Rockefeller tree lighting to kick off season of giving
Visitors watch as the 2022 Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree is raised Nov. 12. On Wednesday night, the 82-foot-tall Norway spruce lights up as part of time-honored festivities to mark the traditional start of the holiday season.
Credit: AP/Craig Ruttle
The Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree joins the ranks of the world's most famous holiday spruces when it lights up Wednesday night to mark the traditional start of the giving season.
The 2022 event marks the 90th year since the first lighting ceremony at Rockefeller Center in 1933. Two years earlier, workers raised the center's first Christmas tree, a 20-foot balsam.
This year's entry, a towering, majestic Norway spruce, arrived about a week before Thanksgiving from upstate Queensbury.
Here's what to know for those who want to kick off the holidays by watching the tree light up in a burst of holiday colors.
The 1955 Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree lighting ceremony as seen from Fifth Avenue. Credit: ASSOCIATED PRESS
Best way to view
The tree is located at Rockefeller Plaza, which is on 49th Street between Fifth and Sixth avenues in Manhattan. The B, D, F and M trains all stop at Rockefeller Center and the 1,6, N, Q and R trains also have stops nearby.
Space to view the lighting from up-close is limited.
For those looking for something more exclusive, Rockefeller Center offers a VIP tree lighting experience with tickets at $585.
For those looking for the comfort of the couch at home, NBC will broadcast the lighting beginning at 8 p.m.
Following the ceremony, Rockefeller Center will post a stream of the event directly on its website, rockefellercenter.com.
By the numbers
This year's tree weighs in at about 14 tons and stands 82 feet high. It is estimated to be between 85 and 90 years old.
More than 50,000 multicolored LED lights will wrap around the tree. And on top, an impressive 900-pound three-dimensional star covered in 3 million Swarovski crystals.
When to visit
The tree will be lit daily from 6 a.m. until midnight. On Christmas Day, the tree is lit for 24 hours, and on New Year’s Eve, it is lit from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. The removal date has not yet been set.
Can I skate at the The Rink at Rockefeller Center, too?
Of course you can!
Visit the Rockefeller Center website to book a time slot.
Admission and skate rental starts at $11 for those under 5 but can be as much as $65 depending on date and time. The rink is open daily through March.
Vera Chinese covers Suffolk County government and politics. She joined Newsday in 2017 after working as an editor for the East End lifestyle publication northforker and a general assignment reporter for the New York Daily News.
