9 Places to See Stunning Christmas Trees Around DC

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas! Dress to impress in your favorite holiday attire for an evening out at an upscale hotel, neighborhood eatery, or plaza to snap a photo near one of these towering beauties.

Riggs

This season, the paint and wallpaper company Farrow & Ball and fashion designer Christopher John Rogers collaborated on the Riggs’s luxurious holiday tree. The Penn Quarter hotel’s 18-foot tree is adorned with geometric wallpaper prints and colorful oversized holiday bows made from hand-painted paper strips. If you look closely, you’ll spot blue lobster, pink shallots, and silvery sardine ornaments—a nod to some of Farrow & Ball’s paint names.

Union Station

Since 1996, Norway and the US have honored their strong friendship with the lighting of a Norwegian Christmas tree. The lofty conifer graces the train station’s Main Hall, with garland adorned with mini flags commemorating both Norway and the United States. On December 17-19, spectators can shop for presents at the Union Station Holiday Market and listen to live musical performances.

US Capitol

The US Capitol is known for displaying some of the area’s largest decorative trunks. For 60 years, the Forest Service has continued a tradition of supplying the legislative building with a tree from a different state. This year’s enormous 80-foot-tall sitka spruce tree hails from Alaska’s Tongass National Forest. You can view the red, blue, and green People’s Tree shining on the West Lawn until the New Year.

National Christmas Tree

Embrace the season’s cheer on the Ellipse in President’s Park, transformed into an illuminated wonderland lined with holiday trees. From sunset to 10 PM Sunday through Thursday, and until 11 PM on Friday and Saturday, visitors can explore 58 decorated trees—each representing a state or territory—along the Pathway of Peace that encircles a 35-foot red spruce from the George Washington and Jefferson National forests in Virginia. The ornaments are one-of-a-kind—they’re designed by students from each state and territory.

Canadian Embassy

This year’s holiday tree from Canada can be spotted in the open rotunda of the Canadian Embassy. The Nova Scotia pine is decked out in glossy red, silver, and gold ornaments.

Willard InterContinental

Luxe decor and glamorous trees line the halls of DC’s Willard InterContinental. Hotel. The main tree in the center of the lobby features cream and gold ornaments, holiday bells, and glittery gift boxes.

CityCenterDC

This year marks CityCenterDC’s 11th annual tree lighting. The plaza is illuminated with white lights, two 25-foot reindeer, and the main attraction: a colossal 75-foot evergreen sapling.

Floriana

This Italian restaurant in the Dupont Circle neighborhood has again commissioned local designer and bar owner Dito Sevilla to style its holiday tree. This year’s fashion-forward creation is inspired by all things Italian, including actress Sofia Loren, and the “Mona Lisa.” Nearby, Sevilla’s preppy Jennifer Coolidge-themed tree at The Little Gay Pub is also photo-worthy.

The Wharf

While you’re visiting the Wharf for s’mores, ice skating, or shopping at the Christmas Tree Market, you can capture photos of two decorated holiday trees. One is a nautical-themed 45-foot-tall spruce on District Pier. The other, in Blair Circle, is a “tree” built with more than 100 Jack Daniel’s whiskey barrels from Tennessee.

Briana Thomas

Briana A. Thomas is a local journalist, historian, and tour guide who specializes in the research of D.C. history and culture. She is the author of the Black history book, Black Broadway in Washington, D.C., a story that was first published in Washingtonian in 2016.