. It was cool but be prepared for a mass of people unless you stroll around there in the afternoon. To view the parade they have bleachers set up around Columbus Circle. But not sure about hotel or restaurant. We haven't done that yet. There is a nice kid-friendly restaurant right on Columbus Circle called Landmarc. I would do some research on the parade route and book your hotel now.

Otherwise, in the city is 'The Childrens Museum'. There also is a great Transit Museum in Brooklyn. Our son loves choo-choo's and its a great inexpensive place to let the kids play and you also get a history of all of the subway trains. They have actual subway cars to walk through and everything. Plus you can take the subway there which is fun for the kids. The Natural History Museum is interesting. Go to the huge Toys R Us in Times Square also FAO Schwartz on Fifth Ave. See a Broadway show. There is ice skating in Central Park or Bryant Park. Bryant Park will also have an outdoor holiday market. I keep thinking of more things. When you get closer to November check out the website for TimeOut New York Kids. They'll list the current activities going on around the city. I hope you have a great trip. It's an awesome time to come to the 'Big Apple'

I came across a great little article about taking the family to NYC for the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade - check out http://www.timeshare-info.org/2009/09/nyc-vacation-to-see-macys-thanksgiving.html

Yay! I love hearing about people coming to NYC around the holidays cause I know they will love it. All the above suggestions are wonderful. Note however that the inflating of the balloons has become somewhat of a popular thing (yes, the secret is out on that one) making it a very, very crowded event and hard to navigate through with a stroller, so don't bring one! Same for the parade. This year we lucked out, the weather was AMAZING. As for best places to watch, might want to wait on that one. They changed the route this year, so not sure what will happen next year. The lighting of the tree at Rockefeller is on the first week of Dec, as well as the unveiling of most all of the holiday windows. But, ice skating season starts then, and some smaller rings, like the one in Central Park are nice for the little ones. As for eateries, there are many in the Upper West Side area that are less "touristy" and very kid friendly (Upper West side is Boradway, Columbus, Amsterdam Ave, and 59 -100s). Good luck, have a safe trip, and just keep checking listings of events closer to dates...we always have great things going on around that time!