Your Guide to Family-Friendly Day Trips in New Jersey, New York…and Beyond
If you are lucky or unlucky enough to be in NYC on December 13 this year, you can catch Santa Con. We’ve mistakenly been on NJ Transit the last few years on Santa Con day, not realizing what day it actually was. Women in micromini skirts in freezing weather dressed as an elf or Mrs. Claus (you go girl!) and men wearing onesies, you see it all.
The renovated new Tiffany’s store (aka The Landmark) reopened after extensive renovations in 2023. If you’re visiting during the holidays, do go in and look around. It is not a kid-friendly place, though, and can be tough to navigate in the crowds.
We always go into NYC the weekend after Thanksgiving. Here are some of the random things we saw.
After visiting the Macy’s holiday windows, we wandered into this Christmas carousel in Greeley Square on 32nd Street and Broadway.
There was a line waiting to get on but if you book online, there’s a shorter line. The carousel is there through January 6, 2026. It runs 10 am to 10 pm and costs $7/person.
Continue reading “Scenes from NYC during the 2025 holidays”I usually don’t love Macy’s windows, but I did this year. Macy’s 2025 holiday windows featured a lot of store firsts – the first store holiday windows, its first Santa, first Thanksgiving Day parade, and It’s A Wonderful Life being set at a (fictional) Macy’s.
Saks brought back the light show this year, and you can see the exterior covered in two-story gems. The Saks Fifth Avenue 2025 holiday windows featured both iconic designers (in single color themed rooms) and some holiday scenes that didn’t actually “sell” anything. Those holiday scenes did have moving features.
We had a good laugh at the two guys’ outfits, given the comments by our federal government, encouraging us this year to dress up for airplane travel. I don’t think either guy would qualify, even with designer sweats.
Continue reading “Saks Fifth Avenue 2025 holiday windows”This year, Bloomingdales teamed up with Burberry for their holiday windows. Even my husband could spot the store from a block away, with the big Burberry scarf (okay, it looked like a ribbon though there is a fringe at the end). Here are the Bloomingdales 2025 holiday windows.
Bergdorf Goodman has my favorite windows each year. This year did not disappoint. The theme? The Bergdorf Soirée. Each window featured a different kind of party. Here are the Bergdorf Goodman 2025 holiday windows.
The I (heart) New York t-shirts are cute, but they’re so prolific you get a little sick of seeing them in all the tourist stores. So what kind of New York souvenirs do you bring when you visit friends and family elsewhere? Or where do you point your visitors to get something unique to take home? Here are some ideas:
How cute are these cookies from Eleni’s at Chelsea Market? Buy them individually, or get a boxed assortment – the ones below are 11 for $65. Continue reading “Unique New York: Souvenirs”
New York City is such a great place to visit in December. If you’re going to New York City with the kids, here are our ideas for what to do to make it festive.
HOLIDAY LIGHTS
Of course you’ll want to see the tree at Rockefeller Center.
Just outside you’ll find Sak’s Fifth Avenue, with sparkling snowflakes (coordinated to music) and window displays. Also with winter window displays: Lord & Taylor, Bloomingdales, Barneys, Macy’s and more.
ICE SKATING
Rockefeller Center has a tiny rink, but it’s so picturesque. Enter from 5th Avenue, between 49th and 50th. Skating is first-come, first-served and you can skate for as long as you stay there. Expect waits up to 90 minutes, unless you skate in the weekday mornings. They’re open on Christmas Day. Continue reading “NYC Holiday Fun with Kids”