2016 Rockefeller Center Tree Lighting: What You Need to Know Before You Go
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The 2016 Rockefeller Center tree lighting is Wednesday night. Tracie Strahan has what you need to know ahead of the big celebration.
What to Know
NBC will broadcast “Christmas in Rockefeller Center” from 7 to 9 p.m.
Matt Lauer, Savannah Guthrie, Al Roker, and Hoda Kotb will co-host the broadcast
The tree will be lit every day from 5:30 a.m. to 11:30 p.m. until Jan. 7., except for Christmas Day, when it will be lit around the clock
The Rockefeller Center tree is set to be illuminated Wednesday in a festive ceremony, but spectators should expect some security restrictions, be aware of street closures and prepare for possible rain.
NBC will broadcast “Christmas in Rockefeller Center” from 7 to 9 p.m.
Crowds are expected to form in the early afternoon and police say drivers should expect heavy traffic and avoid the vicinity of Rockefeller Center and Radio City Music Hall from 3 p.m. to 11 p.m.
Chris Cimino’s forecast for Wednesday, November 30.
Police also say the following roads will be subject to closures from 3 p.m. until after the lighting ceremony: 48th, 49th, 50th, and 51st streets between Fifth and Sixth avenues.
Spectators are urged to use mass transit to attend the event. Umbrellas, backpacks and large bags are prohibited, police said.
The tree will be lit every day from 5:30 a.m. to 11:30 p.m. until Jan. 7., except for Christmas Day, when it will be lit around the clock for 24 hours.
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Matt Lauer, Savannah Guthrie, Al Roker, and Hoda Kotb will co-host the broadcast, and there will be live performances from Neil Diamond, Sarah McLachlan, Tori Kelly and the Radio City Rockettes. Additional performances are expected from Garth Brooks, Trisha Yearwood, Dolly Parton, Tony Bennett, Josh Groban and Jordan Smith.
Showtime
NBC 4 New York
This year's Rockefeller Center Christmas tree is beginning its journey from upstate New York to Manhattan.
NBC 4 New York
The 94-foot Norway spruce, owned by Angie and Graig Eichler, is being cut down Thursday morning in Oneonta.
NBC 4 New York
Two massive cranes will help move the tree, the second largest to ever grace Rockefeller Center, onto a flatbed truck.
NBC 4 New York
It will then be driven 140 miles to Manhattan, where it's due to arrive on Saturday.
NBC 4 New York
The tree's 50,000 lights will be switched on during a live television broadcast on Nov. 30.
NBC 4 New York
The spruce will stay on display until Jan. 7.
NBC 4 New York
Rockefeller Center's trees are usually milled into lumber for Habitat for Humanity after they're taken down.
NBC 4 New York
Crowds gather for a glimpse of the tree as it's being cut down.
NBC 4 New York
Crews prepare the tree for cutting.
NBC 4 New York
A close-up look of the tree after crews ready it for cutting.
NBC 4 New York
Crowds mill about as they wait for the tree to be cut down.
NBC 4 New York
The soon-to-be Rockefeller Center tree is laid on the bed of the truck.
NBC 4 New York
It takes a great deal of support to carry the giant spruce.
NBC 4 New York
It takes a small army to get this Norway spruce to NYC.
NBC 4 New York
Another great shot of the tree being buckled in for its road trip!
NBC 4 New York
Safe travels, tree!
@jojofrancois/Instagram
The tree travels through midtown on Friday night.
The tree was parked on 49th Street on Friday night.
Frank Heinz
The spruce will be lifted into place on Saturday. Then begins the lengthy task of placing 50,000 lights on it.
The flatbed with the tree rested on 49th Street for hours Saturday morning amid a frigid wind.
Frank Heinz
The 94-foot Norway spruce traveled 140 miles from Oneonta, New York.
Frank Heinz
When the tree is unfurled it will stand high above Rockefeller Plaza -- it's the second largest tree in Rockefeller Center history.
Erica Davies
Tourists and workers watch along Rockefeller Plaza as the tree is prepared to be loaded off the truck bed.
Erica Davies
Tourists excitedly watch as the Saturday morning Today anchors film a segment in front of the Rockefeller tree.
Erica Davies
Workers untangle strings wrapped around the tree as they prepare to put it into place.
Erica Davies
A gaggle of tourists snap photos of the tree as workers prepare to lift it into place.
The 94-foot spruce, which was cut down in Oneonta, New York on Thursday morning, is the second largest Rockefeller tree to date.
