World’s Biggest Christmas Tree in Gubbio, Umbria

Rockefeller Center has nothing on this tree. The biggest Christmas tree in the world is, in fact, in Gubbio, Umbria.

But this is not any tree. No, this is not a tree at all. Gubbio’s Albero di Natale is a dazzling neon feat–and Guinness Book of World Records holder–that has been lighting up the hills of Umbria since 1981.

In order to get the tree ready for its annual December 7 lighting, local volunteers work for three months stringing lights and electrical equipment up the slope of Mount Ingino. Yes, that is the same mountain that Eugubini scale each May for the celebration of the Corsa dei Ceri.

Gubbio’s Christmas tree statistics are astounding:

• The surface area of the star is 1,000 square meters
• The length of the connecting cables is 8,500 meters
• The tree has more than 700 lights each of which requires 35 kilowatts of power to light
• The tree has a height of 650 meters.

If you’re in some parts of Umbria, such as Perugia or Umbertide, from December 7 until approximately January 10, you should be able to see the bright lights from Gubbio’s Christmas tree.

For more information on Gubbio and its record-setting tree, visit the Comune of Gubbio website.

Photo © Francesco Filippetti, Albero di Gubbio

Post first published on December 4, 2009