8 Unique NYC Holiday Traditions You Can Actually Be Part Of in December 2026
There are endless lists of things to see in New York City at Christmas.
See the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree. Walk down Fifth Avenue. See the holiday windows. Visit Dyker Heights. Watch the Rockettes.
And yes, you should probably do at least some of those things. New York is incredibly beautiful during the holidays.
But after living here for more than a decade, I've realized that some of my favorite New York holiday traditions aren't things you simply stand there and look at.
They're things you can actually be part of.
You can write a wish that will eventually fall from the sky over Times Square. You can take a photograph with the giant 2027 numbers before millions of people see them light up at midnight. You can literally say goodbye to something you want to leave behind in 2026. You can sing Christmas carols underneath the Washington Square Arch with New Yorkers.
These are the quirky, beautiful and sometimes slightly strange traditions that make December in New York so much fun.
So if you're visiting NYC for Christmas 2026, here are eight experiences that will let you do more than simply observe the holidays.
1. Write a Wish That Will Fall Over Times Square on New Year's Eve
This might be my favorite New York New Year's tradition.
Every December, the official Times Square New Year's Eve Wishing Wall appears in Times Square.
You can walk up, take a piece of official New Year's Eve confetti and write your wish for the coming year directly onto it.
Maybe you're wishing for love.
Maybe it's health.
Maybe you want to travel more.
Maybe there's a career dream you've been afraid to pursue.
Maybe you're hoping for peace.
Write it down.
Because that little piece of paper isn't going into a box somewhere.
It's going into the sky.
Your wish is added to the confetti that will be released over Times Square when the clock strikes midnight on New Year's Eve.
For the 2026 season, the Wishing Wall is scheduled to operate December 1–29, from 11 AM to 8 PM, except Christmas Day, on the Broadway plazas in Times Square. Exact locations and operating details can change, so check the official Times Square website shortly before your visit.
And you don't even have to be in New York to participate.
There's also an official Virtual Wishing Wall, where people from around the world can submit wishes online. Those wishes are printed onto actual pieces of confetti and added to the New Year's Eve celebration.
I have an especially personal connection to this tradition because last January, I started finding people's wishes among the confetti scattered around the streets surrounding my Times Square studio. Some of what I found was funny. Some was romantic. Some was incredibly touching.
I even posted some of them online—and one person somehow recognized her own wish.
I've written a separate story about the wishes I found and what happened afterward, which you can read here:
→ The Wishes That Fall from the Sky on New Year's Eve in Times Square
2. Take a Picture With the Giant 2027 Numbers
This is one of those New York experiences that many visitors don't even know exists.
You know those enormous illuminated numbers sitting above Times Square during the New Year's Eve countdown?
Before they're installed on top of One Times Square, they come down to street level.
And for a few days, you can actually see them up close.
For the upcoming celebration, the 2027 numerals are currently scheduled to arrive in Times Square December 18–22, 2026, before being installed on One Times Square on December 26.
In previous years, the giant seven-foot numerals have been displayed on the Broadway Plaza between 46th and 47th Streets, where visitors could walk right up and take photographs with them.
I think this is such a cool opportunity.
You're standing next to the actual numbers that, only a few days later, millions of people around the world will watch light up when New York welcomes 2027.
If you're in NYC around December 18–22, keep an eye on the official Times Square schedule for the final public viewing details.
And definitely take the picture.
It's one of those very specific New York memories you probably won't get another chance to recreate.
3. Leave Something Behind on Good Riddance Day
We spend a lot of time around New Year's Eve thinking about what we want for the future.
But what about the things we don't want to bring with us?
That's exactly what Times Square's annual Good Riddance Day is about.
For 2026, it's scheduled for December 28.
Think of it as the opposite of the Wishing Wall.
Instead of writing down something you're hoping for, you write down something you'd like to leave behind.
A bad habit.
A stressful year.
A breakup.
A terrible job.
A fear.
A mistake.
Something you've been holding onto for much too long.
Then you symbolically get rid of it.
I really love the combination of these two traditions.
Good Riddance Day is about what you're leaving in 2026.
The Wishing Wall is about what you're carrying into 2027.
If you're going to be in Times Square during the final days of December, why not do both?
4. Watch the Famous Times Square Confetti Get Tested
Yes.
New York tests its confetti.
Because apparently even confetti needs a rehearsal before appearing on one of the world's biggest stages.
Every year shortly before New Year's Eve, organizers conduct the official Times Square Confetti Test.
They release samples of the confetti into the air to make sure it floats and disperses properly before approximately 3,000 pounds of it are released over Times Square at midnight.