Erica Davies
Pockets of neon yellow could be seen near the tree's trunk as workers untangled strings in preparation to place the tree.
Erica Davies
Three men work on the trunk as spectators await the tree's placement.
Coralie Carlson
A crane lifts a 550-pound star to the top of the tree.
Bianca Rosembert
The star is placed on the Rockefeller tree on Nov. 16.
KATV
The tree has it's own paparazzi!
Bruce Beck
With the star up, the scaffolding comes down.
Coralie Carlson
The tree is heralded by glowing angels on Thanksgiving morning.
Getty Images
It may be 96 feet tall, but it is dwarfed by Rockefeller Center!
Coralie Carlson
The tree from above. Look at the ice rink below!
Coralie Carlson
The tree is up, the scaffolding is down, and we're ready to see what this tree looks like with all the twinkling lights!
The 84th annual holiday celebration will feature a 94-foot tall Norway spruce from Oneonta. The spruce is between 90 and 95 years old and weighs 14 tons. Approximately 50,000 lights on 5 miles of wire will adorn the tree and the Swarovski Star that sits atop the tree features energy-efficient LED bulbs.
After the tree is taken down, it will be milled into lumber for Habitat for Humanity.
The Rockefeller tree lights up for thousands of spectators.
Moments before the tree lights up.
And the countdown begins...
The tree lights up in front of 30 Rockefeller Plaza.
The tree lighting ceremony lit up an otherwise foggy night.
The tree in its full glory.
Thousands cheered and took photos.
NBC New York's general manager Eric Lerner was at the tree lighting, as were his son Ari, his daughter Kyra, and his wife Amy.
NBC New York anchor Chuck Scarborough and his wife, Ellen Ward Scarborough, on the red carpet.
NBC New York anchor Shiba Russell on the red carpet.
NBC New York's Katherine Creag, Shiba Russell, Michael George, Brynn Gingras, Checkey Beckford and Marc Santia pose for a memento shot.
NBC New York's Katherine Creag, Shiba Russell, Michael George, Brynn Gingras, Checkey Beckford and Marc Santia pose for a memento shot.
Brad Barket/Invision/AP
People watch as the Rockefeller Center tree is lit.
NBC New York's Janice Huff, Chris Glorioso and Pat Battle.
NBC New York's Checkey Beckford, Michael George, Brynn Gingras, Katherine Creag and Marc Santia on the red carpet.
NBC New York's Sarah Wallace.
NBC New York's Bruce Beck and the tree.
NBC New York's Dave Price and Natalie Pasquarella on the red carpet.
Chris Glorioso and Janice Huff.
NBC New York's Brynn Gingras, Katherine Creag and Pei-Sze Cheng.
NBC New York's Brynn Gingras and George to the Rescue's George Oliphant.
New York Live hosts Sara Gore and Joelle Garguilo.
Actor Laz Alonso on the red carpet.
The De Cecco family of De Cecco USA.
Geraldine Gately, Yolanda Askew, Marla Mudd, Nina Lloyd, Eric Wiener, Vicki Fabricant and Robin Borst.
NBC New York's tree lighting party.
NBC New York's tree lighting party.
Brad Barket/Invision/AP
People watch as the Rockefeller Center tree is lit .
Follow NBC 4 on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and Snapchat (NBCNewYork) for exclusive behind-the-scenes video and photos from the lighting ceremony.
Here are some historical facts about the Rockefeller Center Tree:
• 1931 – Construction workers building Rockefeller Center put up a Christmas tree, the first-ever Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree.
• 1933 - First formal Rockefeller Center Tree Lighting Ceremony. The tree was decked with 700 lights in front of the eight-month-old RCA Building.
• 1936 - Two trees, each 70 feet (21.3 m) 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 one 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.
• 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 - For the 50th Anniversary of Tree Lighting, a 70 foot-tall (21.3 m) 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, 100 feet tall (30.5 m), came from Killingworth, Conn.
• 2004 – The Swarovski-designed star became the largest star to ever grace the tree.
• 2007 – For the first time, the tree was lit with energy-efficient LEDs. They draw a fraction of the power that had been traditionally required by the tree, reducing energy consumption from 3,510 kwH to 1,297 kwH per day, saving as much energy as a single family would use in a month in a 2,000 square foot (185.8 m²) home. Hundreds of solar panels atop one of the Rockefeller Center buildings help power the new LEDs.
The Rockefeller Center Christmas tree crossed the George Washington Bridge on Friday night as it finishes the final leg of its journey ahead of a lighting ceremony on Nov. 30.
