White House Holiday Festivities Begin as Tours Resume Despite Major Ballroom Construction

Holiday celebrations are kicking off at the White House even as construction continues on President Donald Trump’s new East Wing ballroom. Public tours, halted in September during the demolition phase, will resume on December 2 with a rerouted path that avoids debris and skips several historic rooms. First lady Melania Trump launches the season by welcoming the official Christmas tree — a concolor fir from Korson’s Tree Farms in Michigan — arriving by Clydesdale-drawn carriage for its placement in the Blue Room. President Trump will also continue the annual tradition of pardoning two North Carolina turkeys, Gobble and Waddle, before the family heads to Palm Beach for Thanksgiving. At the same time, volunteers transform the White House into a winter display. Melania Trump’s office says each room’s décor is being curated under her direction, though a formal theme has not yet been announced; a preview video hinted at gold and gilded designs. Due to construction, visitors will access only the main floor, including Cross Hall and the East, Green, Blue, Red, and State Dining Rooms, with the ground-floor Library, Vermeil Room, China Room, and Diplomatic Reception Room closed. Some of these spaces now house staff displaced by the demolition of the East Wing. The truncated tour comes as the first lady balances tradition with past controversies, including leaked 2018 recordings in which she vented about the pressures of holiday duties amid political criticism. #WhiteHouse #MelaniaTrump #HolidayTour #ChristmasAtTheWhiteHouse #TrumpAdministration #WhiteHouseConstruction #BlueRoom #WashingtonDC