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Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade 2015
Photograph: Filip Wolak

NYC events in November 2023

Plan your month with the best NYC events in November 2023 including Thanksgiving festivities, NYC Marathon and more

Rossilynne Skena Culgan
Written by
Rossilynne Skena Culgan
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Give thanks for our list of NYC events in November 2023, which will help you make plans for things to do on Thanksgiving and the rest of the month, from the New York Marathon to Broadway show openings. Our guide will help you find the best holiday events, including the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and amazing holiday markets.

But that’s not all! Keep scrolling for how to make the most of this month with cool cultural events, new museum exhibits and quirky activities.

RECOMMENDED: Full NYC events calendar for 2023

Featured NYC events in November 2023

  • Things to do
  • City Life

This fall, embrace the magic of strolling through Central Park while crisp colorful leaves drift through the air. Most of the park's fall foliage is at its peak in early November, meaning you should get there this month to experience this autumnal wonderland in the heart of Manhattan. 

The Central Park Conservancy's new fall foliage map shares intel about when leaves are at their peak in seven different parts of the park's 843 acres. The park is home to more than 18,000 trees, all cared for by expert arborists who keep an eye on where to find the best, brightest foliage.

  • Things to do

The annual pageant of giant balloons, floats, cheerleaders, clowns, marching bands, theater and Broadway in New York performances and celebs is a must-see.

While it's free to watch along the sidelines, you can score an amazing seat—for a price. Book a table at Stella 34 Trattoria, the restaurant on the 6th floor of Macy's, for the day of the iconic Thanksgiving Day Parade. The cost of eating delicious food inside the famous department store while overlooking the procession below? That'll cost $625 per adult and $335 for children between the ages of 3 and 10.

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  • Art
  • Art

This annual cans-for-a-cause competition pits architecture teams against each other to create larger-than-life art installations using thousands upon thousands of cans of food, all in the name of ending hunger (every can is donated to City Harvest).

Head to Brookfield Place in Manhattan (230 Vesey Street) from November 2-13 (10am-8pm) to see the unveiling of these engineering spectacles, all built after months of planning. Then check back to see if your favorite takes home any titles in judges’ categories like Best Use of Labels, Best Meal and Structural Ingenuity. You can even vote for your favorite sculpture once the sculptures are unveiled. 

Every year, teams go all out with creativity. Past sculptures have included a hot air balloon, a bodega cat, baby Yoda, Buckingham palace and lots more.

This the 31st year for Canstruction. Each year, the event results in the largest annual single donation of canned food to City Harvest. Admission is free, but do your part by donating some canned goods to the cause.

  • Things to do
  • Events & Festivals

Beneath the cobblestone streets of the Seaport, secrets hid underground for decades—until now, that is. A new walking tour led by the South Street Seaport Museum unearths the neighborhood's freaky and fascinating facts.

The museum's "Sinister Secrets of the Seaport" whisks visitors back in time for a 90-minute walking tour full of true crime tales about theft, organized crime, murder and even pirates. Tours are available on November 11, 12, and 29 and December 9, 10, 16, and 17 for $40/adult. Whether you're a true crime buff or you're just soaking up the Halloween spirit, these tours make for a memorable afternoon in a historic neighborhood.

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  • Art
  • Art

Following successful runs in Madrid, Milan, Paris and Rome, the Balloon Museum is officially set to take over Pier 36 in The Seaport this fall.

Set in and outside of the 80,000-square-foot space, the new cultural destination will make its debut on October 27 with a new exhibit titled “Let’s Fly,” scheduled to run through January 14, 2024. 

Visitors are encouraged to interact with the installation, touching and feeling the various pieces exhibited. In terms of actual pieces, you can expect a 4,000-square-foot ball pit, inflatable lava lamps and the sorts of infinity rooms that you'll itch to post about on Instagram.

Tickets for the show are available right here.

  • Things to do
  • Events & Festivals

For the first time ever, Rooftop Cinema Club will extend its season into November. While rooftop movies are traditionally a summertime activity, the fun now continues through November 12 at Rooftop Cinema's Midtown location.

On the lineup: Fall romances, Barbie on the big screen and holiday favorites to kickstart the festive season. Showtimes run through November 19. Get tickets here

The schedule includes Serendipity, You've Got Mail, The Holiday, When Harry Met Sally, Die Hard and Home Alone

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  • Things to do
  • Events & Festivals

Majestic, incredible elephants are getting the spotlight in a new exhibit at The American Museum of Natural History. "The Secret World of Elephants" will showcase both modern and ancient elephants, offering visitors a chance to see a full-scale model of a woolly mammoth, learn about what elephants eat, touch an elephant's tooth, listen to elephant calls and more.

