Fifth Avenue(opens in a new tab) certainly has the brightest Holiday spirit in the city. If you are seeking things to do in New York in December, look no further than a holiday window stroll down Fifth Avenue and turn up the holiday cheer!
Where to Start
Start your Fifth Avenue Holiday windows walk at The Plaza Hotel(opens in a new tab) (59th street and Fifth Avenue). This is the hotel where Kevin McCallister stayed in “Home Alone 2: Lost in New York!
Just outside the hotel is a small park known as Grand Army Plaza. It has been covered in giant illuminated Christmas tree ornaments! This is the perfect place to snag a family photo.
Holiday Windows
Walk south down Fifth Avenue from the Plaza Hotel, and you will find the legendary Bergdorf Goodman(opens in a new tab) department store. Bergdorf’s has been providing NYC with luxury goods for over 121 years! Their luxurious holiday window theme is “Bergdorf Goodness(opens in a new tab).” Each window artistically depicts important Holiday values such as “Love” and “Hope.”
House of Cartier’s(opens in a new tab) holiday decor is always a dream. Cartier wraps their lavish building in an illuminated red bow. It looks like a giant gift from Santa himself, perfect for snapping social media shots! Cartier famously purchased this building, a 1905 Neo-Renaissance mansion, from Morton F. Plant in 1917. The cost to Cartier was $100 cash and a double-stranded pearl necklace.
Grand Finale
The favored “Best Holiday Window Display” always goes to Saks Fifth Avenue!(opens in a new tab) Every year, they transform the front façade of their building into a giant castle, which puts on a magical musical light show. Making Saks even more spectacular, it is directly across the street from the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree!(opens in a new tab)
This year, Saks’ Holiday theme is “This Is How We Celebrate.” Emily Eisner, Chief Marketing Officer at Saks, said of the windows(opens in a new tab): “We like to think of our holiday windows as our annual gift to New York City.”
Looking for a gift for the person who has it all? For a mere $50,000, you can purchase “a once in a lifetime opportunity to host a night of “Saks Lights Up Fifth Avenue(opens in a new tab),” during one of their nightly lighting ceremonies.