Being in New York City on Memorial Day gives you the easiest and cheapest ways of spending the unofficial kick-off to summer. NYC has something to give from skyline views, parks, art museums and memorials, so we’ll give you some of the free activities you can do on the three-day weekend.

Fleet Week at the Intrepid

Nothing beats spending Memorial Day than to indulge in the real meaning of the celebration. What happens in a Fleet Week in NYC? An active military ship (or two) recently deployed in overseas operations docks for one week. Once the ships dock, the crews visit the city. Sometimes, the public can take a guided tour of the ships. This is a free annual event that caters to honor US Military service men and women, with loads of presentations and activities.

Lower East Side Festival of the Arts

What can go better than free theater music, dance, film and art for the three-day weekend? The Theater for the New City gives you the Lower East Side Festival of the Arts, which pays tribute to the artists of the Lower East Side and East Village with live performances, poetry reading, cabaret and others. In a generation full of Social Media and Smart Phones, this is one of the best ways to reconnect to art, through watching live performance on a non-working day, enjoying every minute of it.

Enjoy Central Park

Central Park is one of the best parks to spend Memorial Day in, with its 500 acres of grass, lakes and ponds, this will give you a breath of fresh air after a week of working too hard in the office. Kids will enjoy being able to fly kites, enjoying a picnic or just simply sight-seeing everyone who’s having fun under the sun. After spending the afternoon in Central Park, be sure to walk in NYC streets on the lookout for the best New York hotdog or pizza. Walking through NYC streets during Memorial weekend immerses you into NYC’s diverse culture and cuisine.

Biking

It is a three-day weekend, so your kids might want to utilize this as a bonding time. The best way to scan through the neighborhood is through biking together, as it is convenient and nature-friendly. If you do not have bicycles at home, there are a lot of NY Bike Rentals in Central Park, Brooklyn Bridge and Harlem that you can contact for an experience your kids will surely love.

While there are many options to consider on Memorial Day planning, the most important thing is to remember what the day is really for, and to make sure that we pay homage to the people who served for our country.