30 Free Holiday Events for Families and Kids in NYC

Submitted by Rosalind Muggeridge on

Free Holiday Things to Do with Kids in New York City: Tree Lightings, Thanksgiving Parade, New Year's, and More for NYC Kids

With Christmas, Thanksgiving, and Hanukkah all fast approaching, New York City is gearing up for a magical holiday season. There's something about the sheer delight and excitement in kids' faces that can make even dodging tourists and taxis fun. 

Some of the best family events in NYC happen in November and December: annual train displays, exciting holiday events, spectacular Nutcracker productions, and more. But FREE family fun is often the very best kind, especially with kids in tow. So we've rounded up 30 FREE Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Hanukkah activities for the family to enjoy now through New Year's Eve. (Consider it our holiday gift to you!) For more of the best events of the holiday season in NYC, be sure to check out our Holiday Guide.

Christmas isn't complete without a visit to the magical Santaland at Macy's. Photo by Jody Mercier
Throughout the 2018-19 Holiday Season
Grand Opening of Winter Village at Bryant Park
Saturday, October 27, 2018 through Monday, March 4, 2019 – Midtown
Holiday Windows at Bloomingdale's
Monday November 5, 2018 through the New Year – Upper East Side
Broadway Under The Stars
Mondays from November 12, 2018 through December 10, 2018 – Columbus Circle
Macy's Holiday Windows Unveiled!
Thursday, November 15, 2018 through the New Year – Herald Square
Holiday Train Show at Grand Central
Thursday, November 15, 2018 through Sunday, February 3, 2019 – Midtown East
Macy's Santaland NYC: When and How to See Santa at Herald Square
Thursday, November 23, 2018 through Monday, December 24, 2018 – Herald Square
Luminaries
Wednesday, November 28, 2018 through Friday, January 4, 2019 – Battery Park City
Gawk at the impressively decorated houses in Dyker Heights. Photo by Peter Burka
Free Holiday Events November 2018
Macy's Thanksgiving Parade Balloon Inflation
Wednesday, November 21, 2018–Upper West Side
92nd Annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade
Thursday, November 22, 2018 – Upper West Side to Midtown West
Small Business Saturday Tree Lighting in Park Slope
Saturday, November 24, 2018 – Park Slope, Brooklyn
Dyker Heights Christmas Lights: Tour Brooklyn's Holiday Hot Spot
Saturday, November 24, 2018 through Tuesday, January 1, 2019 – Dyker Heights, Brooklyn
Winter’s Eve at Lincoln Square
Monday, November 26, 2018–Upper West Side
Rockefeller Center Tree Lighting 2018
Wednesday, November 28, 2018 – Midtown
21st Annual Central Park Holiday Lighting
Thursday, November 29, 2018 – Upper West Side
The Nutcracker at Brookfield Place
Friday, November 30, 2018 through Sunday December 2, 2018 – Battery Park City
Hundreds of tenor and bass tuba players will congregate on The Rink at Rockefeller Center to play Christmas carols and other crowd favorites. Photo courtesy of Rockefeller Center
Free Holiday Events December 2018
Holiday Concert and Cookie Swap
Saturday, December 1, 2018 – Park Slope, Brooklyn
The World's Largest Hanukkah Menorah: Manhattan
Sunday, December 2, 2018 through Sunday, December 9, 2018 – Midtown
The Largest Menorah Lighting: Brooklyn
Sunday, December 2, 2018 through Sunday, December 9, 2018 – Park Slope, Brooklyn
Holiday on the Hudson
Saturday, December 8, 2018 – Harlem
Saturday Morning Storytelling with the Hans Christian Andersen Storytellers
Saturday, December 8, 2018 – Midtown
Tenth Annual Taste of Christmas Cookie Walk
Saturday, December 8, 2018 and Sunday, December 9, 2018 – East Village
Holiday Time in PaleyLand with Santa
Saturday, December 8, 2018 through Sunday, January 6, 2019 – Midtown
Family Christmas Bird Count at Prospect Park
Saturday, December 15, 2018 – Prospect Park, Brooklyn
WBO Winter Wonderland
Saturday, December 15, 2018 – Williamsburg, Brooklyn
The Nutcracker and Visit to Santa's Toyland
Sunday, December 16, 2018 – Long Island City, Queens
Unsilent Night New York City
Sunday, December 16, 2018 – East Village
45th Annual Merry Tuba Christmas at Rockefeller Center
Sunday, December 16, 2018 – Midtown
Holiday Caroling Under the Washington Square Arch
Monday, December 24, 2018 – Greenwich Village
Holiday Open House at the Queens County Farm Museum
Wednesday, December 26, 2018 through Friday, December 28, 2018 – Floral Park, Queens
Prospect Park's New Year's Eve Fireworks
Monday, December 31, 2018 – Park Slope, Brooklyn
Category: 
Christmas/Hanukkah
Fairs & Festivals
Free Activities
Holidays
Visitors Guide
Winter Activities
Age: 
Kids
Preschoolers
Tweens & Teens
Area/Neighborhood: 
New York City
Uptown
Downtown
Brooklyn
Queens