ATLANTA -- The biggest star of the night will be the Great Tree itself! According to tradition, the best great trees are solitary white pines – and independent white pine that grows straighter and fuller than ones surrounded by other vegetation. This eyar’s towering beauty has a décor package consisting of 125 red Macy’s stars and 125 snowflakes complimented with the traditional metallic balls and illuminated spheres.

Depending of the weather, it takes a crew of eight people working for 2-3 weeks to decorate the Great Tree. Decorations include: 1,200 multi-color metallic basketball-sized ornaments, 50 flashing strobe lights, 400 internally lit ornaments, 4,000 11-watt bulbs all topped off with a spectacular internally lit LED color-changing Macy’s star. At the centerpiece of the stellar topper – is a star with a ring of 50 crystal faceted star strobes encircling the star.

The Lighting of the Great Tree, an Atlanta tradition since 1948, began as a holiday gift from Rich’s to the people of Atlanta. Since that time, the event continues to be a Thanksgiving Day tradition for thousands of Georgia’s families. Over the years, the holiday event has captured the cover of TIME Magazine, has been included in national television specials like HGTV’s Christmas Across America, and has received international exposure on CNN. Millions of viewers across the United States have enjoyed this Atlanta holiday tradition as a result of its national syndication.