Rockefeller Center’s Christmas tree will officially light up at around 10 p.m. on Wednesday, December 3rd, with the pre-lighting show starting at 7 p.m. This iconic festive moment will once again take center stage in America. The giant spruce tree is adorned with over 50,000 LED lights, with a total length of electrical wiring measuring nearly five miles. From December 4th, it will be lit daily from 5 a.m. until midnight; it will remain lit all day on Christmas Eve and until 9 p.m. on New Year’s Eve, with the exhibition running until mid-January next year.
During the approximately six-week display period, the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree is estimated to attract 125 million visitors, making the surrounding area of Midtown Manhattan a global focal point for holiday celebrations every year.
As the holiday sightseeing rush intensifies, the crowd pressure in Midtown Manhattan is once again evident. The latest global congested attractions survey shows that the Rockefeller Center ice skating rink, located under the Christmas tree, was rated as the most crowded tourist attraction in the world during last year’s holiday season. In TripAdvisor reviews, as many as 41% of visitors mentioned long queues, overcrowding, or on-site chaos, far surpassing other international attractions.
In the global rankings, London’s Winter Wonderland in Hyde Park came in second with 37% of congested-related comments; while the Christmas market in Nuremberg, Germany, followed closely in third place with 34% of complaints about crowd congestion.
The New York Post reported that a study based on visitor comments from November last year to January this year, released by eSIM service provider Holafly, suggested that the narrow layout of the ice skating rink and the continuous gathering of onlookers increased the pressure on those experiencing it. Although New Yorkers often complain about the holiday sightseeing crowd filling up Midtown Manhattan, criticism from out-of-town visitors about the city’s congestion is still quite sensitive. However, the Rockefeller Ice Skating Rink is the only American attraction included in this list.