NEW YORK — The magic of the holiday season begins to be felt in New York City with the arrival of the Christmas tree at Rockefeller Center after traveling approximately 200 miles from Queensbury, New York.
The 82-foot-tall, 50-foot-wide, 14-ton Norwegian tree was transported by flatbed truck to arrive at its destination at Rockefeller Center on Saturday. The tree, believed to be between 85 and 90 years old, was donated by the Lebowitz family of Glen Falls.
The tree will be decorated with more than 50,000 LED lights and topped with a Swarovski crystal star.
The three-dimensional Swarovski star, designed by architect Daniel Libeskind in 2018, weighs approximately 900 pounds and features 70 points capped with 3 million crystals. The diameter of the star is 9 feet 4 inches.
The festive icon will hold a lights-up ceremony the night of Nov. 30 in a live broadcast on NBC. (At the end of the season, the tree will be cut down and turned into lumber that will be donated to Habitat for Humanity.)
After November 30, the tree lights will be on from 6:00am to 12:00am daily.
On Christmas Day the tree will be lit for 24 hours.
For more Christmas season events and activities in New York City go here.
