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The Rockefeller Center Christmas tree will be set up Saturday: How to see it
By
Nicol Leon Arge
Published Nov 5, 2025
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Photo by Craig T Fruchtman/Getty Images
By
Nicol Leon Arge
Published Nov 5, 2025
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The 2025 Rockefeller Center Christmas tree is on its way to New York this week — and you don’t have to wait until the official lighting to catch a glimpse.
The 75-year-old, 75-foot-tall, 11-ton Norway Spruce will be cut down this Thursday in East Greenbush, near Albany. From there, it will be brought to Manhattan by a flatbed truck. It'll then be set up at 30 Rockefeller Plaza Saturday, with the official lighting on Dec. 3.
The “Meet the Tree” event Saturday will run from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., with a celebration of “A Charlie Brown Christmas” that includes a Peanuts coloring station and a Make-Your-Own Snoopy station from Build-A-Bear. The event is free, but advance signup is encouraged.
The towering tree will remain there until mid-January 2026. After that, it will be milled into lumber for Habitat for Humanity, for its work building affordable housing.
The Dec. 3 lighting will include 50,000 multicolored LEDs on approximately 5 miles of wire, according to Rockefeller Center. The tree will be topped by a three-dimensional star that weighs approximately 900 pounds, and features 70 spikes and 3 million crystals.
For the first time, this year visitors that get a Holiday Top of the Rock ticket between Dec. 4 and Jan. 10 will have a privileged viewing area of the tree on their way to the Top of the Rock observation deck.
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Nicol Leon Arge
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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