Travel Guide: NYC at Christmas Time with Kids
For many years, visiting NYC at Christmas time has been high on my bucket list. We’ve traveled across the world, but have somehow never been to NYC. This was the year we were going to make it happen.
Our kids are at a great age where the magic of Christmas excites them like no other. NYC at Christmas time was even more incredible than we expected. Lobbies decorated with trees, chestnuts roasting on food carts, Santa Clauses riding bikes through the streets, and lights and decorations galore---everywhere you turned there was something festive to see. Our 4 days in NYC left us ready for the holidays and excited to return one day soon.
Here’s a recap of things we did on our trip to NYC.
Sites to See
Macy’s Window Displays: The garlands and lights and interactive windows at Macy’s were fun to see. Some of the windows had games you could play by tapping your feet on a button.
The Vessel: This impressive structure was decked out with garlands and lights. You cannot currently climb the vessel beyond the first level, but even sitting near it and taking in the beautify is a site to see. There’s also a really cute giant red apple that makes a great photo opp across the street. And Dior has an impressive hot air balloon window display this time of year.
Bryant Park: Bryant Park has a winter village set up for the holidays. It has over 100 little booths selling gifts and food. The real highlight is the ice skating rink---it’s a magical little spot right in the middle of a sea of skyscrapers. We even saw a proposal on the rink! Be sure to make a reservation to ice skate a few weeks in advance. We were not able to get a reservation while we were visiting. We went on a Saturday evening and it was shoulder to shoulder with people--I would definitely try to do this on a weekday or afternoon in the future.
Central Park: Central Park was even more beautiful than the movies make it seem. We wandered around one morning and could have easily spent an entire day there. There’s an area near the Central Park Zoo that you can watch sea lions swimming. There’s also an amazing fenced in playground called Billy Johnson Park. It had lots of room for the kids to run around and really cool slides carved out of stone.
Rockefeller Center Tree: I was worried I would be disappointed by the Rockefeller Center Tree after all of the hype, but oh-my-word it was even bigger and better in person! We tried to see if from every angle! The line into F.A.O. Schwarz gives you a great view of the tree without the crowds and the 2nd floor of the toy store has a great overhead view as well. See it in the daylight and at night!
Light Show at Saks 5th Avenue: Not far from the Rockefeller Center tree is Saks 5th Avenue. The building puts on an amazing light show every night. It seemed to start about every 10 minutes. It was very crowded, but so neat to see! Also, walk down the street a little further and you will see the Cartier store all wrapped up like a gift. During the day, the window displays at Saks were fun to check out as well. Each window was inspired by a drawing that local 6 and 7 year olds made.
Things to Do
Summit One Vanderbilt: This new installation takes you on a journey to the 91st floor of a skyscraper. It’s filled with trippy mirrors and illusions and unbelievable views of New York City. The second floor had a room full of mirrored balls—-some floating, some on the ground. There’s also a glass floor where you can sit or stand and see NYC below you. We loved it. Our kids were a little scared with the floor mirrors because it almost looks like you are going to fall, but they really enjoyed the other rooms. We made reservations a few days beforehand for 9:00am when they open. We got there about 15 minutes early and it took about half an hour to go through the check-in process. I would plan 1.5-2 hours for this experience. We did not do the glass elevator—although I am sure it is neat to see too! Also, it’s a little tricky to find the entrance—when you walk inside the building you go down the elevator near the subway entrance.
See the Rockettes: So many of you reached out before our trip and told me that seeing the Rockettes was one of your most memorable childhood memories. I had high expectations and our afternoon at Radio City Music Hall lived up to them. The whole experience of just being in this iconic theater and seeing the orchestra playing the music and the dancing left me in awe. We went on a weekday at 11am and it was empty. We sat in the 2nd mezzanine and the 4 rows in front of us had no one in them. A neighbor went on Friday night before us and they waited an hour in line to get inside, we had no wait! They have concessions with popcorn, specialty drinks, red and green cotton candy etc. You can bring a stroller and they will store it for you. My 2 year old got a little antsy during the show, but my 4 and 6 year olds were mesmerized.
Make a wish on the confetti: My friend Melissa told me about this booth in Times Square this time of year where you can write your wish for 2022 on a piece of confetti. They’ll drop your wish with the confetti that falls with the ball on NYE night. How cool is that!? The address is for the NYE wishing wall is Broadway btwn 46th-47th Sts New York, NY 10036 It was easy to find when we got to Times Square and we walked right up with no line. It’s totally free too :) You can even submit a wish online!
Pinkmas at Museum of Ice Cream: One of the highlights of our visit was the Museum of Ice Cream. It was the coolest museum I’ve ever been to. The adults loved it and the kids loved it. You can watch my whole reel on the experience by clicking here. We spent close to 2 hours exploring. Buy tickets ahead of time because they were not selling them at the door when we arrived (we just bought them 30 minutes before we got there). Your ticket includes so many sweet treats--pink hot chocolate, ice cream galore, a popsicle, and cream puffs.
