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There’s no place like home for the holidays — even if you’re here due to the latest COVID-19 variant walloping the city.
The bad news: Maybe your plans were scuttled just when you thought we were about to have a normal Christmas.
The good news: You’re stuck in the greatest city in the world and no amount of microscopic Grinches can steal that.
There will likely be fewer tourists around to annoy you: hotel demand had recovered 81 percent of what it was in 2019, according to NYC & Company, the city’s marketing arm. But that changed in the course of a week as Omicron spread quickly.
With some Broadway shows closed, the Rockettes high-kicking off the stage for the year and many restaurants temporarily shuttered, cheer might seem in short supply. But Christmas in New York has always been an outside thing anyway: carolers in the parks, lights on towering houses, music in the streets and corner carts luring you with fragrant bags of roasted chestnuts.
“Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, you might actually find a peaceful city. It’s very magical having the city to yourself,” Chris Heywood, NYC & Company spokesman, told The Post. “We like to say it’s not a consolation prize to be stuck in New York City.”
This is your year to fully embrace Christmas in New York. Here’s your holiday list of the best things to do:
See a big Christmas tree — without the crowds
A lot of New Yorkers probably see the Rockefeller Center tree about as often as they visit the Statue of Liberty — never.
Here’s the thing: It’s delightful! A more iconic piece of American Christmas tradition would be hard to find. It’s also hard to see during normal times, with throngs of selfie-stick-swinging, slow-walking tourists crowding the sidewalks. Your staycation Christmas should be the time to finally see what the fuss is about yourself.
Here’s the trick to avoid even a small crowd this year: the tree lights usually turn off at midnight, but on Christmas Day, it’s illuminated for 24 hours. So bundle up and get over in the wee hours and you might have the 79-foot, 12-ton Norway spruce to yourself.
There are other, less popular public Christmas trees also worth a gander: Washington Square Park boasts a 45-foot tree, trimmed in tasteful white lights and nestled right under the famous arch. Singers are scheduled to keep up the Christmas Eve caroling tradition here starting at 5 p.m. Friday.
If you’re missing the club, the tree in the garden at the Public Hotel (215 Chrystie St.; 212-735-6000) in Nolita might cheer you up. The 20-foot “tree” is made entirely of disco balls — 450 of them, including some that rotate. Light shows bring them to life throughout the day.
The New York Stock Exchange won’t be exchanging gifts on Christmas Day but you can still see its big tree out front, right next to the Charging Bull statue. The South Street Seaport’s tree looks sharp next to the tall masts of the nearby ships. The outer boroughs have public trees to choose from, from Bronx’s Little Italy to a lobster trap tree outside Red Hook Lobster Pound in Brooklyn (284 Van Brunt St.; 551-261-5178).
Make your days merry and bright — really bright
If you can’t visit a suburb this year, it’s time to bask in the ostentatious holiday opulence that suburban McMansions can’t even dream of.
Of course we’re talking about Dyker Heights, the south Brooklyn neighborhood where homes dress up in gaudy displays that have to be seen to be believed. It’s worth the hype (and pictures do not do it justice). The mammoth houses deck their halls, roofs, lawns, gates and balconies with every imaginable form of Christmas decoration: even the much-memed Home Depot 12-foot skeleton makes an appearance this year, dressed up in its holiday best.
The best lights are between 11th and 13th avenues, from 83rd to 86th streets. Pro tips: if you drive, park your car and walk around because you’ll want to take in every element of every crowded display, or get there via public transit. While you’re down there, make a pit stop at the Lock Yard in Bay Ridge (9221 Fifth Ave.; 718-333-5282) to fill yourself with holiday spirits — they’ve got a great beer selection, and lots of cozy, ventilated outdoor seating.
Walk in wonderlands
We may not have snow this Christmas but you can still find a winter wonderland — of lights and art — at the city’s botanic gardens.
The Brooklyn Botanic Garden (990 Washington Ave.; BBG.org/lightscape) has turned itself into a glittering after-dark spectacular called Lightscape, a show that uses lasers, light installations and poetry to highlight the quiet beauty of winter nature. It features more than 1 million lights, including a Fire Garden and Winter Cathedral tunnel of lights, and poetry from Brooklyn author Jacqueline Woodson. Pick up a cup of mulled wine or some s’mores along the route, too. Runs through Jan. 9; tickets are $34 ($30 for members).
