Holiday shopping straphangers needn’t stray far from the subway — the annual holiday fair opened Monday at Grand Central Station. The market — which will be housed in the terminal’s Vanderbilt Hall off of 42nd St. — will consist of 36 local businesses and merchants.
It will be open seven days a week up until Christmas, with the sole exception of Thanksgiving Day. For those whose holiday shopping can best be described as “on or close to schedule,” the market’s shops will be open on Christmas Eve. “Grand Central Terminal is a magical place anytime of the year and especially during the holidays,” Catherine Rinaldi, president of Metro North, said Monday.
“The Holiday Fair is a wonderful addition to the year-round grandeur of this beautiful terminal,” agreed Long Island Rail Road president Rob Free. In addition to the market, holiday pop-up shops will be open in the terminal’s Biltmore Room. This week also marks the opening of the 20th edition of the holiday model train show at the New York Transit Museum Store’s Grand Central Annex, which starts running on Thursday, Nov.
14. The display — which includes a miniature Grand Central Terminal, as well as model Metro North and New York City Subway trains running along 34-feet of ‘O’ gauge electric train track, will run through February 2025..