Rockefeller Center’s 2026 Christmas Tree Begins Its Journey to Manhattan

In the quiet fields of West Edmeston, New York, crews lifted a towering 76‑foot Norway spruce onto a flat‑bed truck Thursday afternoon. The tree, already about 75 years old, is the centerpiece for this year’s Rockefeller Center holiday display.

It wasn’t just any spruce – it measures roughly 50 feet across at its base, a reminder that nature can still surprise us with sheer size. A massive crane, humming and squeaking as it worked, hoisted the tree with the care of a surgeon, then set it onto the trailer for a 200‑mile trek to Manhattan.

Drivers and helpers will escort the giant conifer across upstate New York, aiming to roll into Rockefeller Plaza on Saturday. Once in place, the tree will be draped in more than 50,000 multicolored LED lights, the kind that twinkle like a thousand fireflies on a winter night.

And of course, no Rockefeller tree would be complete without its famous crown: a sparkling 900‑pound Swarovski star that will perch atop the spruce, catching the city’s holiday glow.

The official lighting is set for Dec. 2, broadcast live and watched by millions. It’s a ritual that dates back to 1931, when construction workers first strung a modest fir with handmade garlands, and to the first formal ceremony in 1933.

After the festivities, the tree won’t just be discarded. On Jan. 9, it will be milled into lumber and donated to Habitat for Humanity, helping families build homes – a fitting end for a symbol of giving.

So, while the lights will dazzle New Yorkers for weeks, the real story is one of tradition, community, and a spruce that travels from a small Upstate yard to the heart of the city, only to give back again.