Haul out the holly! Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree arrives in New York City

NEW YORK -- The Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree arrived successful New York City connected Saturday, signaling the commencement of the vacation play successful the Big Apple.

The 74-foot Norway spruce was driven into Manhattan's Center Plaza, wherever it was hoisted successful spot by a crane. It volition instrumentality 5 miles (about 8 kilometers) of airy strands with much than 50,000 multicolored LED bulbs to wrapper the tree, whose diameter measures 43 feet (13 meters). A Swarovski prima crown sparkling with 3 cardinal crystals volition apical it.

The towering conifer, donated by the Albert household successful West Stockbridge, Massachusetts, was chopped down Thursday greeting and loaded onto a flatbed motortruck for the 140-mile (225-kilometer) trip. It is the archetypal Rockefeller Center Christmas histrion to travel from Massachusetts since 1959.

It was met successful New York City by smiling crowds who held cellphones aloft from down barriers arsenic crews attached cables to the elephantine tree, pounded a involvement into its basal and guided it into place.

"The crowds were large today. They were 1 of the biggest crowds I've ever seen that travel to a histrion raising," said Erik Pauze, the caput gardener astatine Rockefeller Center, who wore a candy cane-striped hard hat.

He archetypal spotted the histrion successful 2020 portion successful hunt of different tree. Once successful its caller home, the adjustments began to get it acceptable for the elaborate tree-trimming to come.

"We stood it up, and present we're going to little immoderate of the branches down by hand, due to the fact that they're truthful dense and truthful large that we person to little them down by hand," Pauze said.

The lighting ceremonial is Dec. 4.

When the histrion is taken down successful January, it volition beryllium milled into lumber for Habitat for Humanity.