Bryant Park Winter Village NYC

Dec 11, 2021 Bryant Park Winter Village NYC

Posted at 1:39 pm in Travel by Taylor Bush 0 Comments

1 Like

Holiday ready red coat for the season. I start by adding touches of holiday fun with accessories. Love a seasonal plaid scarf that can be used time and time again. Plus, you cannot beat a wool coat for warmth.

I truly believe the absolute best time to visit NYC is during Thanksgiving week. Many restaurants are doing a pre fixed holiday menu of a holiday feast, the Thanksgiving Day parade, and as an added bonus almost all Christmas decorations are in place. We planned to visit Bryant Park Winter Village on black Friday. Bryant Park Winter Village is an European themed open aired market. With local and global craftsmen from around the world. A great way to kick off the Christmas season.

How to Get to Bryant Park Winter Village:

Subway: Take the B, D, F, or M train to 42nd Street/Bryant Park. Take the 7 train to 5th Avenue.

Taxi/Uber: Bryant Park is situated between 40th and 42nd Streets & Fifth and Sixth Avenues.

Plan Ahead:

Hours of Operation: Monday-Thursday 7am-11pm, Friday-Sunday 7am-11:30pm for December. However, note New Year’s Eve the park closes early.

Dress Warm, Bring Layers: NYC is cold at this time. Best to bring a merino wool sweater. Best for a base layer or if thick enough can be worn alone. Adds extra warmth. I wore fleece lined leggings under my jeans. Highly recommend, fleece lined or wool leggings. Wool coat or down feather coat is by far the warmest coats on the market. Honestly, for warmth it is all in the materials of the coat. Finally, insulated boots. If you plan on just visiting and do not have highly insulated boots you can add shearling inserts to your shoes for warmth. Linked all the items below.

Things To Do:

Holiday Shops:

With more than 170 craftsmen, one is able to find Christmas gifts for the whole family. All items are handcrafted and are items you will not find in large chain stores. It was such a unique experience seeing people come from all over to sell handcrafted items that were truly unique. You can check out a list of the vendors here. Listing below some of my favorite shops:

The North Pole: An explosion of Santa’s workshop. Here you can find Christmas ornaments, a miniature candy store, and the best part hot chocolate.

Mr. Silkman: A NYC based company. This store is known for it’s nourishing candles that can double as body lotion. Once the candle melts and the a pool of warm wax forms. You are able to dip your finger into the wax and doubles as a body lotion. All ingredients are organic. I bought as a Christmas gift. You can view their Etsy store here.

Dorset Maple Reserve: A family owned and operated business in Vermont. I love Vermont maple syrup. Makes such a good Christmas gift. Definitely, try their bourbon barreled aged maple syrup. You can find their products here.

Bryant Park Winter Village holiday shops. With more than 170 craftsmen, one is able to find Christmas gifts for the whole family. All items are handcrafted and are items you will not find in large chain stores. It was such a unique experience seeing people come from all over to sell handcrafted items that were truly unique. You can check out a list of the vendors here.

Ice Skating:

Bryant Park Winter Village has an ice skating park over 17,000 square feet. This ice skating rink is one of the only free ice skating rinks. You can bring your own skates to skate for free or renting skates for a fee (skate rentals vary based on time of skate rental from $15-45 per person). Highly suggest, ice skating early in the morning the fees for skate rentals are usually cheaper and less crowds. However, you have to make reservations for ice skating regardless of bringing your skates or not. You can book a reservation time here.

The Lodge by Prime Video:

A rink side glass enclosed atrium with an apres skate setting. From a projected screen fire, cozy Christmas decor. The Lodge makes you feel like ?? help cannot think of much. The Lodge serves seasonal Christmas cocktails and food.

Food Vendors:

Not only does this winter market sell handcrafted items there are also food vendors. From hot chocolate, homemade pies, and freshly made crepes. Even Santa himself would be overwhelmed with all the sweet treats. Don’t worry there are also kiosks from Caribbean food to Mexican and everything in-between.

The Lodge by Prime Video A rink side glass enclosed atrium with an apres skate setting. From a projected screen fire, cozy Christmas decor. The Lodge makes you feel like ?? help cannot think of much. The Lodge serves seasonal Christmas cocktails and food.

Igloos:

Steps away from the rink head over to snag you own igloo. Food and drink is included in reservation. The igloos are heated. An igloo starts at $200 for a total of 4 people. You can click here to reserve.

Bryant Park Winter Village Tree Lighting: For the 2021 season the tree lighting at Bryant Park Winter Village is December 6 at 6pm. We arrived early in the season and the ornaments were not hung at this time. The tree lighting is free and an absolute must. With the tree lighting there will be a choir from Classical Theatre of Harlem and fireworks to celebrate the season. Santa will also be making a special appearance. Nothing is more Christmas than a tree lighting with a choir. Also, I do have to say the tree at Bryant Park is in my top three favorite Christmas trees in NYC. It is absolutely stunning and was not even lit or decorate at the time we went I could not imagine all lit up!