The holidays are fast approaching, and I just had this idea for a video... So I
decided to sit down, record it for you... before it flies out of my mind. I know
that a lot of my followers are visiting New York City... or, are not visiting, but
just really want to know more about it... so I do want to start making some more
New York centric content for you... Starting with, first and foremost, right
here: Five of my favorite things to do in this city around the holiday season. I do
have five MORE of these ideas for you, but I'm only sending those additional
elements to the people who are signed up to my newsletter. So if you want to join
my newsletter, use the link below. It's just luciefink.com/join. Head to that
site. Enter your email there. You'll be signed up for the "Fink Fam", as I like to
call my newsletter family... and then I believe on Thursday December 19th you'll
be getting an email that has my 10 favorite things to do in New York City
around the holiday season. So, if you sign up for the newsletter before the 19th,
you will get that blast. But even if it's past December 19th right now... I mean,
maybe it's 2020 and you're watching this... Don't worry! Because if you go to luciefink.com/join...
you enter your email... you will be blasted off a welcome email
which has a PDF document that I put together for you with my 10 favorite
things to do in New York City, period. No seasonality... It's just some of my
favorite things to do all year round. So if you're visiting New York any time
soon, if you have a friend or a family member that's visiting, or if you just
plan on maybe coming sometime in the future and you want to know some of my
favorite things to do... join that mailing list and you will get that email.
Starting with number one... Going to Dominique Ansel bakery and getting one
of those blossoming hot chocolates. I made a video with chef Dominique Ansel
back in 2016, and he was teaching me how to make his famous cinnamon rolls. If you
don't know who he is, he's the inventor of the "cronut", and he's a very well-known
baker in New York City. He has a few locations here but also all around the
world, and his blossoming hot chocolate is essentially a hot chocolate where he
puts this folded up marshmallow flower into it... and as soon as it hits the heat
of the hot chocolate it unfolds, and it blossoms into this
beautiful flower. You get your marshmallow... you get your hot chocolate...
It's perfect to cozy up around the holidays... plus it's a New York City
staple, so if you're coming to the city, don't miss it. And he's always kind of
inventing new pastries, so just be sure to check what's on the menu because you
might try something new that's about to blow up...
Number two: Head to the Union Square Holiday Market. So the Union Square Green
Market, which is the Farmers Market, is at Union Square every single week of the
year. It's not there every day, but there are set days when it's open. The Holiday
Market is something completely different. So, it's actually in a different area of
Union Square. It's one of my absolute favorite things to do in the city over
the holiday time, because it's so festive. It's decorated like Christmas... it's
basically a Christmas explosion... and literally millions of people from all
over the world come here every single year to weave and wind their way through
the stalls. You can buy art from local craftsmen, you could buy food... there is a
ton of gifting opportunities, so if you're looking for a gift for someone
when you come to New York, definitely go to the Union Square Holiday Market
because you will find a ton of options. The experience is open from November
21st through December 24th, so it does end on Christmas Eve... and it's open
Monday through Friday from 11 AM to 8 PM... on Saturday, it goes from 10 AM to 8 PM...
and on Sunday, it's from 11 AM to 7 PM. If you want to know what vendors
are gonna be available, and also if you want to know where each vendor is going
to be located--because sometimes it can turn into a bit of a maze...you can go to
the Union Square Holiday Market's website, and they have a bird's-eye view that
will show you how the whole thing is laid out every year. Definitely go. It's
Christmas heaven. Moving on to number three: Rolf's German restaurant.
Now, this is a spot that personally I've never been to, but I cannot believe I've
never been to it because it's always listed year after year as a top spot to
go in New York City over the holiday season. It's basically a restaurant that
just goes all-out over the holidays. So their decor inside is different every
single season, and they change things up all the time... but over Christmas they are
KNOWN for kind of going wild with the decorations. And you can't miss it.
