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Macy's Santaland

See New York City, New York family vacation

Macy's Santaland

Midtown

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151 W. 34th Street
New York, NY 10001
212-494-4495

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Macy's Santaland Description

Hop aboard the Macyland Express for a magical journey through the Enchanted Forest to the North Pole that culminates with a private visit with Santa. Along the way kids stare transfixed at the expansive Christmas scenes, marveling at the model train displays, talking trees, overflowing bags of toys, ice-skating polar bears, kid-sized lollipops, lavishly decorated Christmas trees, dancing animatronic animals, glittering candy canes, and twinkling lights. The wondrous surroundings make the wait to see Santa pass by in a flash.

Holiday Attraction
Seasonal / Holiday Store

Kid Tips

Pre-Teens & Teens: Even kids who think they're too old for Santa will enjoy winding their way through Santaland.

Planning Notes

Next stop, Santa.Santaland is located on the eighth floor of Macy's. For the quickest trip up, enter the store near the corner of 34th Street and 7th Avenue and take an elevator to the eighth floor.
Longer lines as Christmas nears. For the shortest wait, plan your visit as soon after Thanksgiving as possible. Lines are generally shorter on weekdays.
Line management. The line moves quickly even at peak times thanks to multiple Santas in individual rooms in a cleverly configured maze that ensures kids never realize there's more than one.
No purchase required. Visiting Santa is free, and taking pictures with personal cameras is allowed. Visitors have the option to purchase one of the professionally-taken digital photos immediately after their visit.
No need to go hungry. An Au Bon Pain (which serves coffee, pastries, sandwiches, soups, and the like) is located across from the Santaland entrance. There's also a McDonald's, a Starbuck's, an Auntie Anne's Pretzels, and several other fast-food and more formal dining options inside the block-long store.

Just the Facts

Hours: November 27-December 23: 9 a.m.-9 p.m.; December 24: 9 a.m.-5:30 p.m.

Fees: Free

Recommended Time: Less than 1 hour

Reviews of Macy's Santaland

Love Santaland

By Emmyjo2 December 12, 2009

School-Age Kids

What we loved:
The Decorations

What we didn't love:
Nothing

We love to got to NYC to see Santa. It's the only place that the "real" Santa is. My children now 5 & 8 have gone every year, we have made it a wonderful tradition. I never feel rushed, you have to go when it first opens otherwise it can get crazy. Trust me we learned the hard way. I definately recommend this. Read More

Not Acceptable?

A lot left to be desired

By hrhlisa198 December 04, 2009

Babies

Toddlers & Pre-K

School-Age Kids

Pre-Teens & Teens

What we loved:
Beautiful decorations, elaborate train display

What we didn't love:
you don't get a chance to enjoy what they have set up

I am a New Yorker and I have to say I was disappointed with the treatment you get during this display. I expect crowds. I expect lines. I didn't expect that we would not really be able to let the kids enjoy the decor and the displays.

Macy's did a spectacular job with Santaland. The trees, the dancing bears and skating penguins, the train display is second to none. My 4-yr-old wanted to watch the bears. Could not do it, we were ordered by the elves 'to keep it moving'. As we got to the trains, my 2-yr-old, who adores anything with trains was entranced, or rather I should say wanted to be be entranced b/c as he stood to watch the trains in wonder, the elves came out and barked 'fill in the gaps, keep it moving'

We had no real opportunity to take pics of our own b/c if you dared to stop, you got yelled at to keep it moving. You did however, get a chance for them to take snapshots of you to give you the privilege to pay $19 for one photo, $30 for two. Yet, there I was shelling out for a mediocre pic taken of us to commemorate the kids' first meeting with Santa.

All in all, we spent about 10 minutes to go through the entire thing. My kids were excited to go, but the mill type environment left a lot to be desired. Not really for little kids who really need time to be with something to enjoy it. At this age, it might be more for the adults.

Better handle of crowd control maybe could have made that experience a bit more enjoyable.
Read More

Not Acceptable?