Copyright Staten Island Advance
There is no surer sign that Christmas is right around the corner than when you hear that your favorite Christmas shop has opened. Upstate New York has a bunch of fun and fanciful holiday shops that are now open and ready to welcome in the season. From themed Christmas trees to homemade craft items and gifts, and to an uncountable number of new and nostalgic Christmas ornaments, these are all special places we encourage you to visit and “get your holiday on.” Wit’s End Giftique A sprawling “giftique” that has been a shopping destination for 50 years! This women-owned business in the Capital Region is packed with 25,000 square feet of great gift ideas and is a major Christmas shopping list component. People come from hundreds of miles to shop at Wit’s End during the holiday season. They also carry a full line of designer handbags, clothing, jewelry, gourmet foods and accessories. You can’t miss this place just north of Albany. Just look for the exterior walls lined up with larger-than-life Christmas wooden soldiers. Address: 1762 Route 9, Clifton Park Fenimore Farm & Country Village Formerly The Farmers Museum, Fenimore Farm & Country Village in Cooperstown has a wonderful gift shop. The items for sale rotate throughout the year, and the selection at Christmastime is wonderful. They lean heavily on an “old-fashioned Christmas” here with vintage games, toys, jewelry, pottery and books. Beautiful fabrics and candles are a specialty. For a “holiday two-fer,” walk across the street to the Fenimore Art Museum. Address: 5775 Route 80, Cooperstown Lee’s Shops at Wagner Square One of the best Christmas shopping destinations in Upstate New York. Buses from Canada have been known to put Lee’s Shops at Wagner Square in Canajoharie on their retail trip lists. The store, which sells gifts of all kinds, goes all out for Christmas. The shop covers the entire main block of the downtown business district. You can go from room to room and building to building (through interior doors) and will be amazed at the thousands of items, from ornaments to clothing to toys and to life-sized Santa Clauses. Be sure and look out front. There, at the intersection, you will see one of the last “dummy lights” still working in the whole country. These are traffic lights that are on the ground rather than overhead. It is said there are fewer than 10 of these in the United States. Address: 24 Church St., Canajoharie Woyshner’s Flower & Christmas Shop Fantastic Christmas shop in a lovely location. The store has been here for more than 50 years, and the selection of Christmas ornaments in their 16,000-square-foot showroom grows by leaps and bounds each year. They are the largest Christmas shop in Western New York. Make an afternoon of it here. After gathering your holiday goodies at Woyshner’s, walk to two of New York’s most special destinations: the stunning Our Lady of Victory Basilica and Shrine and the historic Buffalo Botanical Gardens, both one block away. Address: 880 Ridge Road, Lackawanna Corning Museum of Glass Gift Shop The Corning Museum of Glass is one of Upstate’s great museums and tourist destinations. They also have one of the top three or four museum gift shops in the state. You ride down an escalator to a full floor of sparkling glass items for sale. The prices range from $10 to thousands of dollars. Many of the items are made right at the museum. (You can take a tour and watch the ornaments being made.) The museum is filled with some of the best Christmas items during the holidays. They have great sales and discount programs, too. For Southern Tier residents, no Christmas shopping trip is complete without visiting this famous gift shop in what has been named one of the best Christmas towns in the nation. Address: 1 Museum Way, Corning Evolve For the Home Very popular Christmas store in historic Lyons. This is the only year-round Christmas store in the Finger Lakes region. The 7,000-square-foot shop has a full lineup of Christmas accessories with a wide array of Santas. There are literally hundreds of variations of Jolly Old Saint Nick for sale in this shop. Lyons is a cute Finger Lakes town and Evolve for the Home is the perfect destination for your Christmas shopping ideas. Address: 57 William St., Lyons Spa City Santa Box A unique Saratoga Springs tradition. Spa City Santa Box allows you to pick out your own favorite “box” to give to your loved ones. Pick out the box and then make arrangements to pick it up “from the North Pole.” Some of the most popular themes for children are the Gingerbread Box, Nutcracker Box and the Polar Express Box. Each one comes with activities, treats, a toy or mug, a book and other assorted themed goodies. Check out their website for the Santa Box that’s just right for your little one. Chuck Hafner’s Garden Center The opening of Chuck Hafner’s Christmas Room is always a much-anticipated event in Syracuse. The “room” is packed with holiday excitement. The 25,000-square-foot Christmas Room has dozens of delightful themed Christmas trees ready to go; gifts and trinkets of all kinds; Mr. and Mrs. Claus onsite for a visit; and a whopping 25,000 Christmas tree ornaments from floor to ceiling. Address: 7265 Buckley Road, Syracuse A Christmas To Remember A Christmas to Remember is open all year long, but is an extra special place in the Adirondacks when the holidays come around. The store is filled with ornaments of all kinds and sizes, including Lake George themed baubles. This beloved store has been family-owned and operated for more than 30 years. Address: 195 Canada St., Lake George Chestnut Cottage Central New Yorkers flock to the lakeside town of Skaneateles each holiday season, starting the Saturday after Thanksgiving, which kicks off the beloved tradition of Dicken’s Christmas throughout the village. While in town, make sure to make a stop at Chestnut Cottage, the gift shop that has the holiday spirit year round. From twinkling lights to larger than life light up Santa Claus figures, no wonder Skaneateles was named one of the best places to spend Christmas in New York.
