They\u2019re simply having a wonderful Christmas time.
While hundreds of people piled into Midtown Saturday to partake in the infamous debauchery of SantaCon, a \u201cwholesome\u201d alternative event debuted in Manhattan.
Revelers dressed up as Santa, reindeer and Christmas presents gathered at West 39th Street and Broadway to kick off the annual bar crawl stretching from Times Square to the East Village, which typically draws around 30,000 participants.
\u201cToday\u2019s a day when thousands of people in New York City dress up like Santa. It\u2019s the unity for me,\u201d a well-mannered SantaCon-goer Nidia Cruz, 36, told The Post.
Other participants were ready to get their eggnog on.
\u201cI think it\u2019s really fun to get drunk and watch everyone talk about how much they hate Christmas,\u201d said Ethan Howard, who was fittingly clad in a Grinch costume.
\u201cWe\u2019re looking to bar hop and spread the holiday spirit,\u201d said Julianna Nunez, 24, who traveled from Connecticut for the festivities.
Manhattanite Jacqueline Nardone purposefully only brought her six-year-old daughter to the first part of the notoriously boozy event.
\u201cWe come in the beginning, because everyone in the beginning is happy, and then they get, erm, tired,\u201d Nardone explained with a nod to the little girl.
One woman humorously carried an “Emotional Support Gingerbread” basket.
Meanwhile, approximately 40 people dressed as Christmas elves gathered in Central Park for the inaugural \u201cProject Elf,\u201d a family-friendly event which resembled a smaller and \u201csober SantaCon,\u201d as one participant put it.
The event was the brainchild of Big Apple teens John Clark, 14, and Oliver Bachleda, 16, who said they drew their inspiration from the 2003 hit holiday movie \u201cElf\u201d starring Will Ferrell.
\u201cWe were just thinking of things to do to entertain ourselves, and we decided to try to create an elf army\u2026We went to FedEx that day and we made a bunch of copies of posters with a picture of Buddy the Elf on them,\u201d as well as the event details, Clark recalled.
\u201cAs time went on, we realized that it was the same day as SantaCon \u2013 that wasn\u2019t on purpose,\u201d Clark said. \u201cWe just thought it would be fun.\u201d
For each person who attended dressed up as an elf, the Clark and Bachleda families said they would donate $100 to Citymeals on Wheels, a nonprofit that provides food for elderly New Yorkers in need.
Ana Sophia Acosta, a 26-year-old Manhattanite, said she was happy to swap the \u201cdrinking-centered\u201d SantaCon for Project Elf, which was simply \u201ca fun way to spread Christmas cheer.”
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