Sony Wonder Technology Lab
An interactive science/technology museum that seems more like an amusement park. You can do everything from producing a TV show to laying down a track in a recording studio, or you can see the human body in a medical-imaging lab. Tuesday-Saturday 10 am-6 pm (Thursday to 8 pm), Sunday noon-6 pm. Last entrance 30 minutes before closing. Free. 550 Madison Ave. (at 56th Street; 5th Avenue subway station at 53rd Street), Manhattan, New York City. Phone 212-833-8100.

Staten Island Ferry
A transportation link that's also a sightseeing attraction, the Staten Island Ferry is a pleasant way to see the city's skyline from the water -- and it's free. It also gets within snapshot range of the Statue of Liberty, and Ellis Island is visible in the distance. Try to go at sunset, so you can see the lighted buildings in Manhattan on the return trip. Once you arrive on Staten Island, there is really nothing to see or do around the ferry terminal, so you may want to stay onboard and head straight back. Monday-Friday 6:30 am-12:30 am twice an hour (thrice during rush hours), 12:30 am-6:30 am once an hour; Saturday and Sunday noon-7:30 pm twice an hour, 7:30 pm-noon once an hour. Whitehall Terminal at Whitehall Street and South Street (take the 1 or 9 train to the South Ferry subway station), Manhattan, New York City. Phone 718-815-2628.