So, I've walked by this place many times over the holidays, and the window is just
right there in front of you... you know it's a Christmas PARTY inside. There is
streamers hanging from the ceiling... lights, baubles, ornaments... the whole nine
yards. And if you like to go to places around the holiday time that just feel
kind of like the North Pole, I don't think there's another place in the city
that I would recommend more than Rolf's. Once again, I've never been here, so I
can't speak to their food... but I would just check out their menu if you want to
eat there... But know that I think most of the people going here over Christmas
time are here for the experience... because it is a vibe. Up next is the Chelsea
Market. Now this is a year-round market... it's in an industrial building that's
kind of a whole block long and a whole block wide... there's a ton of vendors in
there... restaurants... you can sit down, you can take out, you can get meats, cheeses,
wines, candy, chocolate, nuts... literally everything that your heart desires... and I
know for a fact that they decorate this place to be very festive around
Christmastime. So it's definitely a spot in New York that's going to look very
festive and have lights up. If you're looking for a New York style Christmas
photo, the Chelsea Market is the place to go, because it's so New York City and so
Christmassy... AND one thing that I just learned is Package Free--one of my
favorite stores--just opened a new location in Chelsea Market! They have a
spot in Brooklyn, and it's my friend Lauren Singer's shop where you can buy
all the things you need to live a sustainable and low-impact lifestyle,
with no packaging, and no plastic... and now that they're in Chelsea Market, if
you do find yourself there over Christmas time and you're buying some
food and getting into the holiday spirit, be sure to stop by Package Free and get
some zero-waste items. And number five... The last item in this video is going to
be Central Park. Central Park is one of the most stunning places in New York
City all year round. It is absolutely the largest plot of greenery on the entire
island of Manhattan, and there are tons of places to walk, or bike, or even just
sit on the lawn. In the wintertime, when there's snow on the ground, it is a
little bit different... So you're probably not gonna go to Central Park to lie on
the grass, or to go on a boat on the river... but it's still a great place to
take a stroll through the park, or grab a hot chocolate and just relax on a bench.
And when there's snow on the ground and in the trees, it is STUNNING.
And one of my absolute favorite parts of Central Park... especially when there's
snow on the ground... is literary walk. There's this area of Central Park called
The Promenade, which runs from 66th Street to 72nd Street. It's pretty much
the only area of Central Park that's a straight line, because the rest of the
pathways are a loop around in a circle... and the entire walk is framed by big,
beautiful, elm trees, which makes it one of the most photogenic spots--and one of
the most visited spots--in Central Park. And this area is called literary walk,
because towards the bottom of this promenade, there are some statues of very well-known writers.
I hope this was helpful for you if you are coming to
New York anytime soon...but just know, even if you're coming and it's not Christmas
time... all of the spots that I just mentioned are still great spots to visit.
And if you want to hear five more things to do in New York City over this time of
the year, be sure once again that you're signed up for my newsletter. Go to
luciefink.com/join. Enter your email... You will immediately be sent that PDF that I
told you of: My top ten things to do in New York... and if you are doing this
before December 19th you will also get that email blast on the 19th, sharing my
top 10 things to do in New York City around the holidays. I love New York City
so much. I've lived here since I graduated college in 2014, and I also
grew up in New York State, not too far outside of the city... so I've basically
lived here for my entire life. And I am more than happy to share some more New
York centric content with you right here on my YouTube channel. So comment below
and let me know what other types of New York videos
you want to see from me. Happy holidays to everyone out there! Be sure to hit
"subscribe" on my channel so that you don't miss videos when they go live! And
if you click on the little bell, it means you'll be alerted every single time the
video goes up, so that you can be that first commenter on it. I always love
seeing when people write "first". And I think that sometimes comments don't
populate... so like ten people think they're the first comment... but I can actually
see who was first, so I appreciate the people that try to be first... Anyway, Merry
Christmas! Happy everything! Happy holidays! I hope
you have a beautiful start to 2020, and I'm looking forward to seeing you next
year on YouTube.
Bye!