christmas in new york city

As much as I love the mountains, I also love to travel and I’ll make exceptions for cities on occasion. For an introvert, you have to go in with the mindset that it will be crowded and you’ll just have to deal with it. Sometimes there’s no escaping, so make peace with it and move on instead of complaining. That’s the best way to have the most fun!

My friend recently moved to New York City and it seemed like the perfect reason to go visit New York City properly. Plus in December, it’s Christmastime and all the decorations are up and everything is so festive and warm despite being so cold outside too. Here’s my weekend highlight guide to NYC at Christmas.

There’s sort of two parts to NYC at Christmas. There’s the NYC part and the Christmas part. If you haven’t been, you’ll probably want to check out NYC as it is. The museums, the food, the buildings and bridges. And then you’ll want to check out all the more evening-based things like Christmas markets, performances, and Christmas bars. If you only have a weekend, plan it out in advance because you might need to make reservations.

Midtown Manhattan

Midtown is basically the heart of the tourist area of Manhattan. It’s where you can see performances and shows and all the shiny lights of Times Square

The Rockettes

This was by far the biggest highlight for me. No pictures since it’s no cameras allowed inside! But OMG the Rockettes were just as fantastic as I had imagined as a little kid. As someone who loves dance and performances, the Rockettes have always been the top of my list. However, they’re seasonal and only perform mid November to the start of January. So not only do you have to be in New York to watch, you have to go during Christmastime. In the past, they’ve toured other cities, but they’ve stopped touring since 2015.

The Rockettes perform at Radio City Music Hall and some of the cheapest tickets can be found at $70 each. As the hall fills up, the price starts to increase too. Arrive at least 30 minutes prior because it takes a long time to get into the building itself for security and ticket check. If you can avoid it, don’t bring big bags or cameras, they almost had to take mine away. Oops! And if you have enough time inside, they have cute installations that commemorate the Rockettes’ history. This year there was a line for a free drink if you were a Delta SkyMiles member. Chase Bank also has discounts 2 weeks prior to some showings, but that’s a gamble if there’s still seats left! Keep your eyes out for other discounts for performances not only for the Rockettes.

My only qualm about the Rockettes is that the audience was terrible. Confirmed by other people I know who went on a different day. If you’re a regular visual arts performance attender, you’ll find it very distracting. In my experience, people seemed to disrespect the musicians and singers. Basically any time the Rockettes left the stage, people around me would talk loudly, like didn’t even try to whisper. And getting in and out of the Hall, it was very jammed and people made lots of rude comments instead of being polite and respectful. But anyway, the Rockettes are still worth seeing at least once in your life!

Saks on Fifth Ave

If you’re going to see the Rockettes in the evening, you might as well spend some time exploring Fifth Ave, lined with stores filled with elaborate exterior displays and plenty of holiday shopping inside. Look for their holiday market inside (or outside for some). Saks itself is only one block from the Rockettes! It has a light show every ten minutes after sunset. Go at the start for fewer crowds.

Other department stores worth going to: Bergdorf Goodman 7 small blocks from Saks (double the distance between Saks and Radio City) and Bloomingdales, another 3 medium blocks from Berdorf Goodman. A great way to connect them all is Rockettes –> Saks –> Bergdorf Goodman –> Bloomingdales going west to east. Or whichever works best for your Rockettes performance

Note that Macy’s is further away, south of Bryant Park.

Rockefeller Center

I guess I didn’t do so much at Rockefeller Center, but this is where one of the ice rinks is located with the famous big Rockefeller tree. If you’re around for Thanksgiving, this is the place to go for a tree lighting ceremony. It’s situated right between Radio City Music Hall and Saks on Fifth Ave, making it a great detour. You can decide yourself if ice skating is worth it, but I kept finding myself thinking that it cost a lot for a very short and crowded experience.

You can also go up to the Top of the Rock as a high viewing experience, tour the center, wait for a chance to watch SNL perform live (but you have to sign up for the lottery the August the year prior)

Bryant Park

And if you’re headed from Saks/Rockefeller to Macy’s, Bryant Park is right in the middle. It’s got one of the biggest Christmas Markets in NYC but that also means the most crowded. While they have the most vendors, many vendors also sell the same food and gifts in other Christmas Markets, such as Columbus Circle (SW corner of Central Park) and further south at Union Square Park. I honestly could have cared less for Bryant Park at night time. Day time is also a great option to go when it’s less busy.