The exhibition opens on Monday, November 13, in the museum’s LeFrak Family Gallery. An additional ticket is required to visit the exhibit; museum members can visit for free.

 

  • Things to do
  • Festivals

The Rockefeller Tree Lighting is an NYC holiday tradition that brings thousands of New Yorkers (and tourists) to the bright and brilliant nexus of town each Christmas.

Sure, various tree lighting ceremonies take place all over New York, but the show at Rockefeller Center is by far the most renowned.

The Rockefeller Center Christmas tree will be lit for the holiday season during a special ceremony on Wednesday, November 29, 2023. There will be fantastic performers and live music that evening.

The tree will be lit daily from 5am-midnight until early January. On Christmas Day, the tree is lit for 24 hours and on New Year’s Eve it is lit from 5am to 9pm.

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  • Restaurants
  • Drinking

The decked-out holiday pop-ups from Miracle on 9th Street and Sippin' Santa's Surf Shack are back for the season. 

Miracle on 9th Street will be found at The Cabinet Mezcal Bar in the East Village, whereas Sippin’ Santa will take place this winter at Williamsburg neighborhood bar Thief. 

And as usual, the Miracle and Sippin' Santa holiday mug collections will also be making their return, with limited-edition glassware available for purchase exclusively at the pop-ups.

  • Things to do
  • Markets and fairs

The winter festivity has already begun even before the snow falls. The Bank of America Winter Village at Bryant Park  returns to NYC with exciting holiday shops, food and activities on October 27 through March 3, 2024.

Its 17,000-square-foot ice-skating rink that’s free to use (if you bring your own skates) is always the highlight, but its Winter Village in all its holiday spirit is a close second. This year, over 180 new and returning kiosks will be there for you to peruse through—all at one of the best NYC parks.

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  • Things to do

Every year, The Rink at Rockefeller Center ushers in the holiday season by opening up to the public to skate under a golden Prometheus. Once peak season hits, there’s going to be a bit of a wait to get on the slick stuff.

Tickets start at $21 per person, but the exact price depends on the date, the time of day and age. Skate rentals are available for $11. Local skaters can also purchase a membership to have access to the rink and unlimited skating throughout the season.

The rink is now open, with tickets are on sale here.

 

  • Things to do
  • City Life

It's the most wonderful time of the year: Central Park's Wollman Rink is open for the season.

Wollman Rink has been a winter-in-NYC staple for over 70 years now, but the renovations that took over the facility back in 2021 have really turned the destination into a beautiful spectacle of what the city has to offer even during colder months. 

In addition to skating, the on-site restaurants have added new items to their respective menus: at The Café, you'll get to order from a build-your-own chili bar, a pasta station and a sundae station while at Melba's in the Park, you absolutely must try the new grilled chicken sandwich and corn dog. 

That is all to say: don't waste any time and snag admission passes to the ice skating rink right here.  

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  • Things to do
  • City Life

Lace up those skates, New Yorkers: there's a new ice skating rink in town.

On November 15, Glide at Brooklyn Bridge Park will officially open at the Emily Warren Roebling Plaza in Brooklyn Bridge Park, right under the Brooklyn Bridge.

The rink will be open daily through March 1, 2024 and tickets for the 50-minutes sessions are available here. A limited number of discounted passes will actually be available for locals that can provide proof of residency in New York City. 

  • Things to do

Out of all the yuletide razzle-dazzle NYC has to offer, the Dyker Heights Christmas Lights display is among the most spectacular. Each year, more than 100,000 people flock to the Brooklyn nabe to witness some of the most over-the-top Christmas lights we’ve ever seen­—think huge inflatable Santas and snowmen, and houses that blast Christmas carols from loundspeakers. There is a lot of ground to cover, as many houses in the area participate over multiple blocks and avenues. (We’re talking tens of thousands of lights).

The festivities typically start the weekend after Thanksgiving. Here's our full guide to the fun.

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  • Things to do
  • Events & Festivals

The iconic Luna Park in Coney Island is always a must-visit during the summertime. But now—for the first time ever—the attraction will actually admit guests during the winter as well as part of a new holiday celebration dubbed Frost Fest. 

