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Viewing “pods” and a virtual queueing system are among a list of COVID-19 safety precautions longer than “The Twelve Days of Christmas” that New York City expects visitors to abide by if they want to see the Rockefeller Center tree — for a whole five minutes.
Wednesday night’s nationally televised lighting will be off-limits for lookie-loos altogether, but those in search of some holiday spirit won’t get much more tree time when visits start Thursday.
All visitors will be required to wear masks, and social-distancing of six feet will be enforced, according to the lengthy directive issued Tuesday by City Hall amid a spike in coronavirus cases.
Through a virtual queueing system — think the futuristic version of waiting in a butcher shop to buy your Christmas ham — visitors can scan a QR code on their smartphones to receive an estimated wait time and a text message when their appointment is up.
Visitors will then be directed to a designated, socially distanced “pod” from which to take in the tannenbaum, a 75-foot-tall Norway spruce sourced from upstate Oneonta.
But if you’re part of a group of more than four for the fir, someone will be left without any room at the inn, er, pod. Parties of five-plus people will be divided across multiple pods to limit crowding.
After all that, visitors will be permitted five minutes’ worth of Christmas cheer before being sent on their merry ways.
The holiday dos and don’ts came as Mayor Bill de Blasio — echoing what Midtown Scrooges have said for years — has voiced his Christmas wish that the throngs stay away.
“Next year, I look forward to so many of our traditions coming back so we can be there in person and enjoy them the way we always have, and that we cherish,” said Hizzoner during a Monday briefing. “But let’s stay safe this year, so everyone can get through to next year and enjoy those traditions together.”
Additional reporting by Nolan Hicks
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