The Best Christmas Decorations In NYC

The Best Christmas Decorations In NYC In 2022

New York City is a great city all year round but it looks fantastic during the Holidays (and Halloween, as you may already know). Wherever you go, you will see holiday lights. Some are iconic and a fixture of the city, coming back every year, like Saks or the Rockefeller Tree. Some other change each year or get some cool upgrades like Cartier or the Upper East Side. In any case, here is a guide of the best Christmas decorations in New York City.

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Midtown

Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree

Where: Rockefeller Plaza, between 49th and 50th Street

Tip: People come to see the tree early, sometimes as early as 6am. Thus, if you want your picture in front of the most famous Christmas tree in NYC, better come early. I came around 7am and it was honestly fine. People tend to congregate for photos on 5th Avenue, but it is usually less busy on 49th St.

Outfit details: Selkie Santa Baby Puff, Red bow hair clip

Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree

Saks Fifth Avenue

Where: 5th Avenue and 49 Street

Tip: 5th Avenue is one of the busiest streets of New York City, even during the low season. Imagine what it is during the holidays! The Saks Light Show takes place for 10 minutes every 15 minutes, and the crowd usually disperses around 9pm. If you’re fine taking photos late at night, going around 10pm is perfect. If you only wish to capture the windows, then early morning will do!

Outfit details: Fanciful Doll Raspberry Ripple Poptart Dress

Saks Fifth Avenue Light Show

Saint Patrick’s Cathedral

Where: 5th Avenue and 50th St

Tip: The stairs and forecourt belong to the church so unless you snap a photo or two on your phone, you will most likely not be allowed to utilize either. Even for a social media shoot, you may need a special permission. Good thing is, the sidewalk in front of the stairs is public so you can use that space for photos!

Outfit details: Selkie Unicorn Defends Himself Moonlight Dress, black high heels

The Best Christmas Decorations In NYC In 2022

Cartier

Where: 653 5th Avenue

Tip: Cartier gets very busy and is one of the most photographed holiday lights in the city so if you want to be able to take pictures unbothered by the crowd or cars, come in the early morning, around 7am.

Outfit details: silver tassel dress, black high heels

Cartier 5th Avenue

Dior 5th Ave

Where: 767 5th Avenue

Tip: If you want to keep your background free of people, come take pictures before Dior opens, which is 10am every day but 11am on Sundays. The Apple store and Pulitzer Fountain with their own decorations are just a few meters away with plenty more photo opportunities.

Outfit details: Off shoulder sequin dress, black high heels

The Best Christmas Decorations In NYC In 2022

The Peninsula Hotel

Where: 700 5th Avenue

Tip: Again, come early if you want to have the lobby of the hotel for pictures to yourself. You don’t need to be a client of the hotel to get some pictures in the lobby. The outdoor decorations are also very nice!

Outfit details: Off shoulder puff sleeve dress

The Peninsula Hotel NYC

Fox Square

Where: Fox Plaza, 1211 6th Avenue

Tip: Come early to avoid the crowd as 6th Avenue gets very busy very early. There are fences around the tree so you can’t get too close. Better shoot with a low angle.

Outfit details: Selkie Venus Puff Dress, black knee-high boots, Red bow hair clip

All American Christmas Tree Fox Square

Radio City Music Hall

Where: 1260 6th Avenue

Tip: Come early in the morning to get picture. Prioritize a low angle to get the whole tree and the neon signs. Time your picture well to capture some yellow cabs in the background. The best locations to shoot is between the road and the bike lane.

Outfit details: Selkie Nightcap French Puff

Radio City Music Hall

Giant Red Ornaments

Where: 1251 6th Avenue

Tip: The red ornaments sit on a rectangle fountain so there are plenty of angles to use. Go behind to get a picture with both the ornaments and Radio City Hall tree in the background. Prioritize the street sides to get some sparkly trees in your photos. Step on the edge of the fountain for a better angle.

Outfit details: Selkie Louie Toile Parliament Dress, black knee-high boots

The Best Christmas Decorations In NYC In 2022

Holiday Candy Canes

Where: 1261 6th Avenue

Tip: Get there early. The candy canes are a photo ops favorite.

Outfit details: Fluffy bustier dress and boots by Shein.

7 Christmas Photo Spots In New York City

UBS Nutcracker Guards

Where: 1285 6th Avenue

Tip: I believe there are five nutcrackers in total, all leaning against a pillar of the building. While it may be difficult to get them all in one picture, you can try a diagonal angle, or simply stand between two of them. And again, there is a lot of passage on this street so get there early.

Outfit details: Selkie Caviar Puff Dress, black knee-high boots, Red bow hair clip

The Best Christmas Decorations In NYC In 2022

Mangia 57th St

Where: 50 W 57th Street

Tip: Get there before it opens.

