These are among the largest menorahs in the world, and watching a cherry-picker hoist someone up to light a 30-plus-foot lamp is pure New York. The ceremonies are free, open to everyone, and short enough to fold into any winter evening. First-night and grand-finale lightings come with concerts, dreidels, and latkes that turn the plazas into small street festivals.
What to expect
A 20-40 minute outdoor ceremony each evening: blessings, the lighting via boom lift, and often music and giveaways. Big crowds on the first and eighth nights, modest gatherings mid-week. Both plazas are fully outdoors — dress for standing in December cold.
Good to know
- Hanukkah 2026: first candle Friday evening, December 4; the festival ends at nightfall Saturday, December 12
- Friday and Saturday lightings shift earlier or later for Shabbat — check the organizers' schedules for exact times each night
- Brooklyn: Grand Army Plaza at the entrance to Prospect Park (2/3 to Grand Army Plaza); Manhattan: Fifth Ave at 59th St by the Plaza Hotel (N/R/W to 5 Av-59 St)
- Free, outdoors, and family-friendly; first and last nights typically add live music, latkes, and gelt drops
- Both menorahs stand all eight nights, so any evening works for photos
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Common questions
What are the Hanukkah 2026 dates?
Hanukkah begins at sundown on Friday, December 4, 2026 and ends at nightfall on Saturday, December 12, 2026, with public menorah lightings each evening of the festival.
Which menorah should I visit — Brooklyn or Manhattan?
Both are spectacular. Brooklyn's Grand Army Plaza menorah (billed as the world's largest, lit since 1985) has a neighborhood-festival feel; the Fifth Ave/59th St menorah opposite the Plaza Hotel pairs easily with the Midtown holiday windows and tree.