For 2026, the Confetti Test is currently scheduled for December 29.
It's a tiny behind-the-scenes glimpse into the enormous production that is New Year's Eve in Times Square.
And I find it slightly hilarious and completely charming that somewhere in New York, someone's December job description essentially includes:
Make sure the confetti falls beautifully.
If you're already exploring Times Square that day, it's such a fun little tradition to catch.
And remember—mixed into that famous confetti will be all those wishes people have submitted throughout December.
5. Sing Christmas Carols Under the Washington Square Arch
This is the kind of Christmas experience I wish more visitors knew about.
Every Christmas Eve, people gather underneath the Washington Square Arch in Greenwich Village and sing Christmas carols together.
Not professional performers while everyone else watches.
You sing too.
The Washington Square Association's holiday traditions go back more than a century, and the Christmas Eve caroling has become a beautiful neighborhood celebration.
Traditionally, the gathering begins at 5 PM on December 24, with a brass quartet and professional song leader accompanying the crowd. Songbooks are provided, and participation is free.
There's something incredibly New York about standing beneath the Washington Square Arch on Christmas Eve, surrounded by complete strangers, singing together in the middle of Greenwich Village.
You don't need a reservation.
You don't need an expensive ticket.
You simply show up and become part of the tradition.
6. Join One of NYC's Giant Menorah Lightings
December in New York isn't only about Christmas.
Hanukkah in 2026 falls from December 4 through December 12, and New York hosts some wonderful public celebrations throughout the city.
One of the best-known traditions is the lighting of the giant menorahs at Grand Army Plaza in Manhattan, near Central Park, and Grand Army Plaza in Brooklyn.
The menorah is lit throughout Hanukkah, with celebrations that can include music, traditional foods such as latkes and activities for families.
Even if you're visiting New York primarily for Christmas, I think experiencing different holiday traditions is part of experiencing New York itself.
This city is made up of people from practically everywhere, and December reflects that.
7. See New York City Recreated in Miniature at the Holiday Train Show
If you want to venture beyond Manhattan for a holiday tradition, head to the Bronx for the New York Botanical Garden Holiday Train Show.
For the 2026–27 season, it's scheduled to run from November 14, 2026 through January 10, 2027.
Model trains travel through an incredible miniature version of New York City featuring nearly 200 recognizable landmarks.
But here's what makes it particularly special:
The buildings aren't simply plastic models.
They're created using natural materials such as bark, leaves, pinecones, seeds, twigs and other botanical materials.
You'll recognize famous New York landmarks transformed into these incredibly detailed little works of art while trains weave around them.
It's especially fun for families, but honestly, you don't need children to appreciate it.
Sometimes being an adult at Christmas means giving yourself permission to be impressed by a tiny train going past a miniature New York skyline.
8. Create Your Own New York Christmas Tradition
And finally, create something that's entirely yours.
Maybe this is your first Christmas in New York.
Maybe you've been dreaming about this trip for years.
Maybe you're coming with your children and want them to remember what their first New York Christmas felt like.
Maybe you're celebrating an engagement, an anniversary or a birthday.
Or maybe there isn't a special occasion at all.
The trip itself is the occasion.
As a New York City photographer, I spend the holiday season photographing couples, families, friends and solo travelers at some of the city's most iconic Christmas locations.
We can capture the lights of Times Square, the Christmas atmosphere around Midtown, Central Park in winter and other beautiful New York locations.
And if you're visiting while the giant 2027 Times Square numerals are available for public viewing, keep an eye on my availability. Depending on the final setup and public-access arrangements, there may even be an opportunity to incorporate them into your photoshoot.
Years later, decorations change. Store windows disappear. New Christmas trees arrive.
But your photographs stay with you. Follow this link to learn more about my Holiday photoshoots around NYC
Don't Just See Christmas in New York. Be Part of It.
Of course you should see the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree.
Walk down Fifth Avenue.
Drink the overpriced hot chocolate.
Visit a Christmas market.
Take a million pictures of decorations.
Those classic experiences are part of Christmas in New York for a reason.
But leave a little room in your itinerary for the traditions that allow you to actually participate.
Write your wish.
Stand beside the numbers that will welcome 2027.
Leave something behind from 2026.
Watch confetti fly through Times Square before New Year's Eve.
Sing underneath the Washington Square Arch.
Experience another community's holiday celebration.
And create a New York tradition of your own.
Because sometimes the best travel memories aren't the things you came to see.
They're the moments you unexpectedly became part of.