The American Museum of Natural History   

This is by far my favorite Museum. I can remember visiting it as a child on school trips and being fascinated by the dinosaur skeletons and stuffed wildlife from around the world. If you love museums and have never visited this New York City Gem, then the American Museum of Natural History should be one of your first stops in New York City.

The Museum of Natural History is a very large museum with five mazelike floors packed full of exhibits that will take you at least an entire day (from opening till closing with a break for lunch in between) to see it in its entirety. Of course if you are planning to visit the Museum with children, or you do not have the energy or desire to stay the whole day, its easy to pick and choose what you would like to see. You can download a floor plan from the museum website.

Getting into the museum is not as inexpensive as it used to be. The admission price for access to every exhibit and feature of the museum costs $30.00 for Adults and $19 for children, however if you've never been to the museum before or are on a budget, the suggested general admission price (which are listed below) is enough for you to see the exhibits the museum is most famous for, namely the dinosaurs skeletons and the stuffed animals.

From November 19 until January 1, 2008, The museum has the beautifully decorated Origami Holiday Tree welcoming visitors in the Theodore Roosevelt Memorial Hall on the first floor. There are also two Holiday Barosaurs adorning the entrance of the museum that are wonderfully illuminated at night.

Location
Central Park West and 79th Street

Museum Hours
Open daily from 10:00 a.m.–5:45 p.m. except Thanksgiving
and Christmas Day.

Pricing
Visitors are not required to pay for admission, but the recommended admission price is $15.00 for adults, $11.00 for seniors, and $8.50 for children between 2 and 12. For Special Exhibits, Space Shows and IMAX theatre there is an additional admission price.
Total run of the Museum costs $30.00 for adults, $23.00 for seniors and $19.00 for children between 2 and 12.

Directions

Subway
Take the C or B train to the 81th Street Subway Station. You can enter right into the Museum from the subway station.

Bus

Tour Bus
Gray Line New York Sightseeing Tours Bus - Downtown Loop. Click for more details.

Official Website
American Museum of Natural History