From November 18 through January 7, 2024, experience the legendary rides, try a new skating rink, take in the holiday lights and decor, go holiday shopping and snap some photos with Santa all the while snacking on some festive food options.

Tickets for the experience—hosted on select weekdays and holidays, plus Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays—are available for purchase right here.

  • Art
  • Art

Andy Warhol and Jean-Michel Basquiat, two figures that all but defined the city's downtown art scene in the 1980s, are in the spotlight at this new gallery show. In 1984, the artists' collaboration officially kicked off, one that yielded close to 160 canvases. 

"Basquiat x Warhol," a traveling show from Fondation Louis Vuitton in Paris, France, focuses on the unique collaboration between the two. See it at Brant Foundation in the East Village (421 East 6th Street) November 1 through January 7, 2024. 

Tickets are now on sale right here.

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  • Art
  • Art

Painter Marc Chagall's lusciously vibrant works of art come to life in a new immersive experience at Hall des Lumières. Titled "Chagall, Paris-New York," the exhibition explores the prolific painter who defied labels. 

His works are projected in a larger-than-life scale, taking over walls, ceilings and even the floor of the ornate bank-turned-exhibition hall located at 49 Chambers Street in Lower Manhattan. “Chagall, Paris-New York” is now on view through 2024 with adult tickets starting at $30. In addition to the Chagall works, Hall des Lumières is also displaying works by Wassily Kandinsky. 

  • Art
  • Art

Many museum-goers simply breeze through this brown room, barely giving a second thought to the unusual-looking walls around them. But if you go, take a moment to pause, to look more closely—and to even smell. Because this room is tiled entirely in chocolate. 

Ed Ruscha, an artist known for his Pop and conceptual works, first created “Chocolate Room” in 1970 as part of the Venice Biennale. He found local chocolate paste and screen printed it onto hundreds of sheets of paper. Then he hung each one like tiles or shingles from floor to ceiling. Ruscha was doing “immersive art” before that was even a buzzword.

In addition to Chocolate Room, don't miss the rest of Ruscha's work presented as part of MoMA's retrospective titled "ED RUSCHA / NOW THEN." The exhibition is the most comprehensive retrospective of the artist's work ever shown. It's on view through January 13, 2024. 

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  • Art
  • Art

When Komal Shah starting collecting art more than a decade ago, she noticed something startling: "The art world does not treat women artists equally" compared to male artists. 

She decided to do something about that by founding the Shah Garg Foundation with her husband, Gaurav Garg. The organization champions artwork by women and seeks to remedy the imbalances facing marginalized artists. Nearly 100 pieces of art from their collection are now on view in a powerful and diverse show called "Making Their Mark: Art by Women in the Shah Garg Collection" in Chelsea (548 West 22nd Street). It's free to visit through January 27, 2024; hours are Tuesday-Saturday, 11am-6pm.

The expansive exhibition fills two stories with stunning works by artists including Firelei Báez, Cecily Brown, Judy Chicago, Jaune Quick-to-See Smith, Mary Weatherford, Anicka Yi, and many others. The show features paintings, drawings, textile works, sculptures and mixed media pieces by significant artists from the last eight decades. 

  • Comedy
  • Comedy

When Dean Obeidallah and Maysoon Zayid hosted the first New York Arab American Comedy Festival shortly after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, they expected it to be just a one-time event. Now, the annual show is celebrating 20 years with a continued dedication to cultural expression and fostering understanding through laughter.

For two decades, the festival has worked to combat negative portrayals of Arab Americans and Muslims, while showcasing a powerhouse lineup of comedians. This year's festival runs on November 19 at an iconic NYC venue, Town Hall on Broadway, with a packed lineup of comedy veterans, plus some special surprise guests. Get tickets here.

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  • Art
  • Art

Long before Pablo Picasso's works made it to major American museums, an art collector in Brooklyn identified the artist's talents and believed his works should be displayed. In fact, he wanted to hang Picasso's works on his very own walls. 

In 1910, Hamilton Easter Field commissioned Picasso to adorn a room in his Brooklyn Heights home with murals, but Picasso didn't finish the works before Field died. Now, for the first time, the Metropolitan Museum of Art is bringing together six paintings linked to the commission. "Picasso: A Cubist Commission in Brooklyn" is now open and runs through January 14, 2024.

"It's an important aspect of Picasso's work that has been not researched on that level, has been not known before we embarked on this project," The Met's director Max Hollein said. "I hope the exhibition will be as revelatory to our audience as it has been to us."