SeaGlass Carousel: This magical carousel is at Battery Park (where you can see a peek at the Statue of Liberty). It feels like a ride at Disneyland! The music, the way the fish move--it’s like no carousel I’ve ever seen. Tickets were $5 per person. You can’t buy them in advance. We didn’t have to wait in line more than 4 or 5 minutes on a Sunday afternoon. It is closed some weekdays, so be sure to check the schedule before you go.
F.A.O. Schwarz: When I think of NYC at Christmas one thing that immediately pops into my head is toy stores. F.A.O. Schwarz is probably the most famous one in NYC. It’s also conveniently located right next to the Rockefeller Center tree and right around the corner from Radio City Music Hall. We ventured here after seeing the Rockettes and gave the kiddos each a budget of $25 to pick out something special. There was a line wrapped around the building, but it moved quickly. There’s a killer view of the famous Rockefeller Center tree while you are in line (great photo opp!). The 2 level toy store is filled with demonstrations and cool toys. Upstairs is the famous piano from the movie BIG. Kids can walk on it and it lights up and plays music---Luca and Isla were fans. There’s a pretty view out the window on the 2nd floor too!
St. Patrick’s Cathedral I was not sure exactly where St. Patrick’s Cathedral was, so when we turned the corner near Saks 5th Ave and I caught a glimpse of it, I gasped! The size, the architecture, the dichotomy between the historic church next to shops and skyscrapers--it was a site to see! You do not need tickets to go inside--they run off of donations. We walked in to gawk at the beautiful stained glass windows and light a little prayer candle. A quick stop, certainly worth doing if you are in the area.
Food
Ess-A-Bagel Bagels (and cream cheese!) in NYC are not the same as elsewhere. They’re incredible. We ate bagels from here every single morning. You can place an order online to avoid the line. There’s a few locations throughout the city. The strawberry cream cheese was my favorite!
Nut Carts I’d never heard anyone talk about the candied nut carts in NYC--maybe it’s a holiday thing? But we loved grabbing a bag of candied cashews for just a few dollars when we were walking around. The smells wafting as you walk by are hard to resist.
Panna II Garden Great indian food! We ended up here as a plan B and it ended up being one of those happy little mistakes! The food was delicious—especially the garlic naan. The interior is decked out in twinkling lights of every holiday imaginable. And the workers were so kind to our kids. The owner even chatted with us for a little while telling us about how he has owned this restaurant for over 25 years and it is his wife that is how much he loves it. It’s a little off the beaten track of the usual tourist spots, but is so worth the effort to get there. It’s cash only, so be prepared for that!
Ralph’s Coffee This picturesque coffee truck sits right across the street from St. Patrick’s Cathedral. For the holidays it was decked out with garlands and holly berries--you can’t miss it! JD’s latte was great, as was my mint tea. The kiddos weren’t a huge fan of the hot chocolate here, so try somewhere else for that.
Eataly I’ve heard about Eataly for years and always wanted to check it out. It’s part grocery store part restaurant. Head to the very back for some divine pizza and pasta that really does taste like it came from Italy. We made a reservation about a week in advance. You can also order the pizza to-go and walk across the street where there’s a little playground/park and have a picnic. Make sure you buy a few chocolates on the way out---they’re divine!
Rolf’s Eating at Rolf’s at Christmas time was one of the top things I wanted to do when we visited NYC. It’s more known for its extravagant Christmas decorations inside vs its food. We headed to Rolf’s on the day I thought our reservation was for (wrong day!). Unfortunately, I double booked us for Rockettes and Rolf’s reservations the same day/same time, so we didn’t get to eat there. A few observations…We made our reservation in September. If you don’t have a reservation, be prepared to wait in a 2+ hour line for a seat at the bar. To be honest, I think they despise the idea of you bringing children inside. When I called for a lunch reservation they were rude and seemed very annoyed when I said we had kids. When we showed up in the reservation line a day early on accident, the guy checking people in with reservations was equally bothered/rude to us. So although we did not get to eat there, it left a very sour taste in my mouth. If you have kids, head to Panna II for twinkly lights and a restaurant owner that appreciates you being there.
Random Tidbits
Transportation We walked A LOT each day--anywhere from 8-10 miles. We put Luca in a stroller and Brody and Isla walked. We also took the occasional Uber to break up the walking. From the airport to our airbnb we also took Uber’s.
Bathrooms It was tricky to find public bathrooms in NYC. We ended up sneaking into hotel lobbies or restaurants when our kids needed to go.
Sunset We were so surprised by how early the sun sets this time of year--4:30pm! This made sightseeing holiday lights easier because we could still be back at a decent time for bedtime.
Where we stayed We stayed in an Airbnb that I wouldn’t stay at again. It was near the Empire State Building. It was pretty walkable, but next time I would try to stay closer to Central Park.
Maps Here’s the NYC google map I marked with many of the suggestions you all shared for places to visit and places to eat. I can’t wait to go back because we still have a lot on our list to do!
