Free previewStop 9 of Rockefeller Center Christmas Walk: The Tree, the Windows and Fifth Avenue
Kevin McCallister's Hotel, and the Real One
You've crossed from Bergdorf Goodman into Grand Army Plaza, the open square at the corner of Central Park. The fountain beside you, topped by a bronze goddess, is the Pulitzer Fountain. And the white château rising behind it is the Plaza Hotel. Look up past all that white brick to the mansard roof, and find the rounded corner turrets. This building was designed to look like a French château, dropped onto the corner of a park.
The architect Henry Janeway Hardenbergh finished it in 1907, replacing an earlier Plaza on the same spot. Its restaurants and ballrooms hosted balls, benefits, weddings and press conferences. But for a lot of people, the Plaza they picture at Christmas isn't any of that. It's the hotel where a 10-year-old boy checked himself in alone.
That's the opening. The rest plays at stop 9 of Rockefeller Center Christmas Walk: The Tree, the Windows and Fifth Avenue (2 min in all). Unlock the tour to hear it all, or try stop 1 free first.
