The holiday season is well underway, and NYC loves to celebrate this amazing time of year with special events, beautiful store decorations, gift fairs, and museum exhibitions. One of the Big Apple’s most iconic holiday experiences has been the Rockefeller Center Tree Lighting Ceremony, and last week I was lucky to be invited to stand right under the tree when this took place. Yes it was raining buckets, but who cares? This more than 80 year-old annual ceremony has always been high on my bucket list, and I was thrilled to attend.

According to Rockefeller Center, even before the first formal tree went up, workers lined up beneath a Christmas tree on the Rockefeller Plaza construction site to collect their paychecks during the height of the Great Depression.

 Before this year’s event, I met up with Kim Klein and Sean Altberger of NYC & Company as well as journalists from National Geographic and the London Telegraph at the Mediterranean inspired, Fig & Olive. This was a lovely restaurant that served creative appetizers and as well a delicious paella.

After dinner, we discovered that thousands of people were already crowding the sidewalks to witness the ceremony, and security was very tight.  So our group needed to take a circuitous route to get to our final destination at Rockefeller Plaza, between West 48th and West 51st Streets and Fifth and Sixth Avenues.

Luckily our badges permitted us to take a small short cut through Rockefeller Center.

And there it was right outside the doors of the building!

This year’s 95 year-old Norway spruce came from Oneonta, NY and, at 94 feet, it is the second tallest Christmas tree that Rockefeller Center has ever had. The tallest is said to have stood 100-feet tall and  it came from Killington, Connecticut in 1999.

During the two hour ceremony Matt Lauer, Savannah Guthrie, Al Roker and Hoda Kotb hosted the show with Al and Hoda braving the rain right next to us.

There were many celebrity performances including those from Tony Bennett, Sara McLachlan, Dolly Parton, Neil Diamond, Josh Groban, Tori Kelly, Jordan Smith, Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood, and the Radio City Rockettes.

Tree Donated After Holidays. Rockefeller Center says that, for the tenth consecutive year, the 2016 Christmas Tree will be donated to Habitat for Humanity. Once the holidays have passed and crowds have dispersed, the tree comes down and is milled, treated and made into lumber that is used for home building.

Great experience! Go see the tree if you’re in the NYC area. It will remain lit and can be viewed until 9pm on January 7, 2017.

LOCATION: 30 Rockefeller Plaza between West 48th and West 51st Streets and Fifth and Sixth Avenues.

Cost: Free

Visiting Hours:Daily 5:30 am-11:30 pm until 9pm on January 7, 2017

For more info on NYC holiday events click HERE.