New York is a busy city with iconic landmarks, business headquarters of some MNCs and frantic pace of life. That's the general impression people have. You can choose to travel NYC at any part of the year. However, if you want to experience the city in its festive avatar, Christmas would be the best option. Of course, you will have to brave the crowd on streets and some of the prominent attractions will remain closed. However, the visual splendor and ambience you can experience more than makes up for these deficits. You need to plan certain things with care to ensure exploring NYC in Christmas becomes a memorable experience.
Preparing for cold and crowd
Despite the crowd and festive spirit, New York can be rather cold and it is better you dress up properly before starting exploring it, especially at Christmas night. Remember that you will need to walk a fair amount even if you use cab or subway. Besides, you will need to cope with the huge crowd everywhere on Christmas night in NYC.
Places you should not miss
There are so many places to explore in New York on Christmas Eve but a few places should be included in your destination list! One of them is the iconic Rockefeller Center. The huge and beautiful tree and the ice rink below it are worth drooling over. You can also enjoy some hot chocolate while enjoying the spectacular view there. However, skating in this rink can be rather heavy on your wallet and the queue will be long as well.
It would be a nice idea to spend time window shopping during Christmas in New York. All the stores decorate their windows and entrances beautifully. You may explore the Fifth Avenue to see what the big departmental stores look like. The city markets including Holiday Fair, Union Square and Bryant Park also sport a mesmerizing look during the time. The yearly Union Square Holiday Market is ideal to collect gifts like organic bath products, decorative and handmade jewelry. The Winter Village of Bryant Park is another option and there you get an ice skating rink too.
Places where you can gorge on dishes
It is natural that you will feel hungry while enjoying the beauty of New York on Christmas Eve, and exploring a number of places. Thankfully, you will get plenty of options to pick from. You need to make prior reservations to enjoy the dishes minus the long queues. The eateries you can choose from include the Grand Central Oyster Bar, BLT Steak, Cafe el Presidente, and the Russian Tea Room etc. Most of these restaurants offer special dishes for Christmas.
Other places to explore
As it is, you will not face lack of options when it comes to exploring NYC in Christmas season. You may head to the Metropolitan Museum of Art where a large Christmas tree is assembled and it is beautifully decorated. If you are with kids, take them to the Bronx zoo. The zoo becomes a wonderfully decorated wonderland experience for visitors.
Martin Wynn
