Westfield Garden State Plaza will kick off the 2025 holiday season with the 8th Annual Big Santa Celebration and annual lighting ceremony on Nov. 8.
The highly anticipated event will be hosted by Z-100’s Danielle Monaro, co-host of Elvis Duran and the Morning Show, and will feature an evening of live music, family entertainment, a drone and light show, and holiday magic headlined by country music singer and songwriter Dylan Schneider.
For the first time, the Big Santa celebration will take place outdoors near Entrance 3 between AMC Theatres and Fogo de Chão, giving the 45-foot-tall holiday decoration a new location for the holiday season.
The original Big Santa was a fixture at Westfield Garden State Plaza from the 1950s to the 1980s and after a three-decade hiatus, was replicated to make a nostalgic return in 2018. Standing at 42’ tall, Big Santa will welcome holiday shoppers from a new entrance.
“Big Santa has become synonymous with the holiday season in Bergen County, and we’re thrilled to celebrate another year of this incredible tradition,” said Wesley Rebisz, Senior General Manager, CSM at Westfield Garden State Plaza. “With Danielle Monaro hosting and a dynamic lineup of performers, this year’s event promises to be our most fun and spectacular yet.”
Big Santa festivities will begin at 5:00 p.m. with a DJ playing holiday hits, followed by the official event kickoff at 6:00 p.m. The lineup of national and local talent will include the Ridgewood Symphony Orchestra, Broadway Youth Ensemble and a dance company debut in addition to headliner Dylan Schneider, who boasts over 428 million career streams.
