The Christmas tree is now ready and waiting on the Mound

This year’s Christmas tree is already in place looking over Princes Street Gardens from its vantage point on The Mound.

The 2.3 tonne Sitka Spruce, sourced from a forest in Lennoxtown, required the generous support of Bernard Hunter Cranes who hoisted it into place above the Mound on Saturday.

The tree stands over 60 feet tall and is now being decorated with 3,000 fairy lights by Field and Lawn, which will start sparkling when it is switched on during Edinburgh’s Christmas Light Night on 19 November.

Edinburgh’s Lord Provost, Frank Ross said: “Edinburgh’s famous Christmas tree is a fixture on the Mound every winter.

“While the tree has been grown in Scotland, it is gifted to the city by Hordaland County Council to mark the assistance provided by the Scots to Norway during WWII. Upon the fall of Norway in 1940, more than 7,000 exiles were based in Scotland as the Norwegian Brigade, fighting to free their country. The help and support they received from the Scots has never been forgotten.

“This year’s tree towers slightly taller than last year’s at 60-foot and I am delighted that a delegation from Hordaland, including the County Convener, will celebrate lighting our 31st tree atop the Mound.”

The tree will be lit during Light Night which takes place on 19 November 2017 from 3pm across the city centre, principally on George Street.

You can watch it being hoisted into place here.