New York Public Library

Specifically, the Stephen A. Schwarzman Building. It’s right next to Bryant Park and the perfect quiet indoor getaway. It’s actually more of a research building with a gift shop and exhibitions. It’s less of a library where you can borrow books. Don’t do it wrong like me though if you want to visit the beautiful Rose Reading Room. It’s the perfect wintery indoor vibe. It is only open to the public 10-11am Monday-Saturday. But if you miss the morning visit, you can also take a tour, which you can sign up an hour ahead. They generally run on the hour every day. And if you really missed it all like me, at least you can marvel the interiors, check out an exhibition (the New Yorker was on when I was there) and the gift shop on the first floor if you need a souvenir.

Grand Central Terminal

And while you’re here, you might as well check out the train station. It’s all decked out during Christmas and even has its own indoor market. If you’re into trains, you can check out the Holiday Train Show. Somehow I entirely missed it! And even just enjoying the grandeur is spectacular at Grand Central.

Chelsea

I’ve always found Chelsea to be a quieter part of New York City. But a good place to roam around without the crowds.

The High Line

There isn’t anything specifically Christmas related here, but it’s such a classic walk from the Vessel to just past the Chelsea Market. It’s a great way to see water and a high view of classic NYC streets. We ended up eating at DDOBAR nearby and it was so delicious.

Union Square & the Villages

I’ll include the areas south of Midtown here. I had the privilege of taking a ballet class at the ABT studios. Then I checked out a few bakeries: Lysée, Levain, Maman, Tall Poppy, L’Appartement 4F. And then this landed at the Jefferson Market branch of NYPL, another beautiful library.

If you’re looking for a great dinner, 63 Clinton was a great experience and delicious food. We also got to try Attaboy, which somehow we got only a 20 minute wait. They have no menu and make drinks based on what you describe. Prior to dinner, we put our names in for Double Chicken Please which ended up having a 3.5 hour wait! They’re known for making drinks with realistic flavors, such as Mango Sticky Rice.

Central Park

This might not go well for New Yorkers but I’m clumping Upper West Side with Upper East Side. Sorry! For me, they are close enough together. For those who watch Only Murders in the Building, the Arconia is based on the Belnord, 86th and Broadway. All around residential neighborhoods, there were many Christmas trees still on sale. It was so cute to walk through and smelled so nice.

The Met

I was honestly first confused by The Met since there is the opera house and then there’s the museum. If you have time, definitely check out Lincoln Center and a performance. Otherwise go to The Metropolitan Museum of Art by Upper East Side. It was really worth going and such a big museum. It costs $30 for out of state but a resident can go in for free with guests if you donate. I had a lot of fun in the Greek and Roman sector.

If you’re looking for brunch near the Met, I enjoyed the Bluestone Lane Cafe, which is a local Australian style chain. Think flat whites and healthy brunch options. The Upper East Side location is located in a church and it just looks so beautiful!

Holiday Nostalgia Train

Only on Sundays in December, the New York Transit Museum operates a special train that runs partially on the Q and F lines. It’s easiest to pick up at the end stations, but I found that the southern end was far less crowded. They leave on the hour switching between 96th st on Q line in Upper East Side and 2 Av Houston on the F line. I mapped out the time in between stops but it would be difficult to pick up midway. I’d suggest that you take the normal train to the end points and take your photos before hopping on the nostalgia train. Because otherwise it operates a lot like the normal trains. It’s fun too because so many people dress up and some even want their pictures taken! I wasn’t sure if they were there to pose with the NYTM or if they were just random people.

Other things to do

(that I didn’t get a chance to do this trip)

• Watch a broadway show. There’s so many on literally every day except Mondays. Sometimes there’s free outdoor performances in certain places throughout the year like Bryant Park in winter
• Greenley Square double decker Christmas Carousel near Macy’s
• For the library enthusiast, the Morgan Library & Muesuem has beautiful vintage interiors. Normally $25/person but on Fridays, it’s free 5-8pm by reservations that open a week in advance. Get them early!

Getting Around

Now that I’ve shared everything you need to know about visiting NYC in the wintertime, let’s talk about getting around! It’s super easy if you use your credit card. It’ll even keep track of how many times you’ve been on so it caps out at $34/week if you end up taking it a lot. Google Maps works very well but it’s not good at telling you which lines are express. Definitely make an effort to take an express when the lines overlap in Manhattan.

• West Side Red: Express 2 or 3, Local 1
• West Side Blue: Express A, Local C or E
• West Side Orange: Express D, Local B (F and M go to Queens/Brooklyn)
• Brooklyn Yellow: Express Q, Local R or W or N
• East Side Green: Express 4 or 5, Local 6
• To get east/west you’ll likely have to take a bus

See everything I ate over on my blog on NYC Christmas Weekend

Photos taken on Canon EOS R5