A Christmas retrospective: London vs New York

[dropcap]L[/dropcap]ondon and New York are both ideal places to spend the Christmas holidays. Both embody the modern spirit of Christmas: sparkling lights, Christmas-themed entertainment, and, of course, shopping! This year I was lucky enough to spend my Christmas holidays in both places.

These cities are home to the notion of the metropolitan department store Christmas, attracting shoppers and tourists from around the globe to witness the season of merriment and joy. While Christmas is now over, it’s never too early to think about next year. I will compare the holiday season in both cities for readers who have already started planning their next Christmas holiday. Can London compete with NYC, the home of The Miracle on 34^th Street and numerous other flicks making it the fairytale land of Christmas? I think it can and here’s why, based on the following “Christmassy” criteria.

 Christmas Lights and Decorations

Both cities sparkled beautifully with Christmas lights. In New York I hopped on the Christmas lights tour bus allowing me to admire the lights embellishing all of New York City from Manhattan to Brooklyn. The whole city was covered in creative displays of Christmas decorations, such as the tree made out of giant ornaments near the Rockefeller Center and Sacks Fifth Avenue’s window display show gathering crowds of spectators to view this year’s Victorian-themed windows complete with holograms of ballet dancers on the top floors.

Only later did I discover Lady Gaga’s Christmas show was on right next door in the same theatre – this I deeply regret missing

photo: Flickr / caruba

Sacks pioneered the tradition of themed window displays for Christmas, and while the New York department stores have enthusiastically participated in this tradition, I think London’s Selfridges window display for this year – old fairytales – was just as grand and creative with just as many pedestrians stopping to admire the windows as they strolled by. I was also quite impressed with the creative decorations and Christmas lights in London, particularly the lighted peacock feathers on New Bond Street, and the glowing ornaments that decked up Regent Street and Oxford Street.  I must say it’s a tie.

Christmas Entertainment

Both cities provide multiple sources of Christmas entertainment. In London it is mandatory to visit Winter Wonderland in Hyde Park, which I thoroughly enjoyed. It features a wide array of activities for everyone, there are rides for all ages, food stalls selling warm goodies, lodges complete with hot chocolate and mulled wine as well as a grand Christmas market selling hand-made treasures. Comparatively, the Christmas market in grand central station in NYC is by no means as grand.

New York being home to Broadway is in no shortage of musicals and plays to go and see during Christmas season, but these musicals are even pricier at this time of year. Many celebrities come and star in these productions. This year Bradley Cooper starred in The Elephant Man and Emma Stone in The Cabaret. Additionally, New York is also home to Saturday Night Live and The Jimmy Kimmel Show, which, if you are eager enough, you can wait in line for hours and purchase tickets for. This is the best season to go and win your free iPad as Jimmy Kimmel hands out Christmas presents at every show in December! Unfortunately for me I made the mistake of going to a season appropriate show- Radio City’s Christmas Spectacular-The Rockets, which I do not recommend anyone over the age of 12 to go to. Only later did I discover Lady Gaga’s Christmas show was on right next door in the same theatre – this I deeply regret missing.

photo: flickr / Filippo Diotalevi

Christmas Shopping

While department store sales in both cities were misleading, only keeping certain items at 30 percent off, New York sales still trump London sales! New York is a cheaper city to shop in but is even more so during the holiday season. While London also offers a fair share of sales for Boxing Day and for the Christmas/New Year season, the sales start later after Christmas has ended, and London’s sales are not as generous New York’s. The Macy’s annual Christmas sale is an event when all items are 70 percent off! Steering away from designer brands I rejoiced when I discovered regular American brands such as Forever 21 and Express had items at 50-70 percent off at unbelievably low prices! New York is the clear winner here and is the better option when shopping for Christmas gifts as many items can be purchased at half the price of their London counterparts.

Overall Christmas Spirit

New York during Christmas time is freezing cold, overcrowded and the majority of people are grumpy due to the weather and stressful Christmas shopping. While the Christmas lights set the right ambiance, for me, staying in Times Square, the permanent light pollution took the glory away from the Christmas lights. I had very high standards for Christmas in New York due to all the hype about how grand it should be, so I was a bit disappointed when my experience did not match my expectations. I feel that London- while also swamped with tourists and stressed out shoppers, maintains a spirit of friendliness. Being a part time Londoner there is something about the sound of bagpipes on random street corners this time of year and the familiarity of London that makes it a winner in my eyes, giving it the slight edge over New York. If I had made the most out of Christmas in New York and attended Lady Gaga’s Christmas Spectacular I might feel differently. I would definitely recommend experiencing Christmas in both cities and of course making the most of what each has to offer.