Rainy Weather Is the Best for Visiting NYC During Christmastime
The Christmas season is the most magical in NYC, except for the crowds. Make your trip all the better by planning your visit on a rainy day.
Experiencing Christmas landmarks in NYC in the rain was the best thing ever. I’m talking crowds so minimal you could get up and personal with all the iconic landmarks. This is your sign to not cancel because of the rain or to even plan a visit when the forecast isn’t the best.
For Hudson Valley natives, heading to the city is a piece of cake. Hop on the Metro North and in under two hours you’ll find yourself in Grand Central. For us, we headed down on a Sunday around 1 p.m. Sunday afternoon may also be a good time to visit around the Holidays because most people are cozying up at home preparing for the week.
Due to the time of year, Christmas themed restaurants are booked on reservations. For a quick bite, we popped into Los Tacos No. 1 about a five minute walk from Grand Central where we munched on amazing pork tacos. Then it was time to head to the main attraction, Rockefeller Center, about a 10-15 minute walk from Grand Central. Stop at Saks Fifth Avenue, which is directly across the street from Rockefeller Center. Stop by here first to look in the windows and admire the lights on the building. As we turned to make our way to the Rockefeller tree (which brought tears to my eyes), we were met with low crowds and were able to walk right up for ample photo opportunities. The rain wasn’t even that terrible, with a drizzle on and off. Bring a rain jacket, umbrella, and poncho and you’re good.
After making a stop into St. Patrick’s Cathedral (also in the area by Rockefeller), we made out way down to Bryant Park. Scrolling through videos on Tiktok, it is common that Bryant Park’s holiday market is packed and has long lines. But we had no lines and could walk right up to most vendors throughout the market. We snacked on a giant chocolate chip cookie, birthday cake cookie dough, jerk chicken dumplings, Korean fried chicken, and sipped on strawberry lemonade.
Macy’s was our next stop on our excursion, and again we could get right up front to look in the fully decorated windows! The main floor in Macy’s is also a decked out for the Holidays, so be sure to stop in. The rest of the floors in the store really aren’t decorated, so I would not spend more time than necessary exploring in there. After that, a 20 minute walk brought us over to Hudson Yards, which was absolutely stunning. No crowds again, just breathtaking lights. I would definitely spend more time exploring this shopping area than Macy’s. The last stop for our day was the Radio City Rockettes Christmas Spectacular. This spot was of course crowded since it was an indoor show, but the tickets for the mezzanine were a fair price on a Sunday evening (at 8 p.m.). The show is just an iconic Christmastime attraction, and it is the perfect way to celebrate the holidays.
Also Check Out: Exploring Hudson NY: What to Expect