First thing that comes into everyone's mind when they think about Christmas (besides the Christmas list, of course) is probably the Christmas tree. The shiny, glowing tree that gets everyone into the spirit of the holidays, is usualy decorated on Christmas Eve.
But ever since 1933, New York gatthers the Americans for the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony, at the beginning of December. Because, why not get into the spirit of Christmas earlyer?

The lighting of this famous giant Christmas tree will be televised from coast-to-coast, kicking off the holiday season at Rockefeller Center and features musical performances from a variety of popular artists. Typically, the Radio City Rockettes perform and there are also ice skaters performing in the Rockefeller Ice Rink.
The lighting occurs at approximately 8:50p. The entire area gets extremely crowded, so come early if you want to see anything. If you miss it, the tree is lit every night through December.

The Christmas tree that adorns Rockefeller Center is typically a Norway Spruce. The minimum requirement is that the tree be 65 feet tall and 35 feet wide, however manager of Rockefeller Center gardens prefers the tree be between 75 and 90 feet tall and proportionally wide. Norway Spruce that grow in forests don't typically reach these proportions, so the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree tends to be one that was ornamentally planted in someone's front or back yard. There is no compensation offered in exchange for the tree, other than the pride of having donated the tree that appears in Rockefeller Center.

Over five miles of lights are used to decorate the tree every year. Only the lights and the star decorate the tree. The tree is recycled and the 3 tons of mulch are donated to the Boy Scouts. The largest portion of the trunk is donated to the U.S. Equestrian team in New Jersey to use as an obstacle jump.

The Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree is typically illuminated from 5:30 a.m. until 11:30 p.m. daily, except on Christmas and New Year's Eve. On Christmas, the tree is illuminated for 24 hours and on New Year's Eve the lights are turned off at 9:00 p.m.