Very busy over the labor day weekend meant a wait for the bikes and Central park was heaving. Beware additional charges at the bike shop i.e. insurance or 30.00 repair cost for a puncture!!
We wanted to hire bikes, so that our children 5,8 could see more of Central Park than they otherwise would on foot. The bikes given were great perfect for their size and complete with helmets, locks etc. The price booking through Viator was way cheaper than the rate advertised by the shop on the day - Viator offered great value! The shop is located close to the park - a couple of blocks away and easy to walk. I would say that the minimum amount of time to hire for would be 4 hours, if you want to be able to stop at the various attractions, enjoy a drink etc. The only negative of the whole experience, was that the company tried to give us the 'hard sell' on insurance for punctures, damage etc. making me feel that we would be 'saddled! with a huge bill if anything were to go wrong. We didn't take it and we had a great afternoon's cycling in the park, with no mishaps!
My nephew is a young man who loves to exercise everyday. We were able to ride the entire bike path in less than an hour. because it was a two hour rental we took a more slower pace the second hour and took pictures. I would like to do this everytime I visit the city rain or shine.