Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree Lighting

About this happenin

In December 1931, the workers building Rockefeller Center pooled their money for a 20-foot balsam fir and stood it up on Christmas Eve, hung with garlands their families had made. The tree that takes its place each year is usually a Norway spruce. It arrives on a Saturday in early November, and crews spend the next few weeks wrapping it in more than 50,000 multicolored LED lights and fixing a Swarovski star on top. The lights go on at 30 Rockefeller Plaza on a Wednesday evening in early December, during NBC's live Christmas in Rockefeller Center broadcast, and the tree then shines nightly until mid-January. The classic street-level view is from Fifth Avenue looking west, past the Prometheus statue and the skating rink. For a closer look, stand in Rockefeller Plaza between 49th and 50th Streets.

More in December: 9 other New York events.

Where

Rockefeller Center · 30 Rockefeller Plaza, New York, NY 10112