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annual Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree Lighting ceremony is scheduled for Wednesday, December 4, 2013. The Rockefeller Center Tree Lighting ceremony is one of New York City's most celebrated events for over 80 years, and a world-wide symbol of the NYC holiday season.
You can be a special guest inside Rockefeller Center at an exclusive cocktail party as the famed Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree is lit! Don't delay - be a part of the historic gala celebrations surrounding the televised annual Rockefeller Center tree lighting, including musical performances by today's hottest artists.
NYCVP can arrange your vacation with accommodations just steps away from Rockefeller Center.
Your Rockefeller Center Tree Lighting Vacation Includes:
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Accommodations for 2-nights or longer in your choice of Manhattan hotels like the elegant Waldorf=Astoria or the Sheraton New York Hotel right in the middle of all the excitement of New York City's Times Square and the Theater District. -
All state and local hotel taxes
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Admission to NYCVP's exclusive Insider’s Rockefeller Center Tree Lighting Party in the center of Rockefeller Plaza, just steps from the famed Tree, including hors 'd oeuvres and drinks - with an option to add an elegant dinner before the party! -
Admission to Your Choice of the Empire State Building Observatory, Museum of the City of New York or the NY Water Taxi Statue of Liberty Flex Pass
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Admission to Your Choice of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, The American Museum of Natural History or Top of the Rock Observation Deck
- Shopping Discounts at Macy's, Bloomingdale's and South Street Seaport
- Optional Broadway theater tickets, additional sightseeing, museum admissions and dining (at additional cost)
- And more NYC discounts and inclusions
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 Brasserie Ruhlmann is the location for this unique NYCVP event, just steps from the tree. Mingle along with locals and visitors from around the world as hors d' oeuvres are passed throughout the elegant Brasserie located in the center of Rockefeller Plaza. Step outside to the private patio reserved just for this event - for a view of the Christmas Tree in all its holiday splendor.
We'll have a professional photographer available to capture your photo with the lit tree in the background - compliments of NYCVP. This once-in-a-lifetime event is an elegant start to the festive New York City holiday season!
The Insider’s Rockefeller Center Tree Lighting Party begins at 7:30pm until 10pm. Hors’d oeuvres and drinks are included. Since admission into the Rockefeller Center area is tightly controlled for the Christmas Tree lighting, we have made special arrangements to provide you with a letter of confirmation and instructions that must be shown in order to gain admittance.
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Start your evening off with an elegant 3-course dinner at Brasserie Ruhlmann, in the heart of Rockefeller Center!
Beginning at 5pm, you'll be our guest at an exclusive pre-party dinner at Brasserie Ruhlmann featuring your choice of Filet Mignon or Salmon - with wine served during dinner.
After dinner you'll join the Rockefeller Center Tree Lighting Party!
This exclusive event is limited to the first 150 reservations. Click here for all the details.
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What you need to know
- "Dress to Impress" - no jeans or t-shirts
- You can watch the live feed of the network broadcast on TV monitors inside Brasserie Ruhlmann or on the giant screen in Rockefeller Center while outside on the patio; you cannot see the live performances in the ice skating rink.
- Although the view of the tree from the patio is slightly obstructed due to light poles, our photographer has chosen a location for a special photo once the tree is light at 9pm
- From 9pm until 10pm our DJ will play your favorites - and the dance floor is all yours!
- As you enjoy your cocktails, wine, beer and hors d' oeuvres, tens of thousands of people will stand in the Plaza for hours with no facilities and no food or drinks. Lucky you!
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 Waldorf=Astoria® Hotel
301 Park Avenue at 50th Street
The Waldorf=Astoria® Hotel is the embodiment of luxury and splendor, and continues to be one of New York City’s most beloved and utilized institutions. The hotel has a rich history and is a classic piece of New York City, and offers guests luxurious accommodations along with a myriad of specialized services. Each spacious, individually decorated guestroom and suite offers a rewarding union of timeless elegance and up-to-the-moment convenience, luxurious comfort and classic sophistication. A virtual art-deco museum, this legendary landmark is walking distance to Radio City Music Hall, Rockefeller Center, St. Patrick's Cathedral and the world-famous galleries and shopping of Fifth Avenue.
