Free Things to Do for Families in New York City

New York City has a reputation for being an expensive city to visit. However, the Big Apple offers a plethora of free, family-friendly events throughout the year, including parades, street fairs, summer concerts and, of course, the lighting of the holiday tree at Rockefeller Center. There's something for everything taste and interest.

Parades
New Yorkers love parades. In addition to the world-famous Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade, the city hosts multiple parades each month. Some of the largest include parades on St. Patrick's Day, Easter, Columbus Day, Memorial Day and Halloween. There are also a variety of ethnic-themed parades, like the Dominican Day parade in August, the Greek Independence Day parade in March, and the Philippine Independence Day parade in June. All are free.

Summer Concerts
Summer brings free music to New York City's 750 parks, especially Central Park and Bryant Park. Performers run the gamut from classical to rap to gospel. In addition, members of the New York Philharmonic and the Metropolitan Opera perform periodically for free during the summer in Central Park.

Street Fairs
Art fairs, street festivals, and food events abound in the streets of New York City during the warmer months. One of the largest of these is River to River Festival, which sets up in Lower Manhattan from mid-June to September. This free street festival features live music, poetry readings, dance, and other artistic performances. Other popular festivals include the Tribeca Community Fair in June, Midtown's Festival of the Americas in July, and The Great Irish Festival in August.

Holiday Events
New York City is magical during the holidays. In addition to the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade, New York visitors will find the giant tree lighting at Rockefeller Center during the first week of December, the fanciful department store windows and the fanciful lights that illuminate Central Park during the month of December.

Other Free Family Events in New York City
In addition to music, fairs, and parades, the Big Apple offersfree theater. Central Park has hosted the summer Shakespeare in the Park series for more than 50 years. Productions run from June through September and usually feature at least one or two big name actors. Other free NYC events include book signings at a host of New York City book stores, tapings of television shows filmed in New York (some of which are family-friendly), free summer movie screenings at Bryant Park, and storytimes at museums, coffee shops and bookstores around town.

Sources:
http://www.frommers.com/destinations/newyorkcity/0021025063.html
http://newyorkkids.timeout.com/articles/books/91058/free-storytimes-at-nyc-bookstores-for-kids
http://www.nycstreetfairs.com/sched.html
http://www.carnaval.com/cityguides/newyork/parades.htm
http://travel.nationalgeographic.com/city-guides/free-new-york-city-traveler/