It’s officially December which means that Christmas Trees are officially allowed to be sold on the streets, it means that the 85 foot tree in Rockefeller Center is on the verge of being lit, it means that Fifth Avenue and SoHo will be crawling with people and accents from all over the world and it means that the department stores will be unveiling their windows.

What are we doing writing a piece on department store windows on an event site? We see this as an event (and free to boot) in itself. A lot of time, energy, and resources go into the holiday windows around Manhattan. There is a reason why people flock to them and most have some sort of system to keep people organized in a line!

We recommend grabbing some hot cocoa (maybe spiking it) and creating your own tour! Here are some of our faves:

Barneys New York 660 Madison Ave, at 61st St

Bergdorf Goodman 754 Fifth Ave, at 58th St

Bloomingdale’s 1000 Third Ave, at 59th St, 10022

Henri Bendel 712 Fifth Ave, at 56th St

Lord & Taylor 424 Fifth Ave, between 38th and 39th Sts

Macy’s Herald Square 151 W 34th St, between Sixth and Seventh Aves

Saks Fifth Avenue 611 Fifth Ave, at 49th St

@newyorkeventsco