Climb aboard the Wavertree at South Street Seaport

What it is like

The museum says it offers free hands-on activities and engagement stations for kids of all ages, and the admission also covers the three-floor Maritime City exhibition and the galleries at 12 Fulton Street and 213 Water Street. Why I picked this over the Tenement Museum: the Tenement is open by guided tour only, and I could not verify its age limits on the official pages (a parenting site reports that only one tour takes children under 6, with no strollers and steep stairs), whereas the Wavertree's rules are plain and published.

Honest limits: boarding the Wavertree means climbing seven steps and an angled gangway, with high sills and steep, ladder-like stairs below deck, so it is not for every stroller or wheelchair. The museum offers stroller storage behind the Wavertree gangway (it disclaims responsibility for unattended strollers on the pier). Children under 10 must be accompanied by an adult at all times, and all children need tickets for exhibitions and ships, with the $5 price applying to ages 5 and up.

Best time to go

A dry Wednesday to Sunday late morning; the museum is closed Monday and Tuesday.

Tips before you go

• Check the weather; the ships are outdoors and the pier is windy.
• Use the stroller storage at the Wavertree gangway.
• Restrooms are near Pier 16 under the FDR and at 213 Water Street.