Make your Easter egg-stra special with the best activities in the area — including bunnies, brunching and a robot that paints!
White Post Farms
250 Old Country Road, Melville, LI; 631-351-9373, whitepostfarms.com
Why pose with a pretend Easter Bunny when you can get the real thing? Long Island’s White Post Farms brings back its annual Easter celebration, complete with a petting zoo, Easter egg hunts and a variety of crafts. Animals include rabbits (to pet and to hold), parrots, goats, zebras, marmosets, lemurs — and ponies for aspiring cowboys and cowgirls to ride.
Kimberly Montini, co-owner of Queens baby and maternity boutique Raising Astoria, recently visited the farm with her 3-year-old daughter Julia and 19-month-old son Javier.
“My daughter enjoyed the egg hunting the most, and my son especially loved the big animals,” Montini says. “We live in the city, where you don’t get to see these large animals up close. It’s so much better than a zoo, where they are kept inside cages or behind a big fence. Here kids get to really see, smell and touch the animals.”
The Easter Bunny himself will also be in attendance, and parents are welcome to take their own photos.
Hop to it: All ages welcome. Animal farm admission, $15 (cash only). Pony rides, $5 each. Free egg hunts and Easter Bunny photos. Saturday and Sunday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Easter at the High Line
848 Washington St.; 212-645-4646, standardhotels. com/high-line
Take advantage of Easter’s promising weather forecast by stepping out on the High Line. The Standard hotel, in the heart of the Meatpacking District, has planned a full day of activities suitable for the young, old or just young-at-heart.
The morning kicks off with an on-site petting zoo, with rabbits, goats, baby chicks and even an Easter kangaroo. Kids can feed and pet the animals before taking part in an Easter egg hunt in the Standard Plaza.
Afterward, adults can treat themselves to brunch. The Standard Grill, on the ground floor, will serve classic brunch fare (try the almond-crusted French toast, $14, or the shrimp and grits, $19) with a variety of cocktails. Those looking for a more captivating view can take their dining to the 18th floor, where brunch will be served at the Top of the Standard.
Hop to it: All ages welcome. Free admission. Sunday: petting zoo. 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.; Easter egg hunt, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Brunch served 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Staten Island Makerspace
450 Front St., Stapleton, SI; 718-273-3951, simakerspace.com
Home egg-decorating kits are so last year.
Step into the future at this nonprofit work space that’s upped the Easter ante with the Egg-Bot, an art robot capable of drawing on round objects, including golf balls, wine glasses and, yes, eggs.
Create your own designs on a computer before the machine takes over, drawing clean, precise patterns.
“We are trying to inspire and expose kids to science, engineering and technologies, but we also think that you need to have the arts in there, too,” says Maker- Space co-founder Scott Van Campen. “The inspiration is to spark interest in the younger generation, but so far the adults around here are having a lot of fun with them.”
Hop to it: All ages. Free; bring your own hard-boiled eggs. Saturday, 1 to 4 p.m. Egg-Bot kits ($195) at egg-bot.com.
The Fabergé Big Egg Hunt
75 Rockefeller Plaza; thebigegghunt.org
The traditional hunt got a 21st-century makeover and a charitable twist this year, with New Yorkers, helped by a smartphone app, searching for 270 Fabergé eggs around the city since April 1. Now, all of the eggs have been gathered for display at Rockefeller Plaza.
“We loved the idea of an egg hunt — taking a well-known childhood game and bringing it to city streets,” says Ruth Powys, Big Egg Hunt spokeswoman and CEO of nonprofit Elephant Family, which will help endangered Asian elephants with an auction of the eggs.
Among those who contributed cool egg designs are Tommy Hilfiger, Jacques Torres, Ralph Lauren and Martha Stewart. Eggs are currently up for auction on Paddle8 (paddle8.com/auctions/bigegghunt) — a Jeff Koons egg currently leads the bidding at $410,000. Proceeds will be split between Studio in a School, an NYC-based nonprofit that brings artists to city public schools, and Elephant Family.
Hop to it: All ages welcome. Free; eggs on display through April 25. Paddle8 online auction closes April 26.
Sugar and Plumm’s Chocolate Egg
377 Amsterdam Ave.; 212-787-8778, sugarandplumm.com
Is your sweet tooth capable of taking on $5,000 worth of fine chocolate? That’s what’s on tap at Sugar and Plumm, an Upper West Side chocolate boutique with this one-of-a-kind cocoa creation on display. Designed by French chocolatier Thierry Atlan, the 30-inch-high, 40-pound egg took 120 hours to complete.
“The egg is supposed to be the whole world, so the story behind it is that wherever these bunnies are coming from, they’re all trying to be on time to meet up for Easter,” explains shop owner Lamia Jacobs of the egg’s intricate design.
Hunting for a more affordable treat? Swing by on Saturday and create a chocolate version of Mr. Potato Head — with edible eyes, mouth, mustache and glasses.
Hop to it: On display through Sunday. Customizable eggs available ($8 each) Saturday, noon to 5 p.m.
Full Bunny Contact
107 Suffolk St.; fullbunnycontact.com
Looking for a carnival full of deranged adults in rabbit costumes? Try Full Bunny Contact, a new immersive experience from “Nightmare” haunted house creator Timothy Haskell. “There are few opportunities to be silly in the city on Easter,” Haskell says. Full Bunny Contact’s main event has participants fighting to collect eggs while fending off attack bunnies in a caged area. The carnival also includes a temper-tantrum contest, bunny burlesque, an eggputt competition and a dunk tank. “The games are physical, aggressive and silly, but also have an ironic sense of humor,” says Haskell.
A full bar and food trucks will be on-site, with Two Boots offering pizza topped with rabbit sausage, pickled carrots, mozzarella and pesto. Prizes include candy and drink vouchers.
Hop to it: Ages 10 and up. Tickets $10 to $60. Saturday, noon to 11 p.m.; Sunday, noon to 8 p.m.
Sweetwater Social Adult Egg Hunt
643 Broadway; 212-253-7467, drinksweetwater.com
For grown-ups looking for holiday festivities — with the added bonus of alcohol — Sweetwater Social is the place. The new bar celebrates its first Easter with an adult-friendly egg hunt.
“It’s a little bit childish,” admits co-owner Shaun Rose. “We just wanted an interactive way for adults to celebrate the holiday.”
Instead of candy, eggs will be filled with small bottles of liquor, cocktail vouchers, gag gifts and more, then scattered around the bar.
Hop to it: Ages 21 and up. Free admission. Saturday, 5 p.m. to 2 a.m.