On the official SantaCon website, there is a ticking clock on the side of the page that counts down the days, hours, minutes and seconds until this year’s celebration. Sure, every year the streets will be filled with those more than willing to let their inhibitions go in favor of dawning their finest Jolly Saint Nick outfits to drink together in collective merriment for a charitable cause. But those who fear this day on the calendar will treat this feature as a doomsday clock to a day when the streets of New York should be avoided like the plague. Because once it’s down to zero there will be two choices: make plans to avoid SantaCon at all costs, or embrace the pure fun and absurdity of it.
Here is everything you need to know about SantaCon 2019.
When is SantaCon 2019?
This year’s SantaCon will take place this Saturday, Dec. 14 starting at 10 a.m. and ending, many bars later, at 8 p.m. While starting a pub crawl at 10 a.m. while dressed head to toe in North Pole attire requires a considerable amount of commitment, being amongst a group of new friends with a shared booze-filled yule-tide vision will propel you through the long day. Now where, exactly, does all of the fun/chaos start?
Where will SantaCon meet?
As of right now, the bar where all of this year’s fresh-faced Santas eager to spread the spirit (if that’s what you want to call it) will be meeting is undisclosed to the public. But if you go onto the official SantaCon website and donate $13 to this year’s SantaCon charity you will gain access to the day’s complete itinerary. Of course, you can dress up as Santa on your own and seek out the party stealth-style, but that would defeat the event’s overall charitable ethos. If you do that, you’ll be like a Santa who comes down a chimney with no presents to give. And no one likes that!
If you choose to go-go-go
If you do choose to go, remember to keep it together just a little bit. Fourteen arrests were made during last year’s Hoboken SantaCon from people getting too into character, so make sure you don’t ruin it for the rest of us. That goes for both Santas and those of us just trying to have a normal weekend. For this reason, the good people at SantaCon have listed the “5 F’s of SantaCon.” The list includes: 1) Don’t F with kids, 2) Don’t F with cops, 3) Don’t F with bar staff, 4) Don’t F with NYC, and lastly, 5) Don’t F with SantaCon’s charity mission.
Those seem like pretty reasonable asks, so do your best to stay within the rules and not ruin some poor kid’s vision of Santa this year.
Head to www.santacon.nyc for more information on the event and how to make your donation.
