Kick off the holiday season in New York City, Six Flags Great Adventure and Bethlehem
A couple poses for a photo by a festive tree during the annual Holiday in the Park held at Six Flags Great Adventure, located in Jackson, NJ. Credit: Six Flags Great Adventure
A special Thanksgiving weekend edition of tips and trips:
A few hours: NYC
Macys Herald Square's iconic holiday windows in New York City. Credit: Getty Images/Dimitrios Kambouris
The decision earlier this month by Saks Fifth Avenue not to mount a light show during the centenary year of its Manhattan flagship hit holiday display hunters — of whom there are many — like a thunderbolt. Thankfully, it appears that none of the other stores known for window wonders will be following suit. Expect the usual over-the-top displays at Bloomingdale’s, Macy’s and other perennial favorites, although Fifth Avenue in the 50s will probably still win the glitter prize, thanks to Bergdorf Goodman, Cartier, Tiffany, FAO Schwarz, Louis Vuitton and more. Oh, and Saks’ windows will also be decorated, if a bit less spectacularly.
A full day: Six Flags Great Adventure, New Jersey
Guests can wander through widely decorated areas when visiting the annual "Holiday in the Park" held at Six Flags Great Adventure, located in Jackson, NJ. Credit: Six Flags Great Adventure
Not to be outdone, Six Flags Great Adventure in New Jersey has a seasonal offering of its own, Holiday in the Park. Along with a few rides open for the season (SkyScreamer and the Nitro coaster are among them), parkgoers can stroll through a forest of lights synched to Christmas tunes, see a five-story Christmas tree that springs to life every 30 minutes with a light show, and sing along to Rudolph’s Regiment, a troupe of roving musicians. The park is open all three days this weekend (from 1 p.m. to 8 p.m. only), and tickets start at $39 when purchased online in advance (or $99.99 at the gate).
A few days: Christmas in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania
Main Street in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, decorated for the holiday season. Credit: AP/Matt Rourke
With a name like that, they kind of have to do something special, right? As it happens, this Lehigh Valley town actually received its name on Christmas Eve (in 1741), and ever since has apparently been known as Christmas City USA. Who knew? That translates to not one but two holiday markets: Christmas City Village and German-themed Christkindlmarkt. Visit discoverlehighvalley.com for a mammoth list of activities, everything from breakfast with Santa to horse-drawn carriage rides, nighttime motor coach tours and, on Saturday at 5 p.m., Bethlehem’s own Christmas tree lighting. Stays at hotels in Bethlehem proper start at about $110 a night, but don’t overlook surrounding areas and towns, where prices can be half that. Food-wise, downtown’s Apollo Grill and its large and distinguished menu are fan favorites, as is 1741 on the Terrace in the historic Hotel Bethlehem, whose gigantic Palladian windows overlook the city’s Moravian Church settlements, 10 acres of which were named — just this past July — a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Newsday writer and restaurant critic Scott Vogel aims for a refreshing, gimlet-eyed take on the Long Island food scene, often while drinking a refreshing gimlet.