Tonight marks the 85th Annual Lighting of the National Christmas Tree in the Nation's Capitol and traffic is going to be a mess. Street closures and parking restrictions will likely snarl tonight's rush hour traffic.
Street Closures:
Beginning at approx. 4:30 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 4, and in effect until the completion of the ceremonies, there will be no traffic allowed:
Parking Restrictions:
From 6 a.m. until 7 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 4, there will be no parking allowed on:
Street closings and related parking restrictions are subject to possible change without notice based upon prevailing conditions.
If You're Going
The official lighting will take place at 5 p.m. with gates opening for all ticket holders at 3:30 p.m. For security reasons, all guests must be in their seats by 4:30 p.m. If you do not have tickets already, you're out of luck. All 2,800 free tickets have been distributed.
What you can't bring:
Getting There:
Parking is not available near the White House and the use of public transportation is strongly encouraged. The closest Metro stops are Metro Center, Federal Triangle, and McPherson Square.
Performances:
This year's performances will offer a diverse selection of holiday music, including traditional songs, with dashes of Texas swing, Latin rhythms, and a little Motown.
Artists include one of country music's most promising young stars, Rissi Palmer; multiple Grammy winner Jon Secada; and popular Nashville singer/songwriter Phil Vassar. Washington-based dance troupe Step Afrika! will perform, and the U. S. Army Chorus's SFC Steve Cramer will appear as Santa Claus, rounding out the show will be 4-year-old singer Kaitlyn Maher, who came to national attention as one of the ten finalists in this year’s "America's Got Talent" competition.
For more information, please call the White House Visitor Center at 202-208-1631, or visit the National Park Service website at www.nps.gov/whho.