  • Art
  • Art

For three months in the summer of 1921, Pablo Picasso worked out of a makeshift garage studio in Fontainebleau, France, where he created both cubist and classical masterpieces. Now, for the first time since then, the works are reunited in a sprawling new exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art. 

MoMA's "Picasso in Fontainebleau," on view through February 17, is the latest show in NYC presented as part of the international Picasso celebration marking 50 years since his death.

A garage space measuring in at 20 by 10 feet served as Picasso's studio that summer. Using the exact dimensions, MoMA created a room with the garage's footprint, so museum-goers can step inside and imagine creating such large paintings in a small space. 

In that garage, Picasso created the cubist "Three Musicians" with colorful geometric shapes as well as the classical "Three Women at the Spring" with references to Greco-Roman antiquity. For the first time in more than a century, MoMA has reunited these works.

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  • Theater
  • Theater & Performance

NYC group "poetry me, please" is set to present on one of the most beloved stages in the city: The Apollo Theater in Harlem. The event on Saturday, November 25, will be the largest poetry showcase in NYC since Def Poetry Jam on Broadway in 2008, event organizers say; tickets are on sale now starting at $50.

For The Apollo event, event organizers hosted a contest on social media inviting anybody to enter for a chance to perform. More than 200 people submitted videos of their poetry, and organizers are announcing the winners on Instagram.

The Apollo showcase will triple the capacity for the usual events by "poetry me, please."

"It's going to be huge," organizers Rashad Brown says. "This is going to be PMP making history at the Apollo."

  • Things to do
  • City Life

Sure, pickleball is all everyone is focusing on these days, but there's just something about a classic game of ping pong that tickles the average New Yorker's fancy, which is why we're so excited about the opening of the second SPIN location in New York, which will actually function as the brand's flagship moving forward, taking over the space formerly occupied by Carolines on Broadway.

SPIN Midtown is officially open at 1626 Broadway, between 49th and 50th Streets. The ping pong social club stays true to its mission of celebrating the game, albeit adding modern touches to both the space and its offerings—starting with Spinny, a robotic ping pong arm with, according to an official press release, "artificial capabilities that optimize play for novices and pros alike." 

You'll get to play with Spinny at one of ten Olympic-sized table tennis tables found underground (don't worry about getting lost: a trail of neon lights will lead the way). 

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  • Shopping

NYC is packed with holiday markets every fall with holiday spirit and unique gifts. While fancy Christmas window displays may entice you, NYC's holiday markets offer a chance to shop local. With everything from clothing to holiday ornaments to artwork, there's something for everybody on your holiday shopping list.

Shopping for the perfect gift doesn't have to be stressful; make it fun at these holiday markets.

  • Things to do
  • Events & Festivals

The phrase “women’s work” is often used derisively to indicate labor that’s seen as “less than,” but a new exhibit at New-York Historical Society reclaims that phrase. Aptly titled "Women's Work," the show chronicles the history of women's contributions to labor and how those efforts are both inherently political and essential to American society. 

The exhibit features dozens of objects in the museum's collection from indenture documents to medical kits to military uniforms. With items ranging from the 1740s to today, the show celebrates the strides society has made in equality while not shying away from highlighting the gender-based inequalities that persist today.

"Women's Work" is on view through August 18, 2024 in the Joyce B. Cowin Women’s History Gallery at New-York Historical Society on the Upper West Side.

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  • Art
  • Art

If scrolling through social media to see pictures of cute dogs and hilarious cats is a favorite pastime of yours, then this new exhibit at Fotografiska is a must-see. Titled "Best in Show," the exhibition explores the role of furry and feathered friends in our culture through more than 100 incredible photographs. 

Photos show dogs in a variety of situations, like getting baths, posing, partying, shaking their heads and even dressing up in fancy “cones of shame.” Cats, rats, bunnies, birds, reptiles, turtles and fish get their moment in the spotlight, too, at this exhibition on view in the Flatiron District through January 2024. 

The show showcases works by 25 renowned photographers. That includes William Wegman's famed Weimaraner portraits, pictures by Sophie Gamand of dogs taking baths and images by the world's first professional cat photographer Walter Chandoha. From candid photos of pets at home to posh portraits of pups at the Westminster Dog Show, each image explores the unbreakable bond between humans and their pets.

  • Art
  • Art

When genius meets genius, there’s often an explosion of creativity and inspiration but sometimes it leaves relationships in shambles. Enter Édouard Manet and Edgar Degas—two of modern art’s biggest players—who were actual "frenemies" to the very end.