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 Sheraton New York Hotel & Towers
811 7th Ave at 52nd Street
Located right in the heart of midtown Manhattan, the Sheraton New York Hotel & Towers is just steps away from Times Square, the Broadway theater district, Rockefeller Center, Carnegie Hall, Central Park and 5th and Madison Avenue shopping. Newly renovated, the lobby is both elegant and comfortable. Enjoy 1750 beautifully renovated and decorated guest rooms, all of which feature the ultra comfortable "Sweet Sleeper" bed ensemble, high speed internet access, coffee makers with complimentary coffee and tea, telephones with personalized voice mail, hairdryers, irons with ironing boards, plus terry cloth bathrobes, and cable television with 20 channels as well as on demand movies and video check out. The hotel boasts a fully equipped health club and 24 hour room service. |
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Important Information for INSIDER'S functions: This exclusive event is limited to the first 300 reservations. NYCVP cannot guarantee unobstructed views of the tree lighting; views are "first-come, first-served". In order to provide maximum viewing space there is no table seating in the outdoor patio. It is the intention of NYCVP to provide a convivial atmosphere during this special event, including food, drinks, private restroom facilities, warmth and indoor protection from the weather, and admission into the Rockefeller Center area. Since streets are closed to traffic and pedestrian movement is limited by the NYPD and Rockefeller Center security teams, NYCVP will provide instructions for admission.
NOTE: Rates listed are per person based on two adults sharing a room for 2 nights, subject to availability and change. Rates include all taxes and service fees, and all listed features. Triple, quad, single and child rates are available. Starting price is based upon lowest-priced off-peak 3-Star hotel unless otherwise specified. You may get prices on other hotel and date options, longer stays, additional theater, sightseeing and dining, and transportation to NYC on NYC TripQuote.
Prices are valid for FIT (individual) travel and may not be applicable for groups of ten or more travelers.
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When is the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree lit?
When is the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree Taken Down?
Each year the Rockefeller Center tree is taken down the first week of January. The 2012 Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree was lit until Monday, January 7, 2013 at 11pm.
How tall is the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree?
The 2012 80th Annual Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree was an 80-year-old, 80-foot-tall Norway spruce, illuminated with 45,000 LED lights.
Rockefeller Center Tree Lighting Hours and Information:
The tree will be illuminated from from 5:30am to 11:30pm daily, all day (24 hours) on Christmas Day, and from 5:30am to 9pm on New Year's Eve. The tree may be viewed 24 hours a day, but is the most glorious when lit.
The Rockefeller Center Christmas tree is located within the Rockefeller Center Plaza at 50th Street and 5th Avenue.
Location and Directions to the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree
The tree is located at Rockefeller Plaza, between West 48th and West 51st Streets and 5th and 6th Avenues, Manhattan.
The closest subways are the B/D/F/V to 47-50 Streets/Rockefeller Center, the 1 to 50th Street and Broadway, or the 6 to 51st and Lexington Avenue.
History of the Rockefeller Center Tree:
1931 - Workmen put up a Christmas tree on a muddy Rockefeller Center construction site.
1933 - First formal Rockefeller Center Tree Lighting Ceremony. The 50 foot tree was decked with 700 lights in front of the eight-month-old RCA Building and the lighting ceremony was broadcast over NBC radio.
1936 - Two trees, each 70 feet tall, were erected. For the first time the Lighting Ceremony included a skating pageant on the newly opened Rockefeller Plaza Outdoor Ice Skating Pond.
1942 - Three trees were placed on Rockefeller Plaza, one decorated in red, one in white and the other in blue to show support for our troops serving during World War II.
1949 - The tree was painted silver, to look like snow.
1951 - The Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree was lit for the first time on national television on the Kate Smith Show.
1963 - After the 1963 Christmas Tree had spent three weeks on holiday display, its 60 feet of Norway wood was donated to a Boy Scout troop.
1966 - The first tree from outside the United States was erected. It was given by Canada, in honor of the Centennial of its Confederation. This is the farthest distance a tree has traveled to Rockefeller Center.
1980 - A 70 foot-tall Norway Spruce came from the grounds of the Immaculate Conception Seminary of Mahwah, N.J. Bob Hope participated in the Lighting.
1999 - The largest tree in Rockefeller Center history - a 100 foot high, 100 year old, 10 ton Norway Spruce - was chosen from Killingworth, CT.
2004 - The Swarovski-designed star is created. It is the largest star to ever grace the tree, measures 9 1/2 feet in diameter and 1 1/2 feet deep, and is adorned with 25,000 crystals and one million facets.
2007 - The 75th tree marked the start of a new eco-friendly tradition in 2007. It was cut down with a two-person handsaw, and illuminated by 30,000 LEDs that used a fraction of the energy of normal bulbs. When the time came to take the tree down, Rockefeller Center partnered with Habitat for Humanity, which milled and treated it for future use as “green” lumber.