Seal Watching in NYC

Seal watching is becoming a popular winter-themed activity this year, with various groups organizing seal watching walks and cruises for families. With the increase in the amount of seals that have been visiting New York during migration, it is the perfect time to take the family to connect with wildlife.

Seals can be found along the harbor across Long Island and various other points in New York. Many places offer weekly activities up that last until April and sometimes May. If you are looking to explore a new nature adventure, check out these groups. Whether on a full-blown cruise around the harbor or a peaceful nature walk, families can enjoy nature and wildlife as they observe seals that have made New York their home for the winter.

American Princess Cruises
American Princess Cruises has weekend seal and bird watching cruises beginning February 1^st on weekends and holidays. The cruises sail from Rockaway, Queens at 12 pm and the cruise runs approximately 2 hours. Adult tickets are $30 and tickets for kids ages 5 to 12 are $20. Check out the American Princess’ website for more information.

The Riverhead Foundation for Marine Research and Preservation

The Riverhead Foundation located in Freeport, Long Island schedules special seal watching cruises on weekends from now until April. The boarding time is 12:30 pm and departure time is 1 pm. Tickets are $26 for adults and $22 for seniors and kids ages 3 to 12. Discounted group rates are also available for groups of 15 people or more. All proceeds benefit the New York State Marine Mammal and Sea Turtle Rescue Program, which works to rescue and re-release endangered marine animals here in New York. Check out their website for more information.

NYC Audubon Winter EcoCruise

The New York City Water Taxi services also offers exclusive eco-crusies, where nature lovers can see both wildlife and some of New York’s most memorable sights. Departing from the South Street Seaport at noon, the cruise runs approximately two hours and there are various departure dates throughout February and March. Passengers will be able to look at seals, ducks, geese and a variety of other animals along the New York harbor. Tickets are $35 for adults and $25 for children. Check out the NY Water Taxi website for more information.

Coastal Research and Education Society of Long Island

The CRESLI schedules various nature walks on weeks from November through May. The walks are about 1.2 miles round-trip and take about 2 hours to compete, but they are suitable for children and families. Suggested contributions are $5 for adults and $3 for kids 18 and younger. There are also seasonal passes available for unlimited seal walks. Check the CRESLI website for more information.

New York State Parks Recreation and Historic Preservation

The New York State Parks Recreation and Historic Preservation society organizes several seal walks at different times and locations from now until the end of April. Registration is required prior to the walk and admission is $4 for adults and $3 for kids between the ages of 3 to 18 years old. One of these locations is Montauk Point State Park, where there are scheduled seal walks every weekend. There is also “Family Adventures: Seal Walk” events that take place in Jones Beach State Park and Theodore Roosevelt Nature Center with special activities and programs featuring seals and marine animals. For more information, go to nysparks.com.

Athletic Association of Yorkville Youths

Serving the families and children of NYC for over 50 years with high-quality recreational activities that foster life-lessons which empower young people to succeed beyond sports. Our programs encourage positive attitudes and growth through teamwork and sportsmanship, attendance, fair play, respect, hard work, integrity and fun. Your child can participate in clinics and leagues in such sports as baseball, basketball, flag-football, lacrosse, soccer, hockey, wrestling, track, and tennis. We also offer weekly dodgeball tournaments, drama and musical theater workshops, and after school programs.

Play On! Studios

Play On! Studios offers theater day camps and after-school classes on the UWS that are guaranteed to give kids a summer full of acting, music, and fun they won't soon forget! Young actors will rehearse and perform in a full production, work with professional NYC actors/teaching artists, build up their skills in a nurturing, non-competitive environment and play lots of drama games! Creative Drama Camps are perfect for kids entering grades K-4. Campers will work each week to put on a brand-new show! Each session, they will receive a script, rehearse a production, make a set and costumes, and perform their play. Kids will also play drama games, play outside (weather permitting), and have tons of fun! Musical Theater Camps are aimed at kids entering grades 4-9. In Musical Theater Performance Camp, campers put on a complete musical production in a professional NYC theater! Campers will stretch their skills with drama exercises and games, vocal coaching, field trips, and building a professional set. Our incredible teaching artists and campers come together to put on a truly remarkable show! During the school year, classes are great for beginners or more experienced actors - sing, dance, and put on a play! Whether your child is just starting out, or ready for Broadway, we&rsquo;ve got the class for them. Classes are available for grades PreK-8, after school or on Saturdays! Come play with us. &nbsp;

The Language Workshop For Children

After offering both group and private lessons for many years and analyzing the results over&nbsp;time, The&nbsp;Language Workshop for&nbsp;Children, founded&nbsp;in1973, has decided&nbsp;to emphasize private remote lessons at shorter intervals.&nbsp;Our skilled educators&nbsp;will&nbsp;focus their attention exclusively on the&nbsp;unique needs, learning style, and interests of your child.&nbsp;This allows a&nbsp;bond&nbsp;to develop&nbsp;between teacher and student, which&nbsp;has been&nbsp;shown to&nbsp;drastically improve retention.&nbsp; OUR METHOD&nbsp; Developed by the pioneers of language education for children, our programs bring decades of&nbsp;experience to your living room with individualized, active language classes. Each lesson is based on proven methods and materials perfected to capture your&nbsp;child&rsquo;s attention during the ages when he/she absorbs information the fastest. &nbsp;&nbsp; While other online language classes rely on videos for passive learning, we deliver interactive, and engaging lessons with native-fluent teachers. In addition, all our teachers are certified in the Thibaut&nbsp;Technique which has been featured&nbsp;in the New York&nbsp;Times, the&nbsp;Wall Street Journal, and many other well-respected&nbsp;publications.&nbsp;&nbsp; Our short one-on-one lessons give kids the chance to focus, hear pronunciation clearly, and practice speaking in their target language.  THE PROCESS&nbsp; First, students have a short meeting with our Director&nbsp;Francois&nbsp;Thibaut, in&nbsp;English, with&nbsp;their parent(s)&nbsp;present.&nbsp;Mr. Thibaut&nbsp;will determine&nbsp;the best course of study, including&nbsp;class length and&nbsp;frequency, the&nbsp;right&nbsp;teacher, lesson&nbsp;format and materials (or action games for younger students.) Then the learning&nbsp;begins!&nbsp;Mr. Thibaut will continually check in on your child&rsquo;s learning to assure they are getting the most&nbsp;of&nbsp;their&nbsp;classes.&nbsp; OTHER OFFERINGS&nbsp; We can also help your child prepare for: the French subject tests for SAT, AP &amp; CLEP, the European DELF/DALF, the Canadian TEF and other standardized testing, college entry exams, studying or traveling abroad,&nbsp;cultural changes when moving abroad,&nbsp;and much more!&nbsp; &nbsp;