{"id":36706,"date":"2014-12-23T18:37:51","date_gmt":"2014-12-23T08:37:51","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lastminute.co.nz\/blog\/?p=36706"},"modified":"2014-12-23T20:21:42","modified_gmt":"2014-12-23T10:21:42","slug":"im-dreaming-of-a-white-christmas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lastminute.co.nz\/vc\/blog\/im-dreaming-of-a-white-christmas\/","title":{"rendered":"I\u2019m dreaming of a white Christmas"},"content":{"rendered":"

There\u2019s meant to be no place like home at Christmas time, but tap those heels three times and I’ll\u00a0take you to our top 5 winter wonderlands. I\u2019m dreaming of a white Christmas, a place where there\u2019s no fly swatting, I get a snow tan instead of a sun tan and the weather permits getting dressed head to toe in festive attire (not a bikini in sight!).<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Any old town can pop up a Christmas tree and string a few lights along, but few places go all out to create that Christmas magic. Here\u2019s our top 5 destinations that trump the rest:<\/p>\n

New York City<\/strong><\/a><\/h2>\n\"NYC<\/a>\n

In NYC, you\u2019ll be rockin around the Rockefella Christmas tree<\/strong><\/a>, the centre of New York\u2019s<\/a> holiday celebrations. This tree is the real deal and towers up to 85 feet, sparkling in 45,000 LED lights and a 9.5 foot Swarovski star! We predict oodles of festive selfies, with half a million merry makers passing by daily (get your stick out).<\/p>\n

It\u2019s the time of year where it\u2019s absolutely acceptable to be a glutton, but when you feel like you should be rolling along, get moving and go gliding on the ice instead. The best place to skate in NYC is no other than Central Park<\/strong><\/a>, which has two frozen ponds for skating. Take a breather afterwards and saddle up in a horse drawn carriage to whisk you along the park paths. Bucket list \u2713<\/p>\n

No trip to NYC is complete without hitting up the iconic Macy\u2019s<\/strong><\/a> superstore. As well as picking up unreal sales from boxing day (a girls gotta rug up in the cold right ;)) they also have Santaland<\/strong><\/a>. <\/strong>Santaland is an artificial North Pole village, beaming with live elves, an enchanted forest, animated displays and a large train.<\/p>\n

If, after all of this your glass of milk is still only half full of festive cheer, duck out onto 34th<\/sup> Street and if you\u2019re lucky you could witness a Christmas miracle \ud83d\ude09<\/p>\n

Hot tip: Santaland draws big crowds which can see you wait for hours. We recommend signing up for an express pass on Macy\u2019s website<\/a> up to 48 hours before you arrive and you\u2019ll only have to wait 15 mins.<\/p>\n

London<\/strong><\/a><\/h2>\n\"London<\/a>\n

It\u2019s handy that most of London<\/a>\u2019s top tourist attractions are the locations that celebrate Christmas with all the trimmings, making it super easy for you to see and do it all.<\/p>\n

Here are a few must dos;<\/p>\n