Discover New York at Christmas

Coming to New York at any time of the year, visitors will have unforgettable experiences. But the most impressive is probably the Christmas season - when the whole city is lit up by the sparkling lights of millions of decorative bulbs, and cheerful music plays throughout the streets.

Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree - symbol of New York Christmas season.

“Capital of the world”

New York is considered the “capital of the world” because it is the most linguistically diverse city in the world with up to 800 languages spoken, with an immigrant rate of 42% of the total 7.6 million people (2024).

Coming to New York, visitors can not only explore historical architectural works interwoven with skyscrapers, but also immerse themselves in the vibrant and colorful life of neighborhoods with characteristics of many countries. That is the Financial District - home to the New York Stock Exchange and the Charging Bull statue that has become a symbol of Wall Street; Chinatown, located not far from City Hall, where visitors can enjoy the best dimsum at Chinese restaurants. Next to it is Little Italy - a miniature Italy, where Italian restaurants with famous dishes contribute to diversifying the culinary style of this city.

New York has many famous attractions that cannot be missed such as Times Square - the "heart" of the "city that never sleeps", where the world-famous New Year's celebration takes place every year. The Theatre District is home to Broadway - the dream destination for musical lovers and more than 40 professional theaters, making this district the world's leading performance center. Central Park is an 840-acre urban oasis and is the most filmed location in the world.

The Empire State Building is the 45th tallest building in the world and is considered an economic and cultural symbol of New York City. This 102-story skyscraper has appeared in 250 films and television shows. More than just an office building, the Empire State is also an “observatory” with the best view of Manhattan.

And the most anticipated destination in New York is the Statue of Liberty, located in the harbor off the coast of Manhattan. This 93m tall bronze statue was inaugurated in 1886 and was recognized by UNESCO as a World Cultural Heritage in 1984. Visitors can admire the statue for free when taking the Staten Island Ferry, but if they want to climb to the top of the crown, visitors must buy tickets months in advance and must go through strict security before boarding.

Enjoy a warm Christmas

When visiting New York at the end of the year, tourists cannot miss the opportunity to visit the central district of Manhattan - where the most anticipated event of the year takes place, the Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony at Rockefeller Center, which takes place annually in early December, opening the bustling days of welcoming Christmas and New Year in Times Square.

The tradition of putting up a Christmas tree at Rockefeller Center began in December 1931, during the Great Depression. According to many documents, workers, mainly Italian immigrants, pooled their money to buy a small tree to plant here. The Rockefeller Center Christmas tree has become a symbolic image of New York during Christmas and New Year. Not only enjoying delicious food together in restaurants, shopping at traditional Christmas markets, people also take the opportunity to skate at The Rink - a famous ice skating rink built underground, with a romantic setting right below the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree.

Legend has it that the rink was inspired by a Depression-era ice skate salesman who demonstrated his products by skating on the frozen surface of the Rockefeller Center fountain. This idea was realized with the construction of The Rink in 1936, which included the functions of an ice rink and an underground luxury shopping center. With the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree and the famous Prometheus statue as a backdrop, many people come here to skate and capture memorable moments.

For 91 years, the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree has been a symbol of Christmas in New York City. Each year, a tree is chosen that is beautiful and fits the space of Rockefeller Center Square. In 2024, the chosen Christmas tree is a Norwegian spruce from West Stockbridge, Massachusetts. The 70-year-old spruce is 22.5 meters tall, weighs 11 tons, and is decorated with more than 50,000 multi-colored LED lights and a Swarovski crystal star weighing more than 400 kg, consisting of 70 glass spikes, covered with 3 million crystals, making its brightness so strong that it can "turn night into day".

The traditional Christmas tree lighting ceremony took place on December 4, 2024, and the tree will be lit every day from 5:00 a.m. to midnight until mid-January 2025. In addition to bringing warm, sparkling moments to residents and visitors, the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree also has a humanitarian "mission": when the holiday season ends, people will cut the tree into logs to donate to Habitat for Humanity to help families in difficult circumstances build houses. This tradition has been maintained since 2007 with the meaning of a symbol of hope - the core spirit of Christmas.

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