Guide · December 12, 2026 · Midtown Manhattan
SantaCon NYC 2026: What's Published, What Isn't, and How to Get Around It
The date is out: Saturday, December 12, 2026, 9am to 9pm, on the organizer's listing. The start point and the bars aren't, and anyone naming them in November is guessing. The last two years began on Broadway around West 40th Street, so if you'd rather not share a sidewalk with Santas, start planning from there.
What's published for 2026, and what isn't
Published
- Date: Saturday, December 12, 2026
- Hours: 9am to 9pm
- Where, broadly: “many Midtown Manhattan locations”
- Age: 21 and over, with legal ID
- Tickets: listed at $15 to $30, no refunds
- Money: the organizer says proceeds go to NYC charities
Not published yet
- The starting point
- The map and the list of bars
- The MTA's alcohol ban for this year
- Any NYPD plan or street closures
Past years, so you know the pattern
| Year | Date | Hours | Started at | Train alcohol ban |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Sat, Dec 12 | 9am to 9pm, on the listing | Not published | Not announced |
| 2025 | Sat, Dec 13 | From 10am | Broadway & W 40th St | 4am Sat to noon Sun |
| 2024 | Sat, Dec 14 | 10am to 8pm | Broadway & W 39th St | 4am Sat to noon Sun |
| 2023 | Sat, Dec 9 | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | 4am Sat to noon Sun |
The second Saturday of December each time. 2025 and 2024 starting points are as reported: ABC7 put 2025 at W 39th St, FOX 5 at W 40th St. The train ban covers LIRR and Metro-North, trains and platforms.
Nobody publishes the start point months ahead. It has stayed close to Broadway and W 40th St, a few blocks from Times Square and a short hop from Penn Station. It also isn't confined to Midtown: the 2024 stop list reached the East Village.
No route, just a starting point
FOX 5 summed it up last year: no parade route, only a starting point, and no official street closures. Santas gather, then spread out through a list of bars during the day. So a “route” is just the order you pick. Expect heavy crowds on the sidewalks around it, and bars with lines.
The listing's advice is practical, if you strip out the swearing: bring legal ID, proof of your ticket and cash for the bars, wear comfortable shoes and layers, and don't bring open containers, fake IDs or friends who start fights. It says you will be arrested for open containers, and drinking in public is illegal in New York anyway.
Tickets, and the fake ones
The organizer's listing calls itself the only official SantaCon in NYC, and warns that nationwide companies selling SantaCon tickets in dozens of cities “will not gain you entry.” Read who's selling before you pay. Prices on the listing ran from $15 to $30. In 2024 the suggested donation was reported at $15.93. No refunds.
The trains
This part catches people coming in from Long Island and Westchester. The MTA has banned alcohol on LIRR and Metro-North trains and platforms for SantaCon year after year, from 4am Saturday until noon on Sunday, which is 32 hours. Police can confiscate your drinks, issue a summons, and take you off the train. In 2023, NJ Transit banned all beverages on its trains, light rail and buses that day too. We found no 2026 announcement from either when we checked, so check the MTA and NJ Transit that week.
If you just want to get around it
- Go early, or go late. It starts in the morning, and the sidewalks fill up as the day goes on. If you have errands near Times Square, do them before noon.
- Avoid the stations at the end of the day. Last year police were stationed at Penn Station, Grand Central Madison and Grand Central Terminal. Expect the same trains to be full of tired Santas.
- Go west or uptown. Once the start point is out, you can plan around it. Until then, assume Midtown around Broadway.
- Bringing kids to see Santa? Pick a different Santa. Bryant Park's free Santa's Corner starts two days later, on Monday, December 14.
Where we are in all this
We're at 605 W 48th St, between 11th and 12th Aves. That's about 22 minutes on foot from last year's start at Broadway and W 40th St, which is a long walk in a Santa suit. That's good news if you're trying to escape, and bad news if you were hoping we were the next stop.
No list of stops is out, so we can't tell you who's on it, and we haven't announced anything for that day. December 12 is a Saturday, and a regular Saturday here runs 12pm to 3am. Bottomless brunch $25 from noon, then dinner from 5 with a live DJ. Open till 3am. The glass roof closes and the room is heated when it's cold. For 2 to 8 people, book online. If you're coming with a crowd of 9 or more, send a group request and we'll email you within one business day. It's a good idea to call on the day at (212) 957-1700.
Christmas Posadas on our roof
A different kind of Christmas party, the very next day: our posada on the roof, with a Mexican buffet, carols and a piñata. It's for all ages, and you won't need a Santa suit.
Sunday, December 13. Doors 5:30pm, posada 6pm to 9pm, piñata at 8pm. Adults $38 + Ticketón fees, kids 10 and under $20 + fees, paid in advance. The buffet, prices and tickets.
Where this comes from
SantaCon questions
When is SantaCon NYC 2026?
Saturday, December 12, 2026, from 9am to 9pm, according to the organizer's Eventbrite listing. It has fallen on the second Saturday of December in each of the last four years.
Where does SantaCon NYC start?
The 2026 start point wasn't published when we checked on November 2. The listing says location to be announced and many Midtown Manhattan locations. Last year FOX 5 reported Broadway at West 40th Street, and in 2024 it was Broadway at West 39th Street.
What is the SantaCon route?
There isn't one in the parade sense. FOX 5 described it last year as a starting point and a list of bars, with no route and no official street closures. Past maps were posted close to the day.
Do you need a ticket for SantaCon NYC?
The organizer sells tickets on Eventbrite, listed at $15 to $30 when we checked, with no refunds, and says proceeds go to NYC charities. It also warns that nationwide companies selling SantaCon tickets won't get you into this event.
What's the age limit?
The listing says 21 and over, and tells you to bring legal ID and proof of your ticket.
Can you drink on the train on SantaCon day?
Don't count on it. In 2023, 2024 and 2025 the MTA banned alcohol on LIRR and Metro-North trains and platforms from 4am Saturday to noon Sunday. The 2026 ban hadn't been announced when we checked, but expect it. Open containers on the street can also get you arrested, the listing warns.
How do I avoid SantaCon?
Stay out of the blocks around Broadway in the West 30s and 40s on Saturday afternoon, avoid Penn Station and Grand Central around the end of the day, and go west or uptown. We're about 22 minutes from last year's start, at 605 West 48th Street.
Is Cantina Rooftop part of SantaCon?
No list of stops has been published for 2026, so nobody can say yet who's on it. We haven't announced anything for that day.