Outfit details: Fanciful Doll Wildflower Meadows Claudette Dress

Mangia NYC 57th Street

Holiday Toys on Fifth Avenue

Where: 5th Avenue between 42nd St and 59th St

Tip: Plenty of different options for plenty of picture opportunities. Once again, 5th Ave is busy so you’ll have to make do with the crowds.

Outfit details: Bustier dress by Shein.

5th Avenue Christmas toys

Louis Vuitton Fifth Avenue

Where: 611 5th Ave

Tip: The decor changes every year and usually takes the entire height of the building. Shoot from across the street and time your snap to get a yellow cab in the background!

Outfit details: tulle bustier dress by Shein.

Christmas at Louis Vuitton on 57th Street

Lotte new York Palace

Where: 455 Madison Ave

Tip: The courtyard looks fantastic by night and day. It gets super busy during the day so you may want to come take some pictures at night. The lobby is open to the public and looks very pretty too!

Outfit details: dress by Chi Chi London

Lotte New York Palace

Upper East Side

E 64th Street & Madison Ave

Where: E 64th St & Madison Ave

Tip: This location is very popular with bloggers and content creators so chances are, the spot will be taken for photos by others. This applies to Halloween as well. So once again, get here early or be ready to wait in line to take a snap!

Outfit details: Lirika Matoshi Strawberry Dress

Christmas decorations in the upper east side

E 76th Street & Madison Ave

Where: E 76th St & Madison Ave

Tip: This house gets a lot of attention during the fall and Holidays. The decorations for Halloween and Christmas are absolutely fantastic so get here early!

Outfit details: silver tassel dress, black high heels

The Best Christmas Decorations In NYC In 2022

The Mark Hotel

Where: 25 E 77th St

Tip: Take pictures from across the street to get the whole display in your frame. Go early as to not have a lot of people in the background or cars parking in front of the entry.

Outfit details: Fanciful Doll Wildflower Meadows Claudette Dress, black knee-high boots

The Mark Hotel

E 78th Street & 2nd Ave

Where: E 78th St & 2nd St

Tip: Go anytime. That street is not that busy.

Outfit details: Selkie rainbow dress

Wall Street & FiDi

Brookfield Place

Where: 230 Vesey St

Tip: If you want to have a photoshoot, stay as conspicuous as possible. Flashes are not necessarily allowed, nor full on photoshoots.

Outfit details: Selkie My So Called Life Corset Dress

Brookfield place

The Oculus

Where: 185 Greenwich St

Tips: The Oculus, being a train hub on top of a shopping center, is open pretty much all the time but the shops only open at 10 or 11am at the weekend. It is usually pretty empty around 8am so the perfect time to get pictures.

Outfit details: Fanciful Doll Raspberry Ripple Poptart Dress

The Oculus Center

NY Stock Exchange

Where: 19-1 Broad St

Tip: Wall Street gets busy very early and crowded with tourists, so better get there early if you want to snap a shot with no one in your background.

Outfit details: Lirika Matoshi Cherry Dress

Wall Street Christmas Tree

Zuccotti Park

Where: Zuccotti Park

Tip: There is a small market on the square so it gets busy pretty fast. Early morning is the perfect time to take pictures. Not too dark, but not bright enough that the lights don’t create a nice bokeh effect in the background.

Outfit details: Selkie Strawberry Cherub Dress

Christmas at Zuccotti Park

Seaport District

Where: 28-20 Fulton St

Tip: Seaport District and Pier 17 get pretty busy pretty quick in the morning so get there early. Or not, if you don’t care about the crowd.

Outfit details: Selkie Head in the Clouds French Puff Dress

seaport district tree

Hudson Yards

Where: 20 Hudson Yards

Tip: The Hudson Yards Mall opens at 10am everyday but Sunday (11am). I’d say that your timing does not really matter as it looks its best at night time.

Outfit details: Shein Square Neck Puff Sleeves Dress

That’s it for the best Christmas decorations in New York City in 2022. Of course, there are more. Manhattan is a big island and NYC an event bigger city. So of course, there are a lot of unexplored parts of the city with beautiful decorations.

Brooklyn for one. Dyker Heights, Park Slope and Industry City I heard have fantastic holiday decorations. There is more to see in both the Upper East Side and Upper West Side as well as Midtown as some new Christmas decorations are unveiled. I assume that house with some crazy Halloween decorations will also be playing the part for the holidays!

So, which of those Christmas decorations in NYC have you seen or been to? Which is your favorite? Do you have any to add to the list?

Thanks for stopping by. Hope you liked this post.

See you soon,
Love,
Corinne.

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