In congested NYC, few residents own cars, and visitors often don’t bother to rent one. But if you prefer taxi service to the trains and buses, you’re in luck. KidCarNY is a car service that doesn’t just have a few extra car seats to throw in when needed - the company’s purpose is to help transport parents and their children around NYC. The fleet consists of minivans, each equipped with top-brand carseats from Britax, Graco and/or Safeguard. Up to 3 children needing carseats can be transported at a time, making this great for families. Even their operations are child-friendly: although cars will leave after waiting for 15 minutes, the first 2 no-shows per year don’t get charged to your account, thanks to the company’s understanding that kids can sometimes be, well, difficult. (After that, though, you’d better get your kids in hand.)

KidCarNY is really geared towards NYC parents, with a yearly membership of $300 and a per-trip fee of $25. However if you visit often, you can register as a NYC family and take advantage of the reduced trip fees. Even infrequent visitors can take advantage of KidCarNY by registering as visiting families. You’ll skip the membership fee and pay a higher trip fee instead: $35. If you haven’t arrived in town with your own carseats in tow, the safety concerns and comfortable trip are well worth the fee, especially if you’re staying in the Village and headed to the museums all the way uptown.

Special Touch: NYC expecting parents who register for the service before baby’s arrival (and it doesn’t have to be your first baby) will get a free trip home from the hospital!

KidCarNY LLC, 212.862.SAFE (7233)

If you’re eco-conscious and traveling in the U.S., you’ll be glad to know about Hertz’s Green Collection, environmentally friendly cars available for rental at over 50 airports across the country. The five models available get at least 28 mpg and are also blessed with the EPA’s SmartWay certification, which is given to cars that perform well on the agency’s greenhouse gas and air pollutant emissions tests. Just note that “green” does not, in this case, mean hybrid - it just means these cars give off fewer emissions.

The Hertz Green Collection includes the Toyota Camry, shown above, and the Ford Fusion, Buick LaCrosse, Subaru Outback and Hyundai Sonata.