1. Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree
The most celebrated of Christmas trees, the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree is a classic New York City destination for holiday visitors and residents alike.
Tree Goes Up: November 2012
Lighting Ceremony: November 28, 2012
Tree Taken Down: January 7, 2013
Address: from 47th to 51st Sts. between 5th & 6th Avenues (Map)
Phone: 212-332-6868
2. Origami Christmas Tree at AMNH
For over 30 years the American Museum of Natural History has celebrated the holiday season with its origami tree, this year decorated with the theme of the "Museum's Collections" featuring origami inspired by the museum's permanent and temporary exhibitions. They also have 2 19-foot Holiday Barosaurs lit up for viewing as well.
Tree Viewing Begins: November 19, 2012
Tree Comes Down: January 6, 2013
Address: Central Park West at 79th Street
Phone: 212-875-5456
3. Christmas Tree at the Met
Metropolitan Museum of Art
The Metropolitan Museum of Art will display its Christmas Tree and Neapolitan Baroque Creche. The twenty-foot blue spruce features 18th-century Neapolitan angels and cherubs flanking the Nativity scene at its base in the Museum's Medieval Sculpture Hall. Lighting ceremonies are held Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays at 4:30 p.m., and Fridays and Saturdays at 4:30, 5:30, and 6:30 p.m. The museum will be open on both Christmas Eve (December 24) and New Year's Eve (December 31) with lighting ceremonies at 4:30 p.m.
Tree Up: November 20, 2012
Tree Down: January 6, 2013
Address: 1000 Fifth Avenue at 82nd Street
Phone: 212-535-7710
More: Visitors Guide to the Christmas Tree at the Met
4. "The Great Gatsby" Holiday Tree
Tree Lighting: November 26, 2012 at 5 p.m.
Address: Fifth Avenue at Central Park South
5. Tree at Citi Pond in Bryant Park
The Holiday Tree at Bryant Park is a 55' tall Norway Spruce decorated in over 30,000 LED lights and 3,000 custom ornaments. The annual tree lighting ceremony features musical and skating performances, and visitors can enjoy free ice skating at Citi Pond, as well as holiday shopping.Tree Lighting: November 27, 2012 from 6:30-8 p.m.
Address: Bryant Park near 6th Avenue between 40th and 42nd Streets
6. NYSE Christmas Tree
NYSE
The NYSE Christmas Tree has been a Downtown New York tradition since 1923. The tree is located on Broad Street between Wall Street and Exchange Place in front of the NYSE. The official lighting ceremony will take place on December 4, 2012 at 5:15 p.m. with live performances from 3-5 p.m. by trumpeter Gabriel Johnson, Rock Star Madness Band, vocalist Elle Winter, Gotham Rock Choir, and Rosie’s Theater Kids. From 12-5 p.m. on the day of the lighting there will be free hot cocoa and caroling along Broad Street.
7. Cathedral of St. John the Divine Peace Tree
The Peace Tree in the Cathedral is decorated with 1000 paper cranes and other peace symbols. Children can participate in a workshop to learn to make the cranes, and there is also a walking tour of the Cathedral that highlights the pre-Christian origins of Christmas, as well as the ways the Cathedral celebrates the holidays.Lighting Ceremony: early December
Tree Taken Down: just after Christmas
Address: 110th St. and Amsterdam Ave.
Phone: 212-316-7490
8. Park Avenue Trees
Anyone driving or walking on the Upper East Side should take a detour to view the 2.5 mile long stretch of Park Avenue that is illuminated by trees during the Holiday season.Address: Park Avenue from 97th Street to 48th Street
9. Lincoln Square Christmas Tree
The 13th Annual Winter's Eve Festival at Lincoln Square starts with a tree lighting in Dante Park, with festivities running along Broadway from Columbus Circle to 68th Street.Lighting Ceremony: November 26, 2012 at 5 p.m.
Address: 63rd St. & Broadway
