By Harry Nara · Last updated
- Thanksgiving Day ParadeThursday 26 November 2026
- Bryant Park tree lighting, 5.30pmTuesday 1 December 2026
- Rockefeller Center tree lighting, 7 to 10pmWednesday 2 December 2026
- Bryant Park Holiday Shops closeSunday 3 January 2027
- Where
- Rockefeller Center
- Tickets
- Free
- Time of year
- November to December
- Dates
- Around the same dates every year
From Rockefeller Center and Bryant Park: the tree is on view until mid-January 2027, and the Bryant Park rink and Lodge stay open until 28 February 2027.
We may earn a small commission from bookings made through this link. Prices stay the same for you.
The New York holiday season runs from the Thanksgiving parade to New Year’s Day. Its two fixed points are the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree, lit in a televised ceremony the week after Thanksgiving and free to see into January, and Bryant Park’s Winter Village, with a free-admission rink and about 180 market stalls. The days just after the lighting are the best balance: everything is open and lit before the December crowds build.
What Christmas in New York actually is
The season opens with the Thanksgiving Day Parade and gathers pace the following week, when the Rockefeller Center tree, a Norway spruce of about 76 feet this year, is lit on the Wednesday in front of a live national broadcast. It stays up into the new year and is then milled into lumber for Habitat for Humanity.
Bryant Park, behind the New York Public Library, becomes the Bank of America Winter Village from late October: a 17,000-square-foot rink with free admission, a food hall and bar called The Lodge, and the Holiday Shops, a European-style market of about 180 stalls that closes in the first days of January.
Between the two sit the department-store windows on Fifth Avenue and the rest of Midtown at its most decorated, and nearly all of it costs nothing to see.
Where to watch Christmas in New York
- The Rockefeller Center tree. On Center Plaza between Fifth and Sixth Avenues and 49th and 50th Streets. Seeing it from the plaza is free; Top of the Rock sells holiday tickets from $49 with closer access and the view from 70 floors up.
- The Rink at Rockefeller Center. Below the tree, a New York tradition since 1936, with general skating from $22.
- Bryant Park. The free-admission rink opens from 8am to 10pm, until midnight in the peak weeks, and the Holiday Shops open daily until early January.
- The other tree lighting. This season Bryant Park lights its own tree the evening before the Rockefeller Center ceremony, a smaller occasion that is far easier to reach.
Tickets and what it costs
Most of the season is free: the tree, the windows, the markets and skating at Bryant Park, where only the skate rental costs money.
The paid extras are the Rockefeller Center rink, from $22 for general skating and $131 for a VIP session, Top of the Rock’s holiday tickets from $49, and private chalets and igloos beside the two rinks, booked by the session.
Official information and booking: www.rockefellercenter.com/holidays/rockefeller-center-christmas-tree
Getting there
The tree and Bryant Park are about ten minutes apart on foot in Midtown. For the tree, the B, D, F and M trains stop at 47–50 Sts–Rockefeller Center; for Bryant Park, the same lines stop at 42 St–Bryant Park and the 7 at Fifth Avenue.
On lighting night the plaza is packed hours ahead and the ceremony is a television production. Watching it on NBC and visiting the tree on a later evening is far easier.
Mistakes worth avoiding
Going on lighting night to see the tree
The crowd fills the streets for hours, and most of what happens is staged for television. Any evening afterwards shows the same tree.
Assuming every rink charges entry
Admission to the Bryant Park rink is free; you pay only to rent skates. Rockefeller Center’s smaller rink is the one with timed tickets.
Leaving the market until January
The Bryant Park Holiday Shops close in the first days of January, though the rink and The Lodge stay open to the end of February.
Other New York City events
Frequently asked questions
When is the Rockefeller Center tree lit?
On the Wednesday after Thanksgiving, in an evening ceremony broadcast live on NBC. This season’s date is in the card at the top of the page.
Is it free to see the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree?
Yes. Viewing it from the public areas of Rockefeller Center costs nothing; Top of the Rock sells paid holiday tickets with closer access.
How long is the Rockefeller Center tree up?
Into the new year. This season it stays on view until mid-January.
Is ice skating free at Bryant Park?
Admission to the rink is free. Skate rental and storage cost extra.
When do the Bryant Park holiday shops close?
In the first days of January. The rink and The Lodge stay open until the end of February.
Sources
- Rockefeller Center, the Christmas Tree (dates and FAQs)
- Rockefeller Center, the holidays and The Rink
- Bryant Park, Bank of America Winter Village
Dates on this page are checked against the organiser’s own listing and confirmed through 2027. Written and maintained by Harry Nara.