Family Fun @ Wild West City in NJ

Looking for a great kid-friendly getaway from NYC? What about traveling back in time!? Then you've gotta check out Wild West City in NJ where we went yesterday for the first time, just under an hour and a half drive from up here in Hudson Valley. For the full experience and all the details, check out our fun highlights reel here:

At Wild West City you are transported back in time to the 1800's Wild West! With live action every 15 minutes on the Main Street - we're talking shootouts (with powder blanks, don't worry - no danger here!!), cowboy horse riding competitions, stagecoach holdups with audience participation, can can dancers and more!)

The Main Street also acts as a living history museum where you can go into each building and explore - bank, jail, saloon, saddle shop, post office, barber shop, one room school house, chapel, and more!

There are a few dining options, including the Golden Nugget (with the usual fast food i.e. not historically accurate LOL, great live music, and booze options for the adults), a confectionary with cotton candy, ice cream and sno-cones, and a pizza parlor (they only space with AC).

​Seeing animals in the barn and panning for gold are also included in the admission fee. Fun extras include $6/person stagecoach ride, $5/person train ride, $5/person mini golf, $5/person pony rides, and more.

We honestly had such a fun time!! They keep it "historically accurate", with words that are not PC in today's world ("Indians" for example), and yes, they do shoot, and kill, and the guns are loud (but fake - firing blanks), so consider if your kids will be ok with this. After gloriously and often hilariously dramatic shootouts and "deaths", the actors jump back up and wave, so your kids will quickly understand it's all just playing, of course you should discuss this before, during, and after to make sure they understand it was acting, and how dangerous real weapons are! Safety first!!

LOCATION: 50 Lackawanna Drive Stanhope, NJ​
TICKETS: $29.50 for adults, $24.50 for kids, $22 for seniors.

Visit their website for more details.

For more like this from us, visit:

• Our "Best Day Trips & Weekend Getaways from NYC With Kids" roundup
• Our "Best of Hudson Valley with Kids" roundup