In fact, the relationship was so fraught that Manet once ripped a beautiful Degas painting in half!

Drama among artists is what we live for, so this fall, The Metropolitan Museum of Art's new exhibition, "Manet/Degas" will be the one to see. Starting September 24, it is the first art show to put the French impressionists’ relationship on blast and expose the sort of dialogue they had together through their art. 

Across 160 paintings and works on paper, "Manet/Degas" unfolds a tale of two wealthy French artists who were undeniably inspired by each other but just couldn’t keep it together.

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  • Things to do
  • City Life

He's one of our most famous New Yorkers—and now legendary director Spike Lee (Do The Right Thing, Crooklyn, The 25th Hour) is getting his own immersive installation at the Brooklyn Museum this fall.

Running through February 4, 2024, "Spike Lee: Creative Sources" will delve into the world, works and influences of the acclaimed director who, though born in Atlanta, Georgia, was raised and revered as one of New York's own, particularly in the borough of Brooklyn. 

The exhibit will feature more than 300 works from Lee's personal collection, "items that have been touchpoints for Lee and the topics he explores on-screen," the museum said.

  • Art

In a pioneering exhibition, the Brooklyn Museum will present the first-ever museum show dedicated to zines by artists in North America. "Copy Machine Manifestos: Artists Who Make Zines" encompasses more than 800 objects examining how artists have used the medium of zines over the past half century.

This exhibition explores the largely unexamined, yet vibrant aesthetic practice of zines. Zines have been widely used to create and foster communities outside of dominant culture since the early 1970s, when more affordable reproduction technologies like the photocopy machine became widely accessible. The exhibition documents the zine’s relationship to a range of avant-garde practices and intersections with other mediums, including painting, drawing, collage, photography, performance, sculpture, video, and film. From conceptual art to punk and street culture to queer and feminist practices, this canon-expanding exhibition interrogates hierarchies between media and features artworks by nearly one hundred artists.

It'll be on view November 17, 2023–March 31, 2024.

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  • Art
  • Art

Eighty years ago, as World War II raged on, Danish citizens worked together to ferry 7,000 Jewish people to safety, keeping them out of concentration camps. 

Now, New York City’s Museum of Jewish Heritage - A Living Memorial to the Holocaust will commemorate that anniversary, known as one of the most effective examples of mass resistance in modern history. "Courage to Act: Rescue in Denmark" is now open; it’s the museum’s first exhibition developed for elementary-age students.

The exhibit focuses on themes of separation, bravery and resilience to help children ages 9+ reflect on the dangers of prejudice and on their own potential for courageous collective action.

  • Art

Get a taste of Dumbo's art scene on the first Thursday of the month when participating galleries will stay open late for First Thursday. You'll get a chance to peruse the diverse selection of artwork the neighborhood's famous arts district and can even take an Insider’s Tour led by a DUMBO arts professional.

First Thursday will be held this month from 6-8pm on November 2.

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  • Things to do
  • City Life

The CAMP flagship store at 110 5th Avenue by 16th Street will pay homage to new film Trolls Band Together. The installation will turn the 4,500 square feet of space into a rainbow-colored extravaganza complete with live music, dancing, glitter and more.

Trolls x CAMP will officially open on November 17; tickets are available for purchase right here.

Visitors will get to sing and dance to classic pop songs and new tracks—including *NSYNC's much-anticipated latest drop!—snap selfies with Branch and Poppy; spend some time at Mr. Dinkles' Sparkle Spa; play inside Bergen Town, the awesome Troll Tree and Vacay Island's pool noddle jungle gym and—wait for it!—slide through a Troll hair-filled tunnel that they are aptly referring to as a trunnel. 

 

  • Music
  • Music

Given iconic artist Billy Joel's historical connection to Long Island, it's only natural that the area will be home to a giant exhibit about the artist.

Officially opening at the Long Island Museum and Entertainment Hall of Fame's (LIMEHOF) Stony Brook museum location at 97 Main Street in Stony Brook on November 24, "Billy Joel- My Life, A Piano Man's Journey" will showcase over 50 of the artist's personal items, many donated by Joel himself and never seen in public before.

Expect vintage instruments, awards, rare audio and video recordings, personal photos, memorabilia and behind the scenes clips to make up the unique exhibition and capture your attention.

Tickets for the exhibit, which is mounted a mere 90-minute car ride from midtown Manhattan, are available for purchase now right here

 

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