The New York Botanical Garden in the Bronx (2900 Southern Blvd.; NYBG.org) is offering something similar called GLOW, the longest entirely outdoor illuminated spectacle in the city, with 1.5 miles of lights and experiences. Hot cocoa and snacks are available throughout the park. Runs through Jan. 22; tickets are $35 ($25 for members).
Down the street, the Bronx Zoo (2300 Southern Blvd.; BronxZoo.com/holiday-lights) has adorned itself for its annual Holiday Lights show with more than 260 lanterns representing 70 animal and plant species that the zoo works to protect. Add to that holiday decor animated sculptures, colored tunnels and decorated buildings, and you’ve got a festive outdoor feast for the eyes. Runs through Jan. 9; tickets are $39.95.
Visit Governors Island
If your travel got canceled, you won’t be singing “Mele Kalikimaka” on any tropical islands this holiday.
But who needs the tropics when New York City has its own island paradise just a short boat ride from Manhattan? This year marks the first time that Governors Island — an old military base that is now a sprawling center for art, events, playgrounds and bike paths with 360-degree views of the city — will be open year-round. It’s celebrating with a Winter Village and skating rink during the holidays; even better, the village is open on Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and New Year’s Day. It features a 5,000-square-foot rink (open Fridays through Sundays), a dozen lawn games, fire pits, bike rentals, seasonal food, drinks and more. Tourists barely know about the island in the summer, so you’re really in for a peaceful treat if you go in the winter.
Governors Island is open 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. every day; ferries operate daily from the Battery Maritime Building (10 South St.); the NYC Ferry serves the island on the weekends, see full schedules and more info at GovIsland.com.
Take a North Polar plunge
If you’re really feeling disconnected this holiday season, here’s one fast cure: Jump in the ocean.
Since last winter, Finnish artist Riitta Ikonen has been leading weekly polar plunges in the frigid waters of the Atlantic Ocean from the Rockaways every Sunday. She started it as a global project mid-pandemic, encouraging people across the world to jump into a body of water wherever they are at 2 p.m. local time to reconnect with nature, and each other.
Rockaway locals have turned the plunges into off-season beach parties: swimmers warm themselves by a roaring bonfire, share hot drinks, play music and enjoy the serene meditation of a winter beach day. Cold water swimming is allegedly good for the immune system and, while that may not save you from COVID, it beats Zooming with your family all weekend.
“For me, cold water immersion is the perfect way to reboot, charge my energy levels and punctuate time,” Ikonen tells The Post. “It North-Souths me in a way like nothing else can.”
Every Sunday at 2 p.m. in the Rockaways; DM @seachanges_rockaways on Instagram for more info and location.
Warm up your insides
New York’s pop-up holiday bars were lousy with TikTokers all season. But the TikTokers all got COVID at SantaCon or went home to the Midwest, so now you can enjoy a trendy holiday drink in peace, and in cozy outdoor seating.
Your best bet is Loreley Beer Garden on the Lower East Side (7 Rivington St.; 212-253-7077, LoreleyNYC.com), which is open on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day and offers a big, heated outdoor beer garden, decked out for the season. The drinks on its holiday menu are right from Santa’s happy hour menu, oozing with chocolate, loaded with marshmallows or rimmed with sugar. Try the boozy bourbon black and white hot chocolate, spiked eggnog, nitro peppermint martini or the fresh-baked cinnamon rolls on the holiday brunch menu.
The Skinny on the Lower East Side (174 Orchard St.; 212-228-3668, TheSkinny-NYC.com) has transformed for the season into Naughty or Nice, a holiday bar with a bonkers menu of drinks with names like Grinding Up Against the Gingerman, holiday decor dripping from the ceiling and an arcade claw game where you can win stuffed holiday dolls (nice), or an adult movie DVD (naughty). It’s got curbside seating, too, if staying indoors feels too naughty for you right now. The Skinny will reopen on Dec. 27 after a temporary closure due to COVID.
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