ADVERTISEMENT
Manila Bulletin devider Entertainment devider Araneta City lights up Christmas Tree

Araneta City lights up Christmas Tree

Published Nov 12, 2021 07:06 am

45402

The City of Firsts has officially signaled the beginning of its holiday celebration with the lighting of its iconic Giant Christmas Tree on Nov. 11.

Decked with dazzling lights, colorful ornaments, and glittering tinsels, the Giant Christmas Tree situated at the Times Square Food Park in Araneta City was lit up in a grand celebration attended by local government officials, senior company executives, celebrities, and patrons with the theme ‘Believe in the Magic of Christmas’.

“We made sure to light up our Giant Christmas Tree in time for 11.11, which tradition says is a special date when anything you wish for can come true. It’s also our way of welcoming the return of our guests to the City of Firsts now that quarantine restrictions are starting to loosen up a bit. Even though we’re now welcoming guests of all ages, we’re still making it a point that all of our customers are safe through the health and safety measures that we’ve put in place,” Marjorie Go, AVP for Marketing of Araneta Group, said.

45404

This year’s event highlights a mix of virtual and online celebrity performances and performances, with strict health and safety measures implemented onsite. A pre-show was also held virtually hosted by DJ Onse, and several lucky viewers got to take home some exciting prizes from the virtual games.

This year’s Giant Christmas Tree Lighting event was graced by Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte and prominent stars like Piolo Pascual, Maymay Entrata, AC Bonifacio, and Reiven Umali (Tawag ng Tanghalan 5 Champion). Also present were Ms. Intercontinental 2021 Cinderella Obeñita, Bb. Pilipinas International 2021 Hannah Arnold, Bb. Pilipinas Grand International 2021 Samantha Panlilio, Bb. Pilipinas 2021 First Runner-up Gabrielle Basiano, Bb. Pilipinas 2021 Second Runner-up Meiji Cruz, and Binibining Araneta City 2021 Francesca Taruc.

The lighting of Araneta City’s Giant Christmas Tree has been a fixture of every Filipino Christmas celebration for the past four decades. And as this year’s event carves a year-long milestone in the country, the Araneta Group made sure to celebrate the Giant Christmas Tree spectacle in a big way!

45405

As part of this year’s Christmas celebration, the Araneta Group organized the ‘40 Treats for 40’ program, wherein 40 individuals received special gifts from the company. These individuals are essential workers who worked tirelessly even at the height of the pandemic.

“Despite everything that is happening around us now, we still want all people to Believe in the Magic of Christmas. We in the Araneta Group would like to share this wonderful time with some very special people. We have chosen 40 hardworking essential workers in our community who have shown dedication to their service ever since the pandemic began," said Lorna Fabian, Vice President for Leasing of Araneta City.

Mrs. Judy Araneta-Roxas, Vice President of the Araneta Group, also extended an early Christmas greeting to everyone who attended the event and watched it unfold online. "Christmas is a magical time. It gives us restored joy and a reason to celebrate even in these trying times. Today, as we light our Giant Christmas tree, we wish everyone to experience the special magic of the holidays.”

A grand fireworks display concluded the event, and signaled the opening of the iconic Giant Christmas tree to the public.

Related Tags

Araneta City City of Firsts Araneta City Christmas Tree Lighting Event
ADVERTISEMENT
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1561_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1562_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1563_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}

{{ articles_filter_1564_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.mb-article-details { position: relative; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview, .mb-article-details .article-body-summary{ font-size: 17px; line-height: 30px; font-family: "Libre Caslon Text", serif; color: #000; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview iframe , .mb-article-details .article-body-summary iframe{ width: 100%; margin: auto; } .read-more-background { background: linear-gradient(180deg, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0) 13.75%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0.8) 30.79%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000) 72.5%); position: absolute; height: 200px; width: 100%; bottom: 0; display: flex; justify-content: center; align-items: center; padding: 0; } .read-more-background a{ color: #000; } .read-more-btn { padding: 17px 45px; font-family: Inter; font-weight: 700; font-size: 18px; line-height: 16px; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle; border: 1px solid black; background-color: white; } .hidden { display: none; }
function initializeAllSwipers() { // Get all hidden inputs with cms_article_id document.querySelectorAll('[id^="cms_article_id_"]').forEach(function (input) { const cmsArticleId = input.value; const articleSelector = '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .body_images'; const swiperElement = document.querySelector(articleSelector); if (swiperElement && !swiperElement.classList.contains('swiper-initialized')) { new Swiper(articleSelector, { loop: true, pagination: false, navigation: { nextEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-next', prevEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-prev', }, }); } }); } setTimeout(initializeAllSwipers, 3000); const intersectionObserver = new IntersectionObserver( (entries) => { entries.forEach((entry) => { if (entry.isIntersecting) { const newUrl = entry.target.getAttribute("data-url"); if (newUrl) { history.pushState(null, null, newUrl); let article = entry.target; // Extract metadata const author = article.querySelector('.author-section').textContent.replace('By', '').trim(); const section = article.querySelector('.section-info ').textContent.replace(' ', ' '); const title = article.querySelector('.article-title h1').textContent; // Parse URL for Chartbeat path format const parsedUrl = new URL(newUrl, window.location.origin); const cleanUrl = parsedUrl.host + parsedUrl.pathname; // Update Chartbeat configuration if (typeof window._sf_async_config !== 'undefined') { window._sf_async_config.path = cleanUrl; window._sf_async_config.sections = section; window._sf_async_config.authors = author; } // Track virtual page view with Chartbeat if (typeof pSUPERFLY !== 'undefined' && typeof pSUPERFLY.virtualPage === 'function') { try { pSUPERFLY.virtualPage({ path: cleanUrl, title: title, sections: section, authors: author }); } catch (error) { console.error('ping error', error); } } // Optional: Update document title if (title && title !== document.title) { document.title = title; } } } }); }, { threshold: 0.1 } ); function showArticleBody(button) { const article = button.closest("article"); const summary = article.querySelector(".article-body-summary"); const body = article.querySelector(".article-body-preview"); const readMoreSection = article.querySelector(".read-more-background"); // Hide summary and read-more section summary.style.display = "none"; readMoreSection.style.display = "none"; // Show the full article body body.classList.remove("hidden"); } document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", () => { let loadCount = 0; // Track how many times articles are loaded const offset = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10]; // Offset values const currentUrl = window.location.pathname.substring(1); let isLoading = false; // Prevent multiple calls if (!currentUrl) { console.log("Current URL is invalid."); return; } const sentinel = document.getElementById("load-more-sentinel"); if (!sentinel) { console.log("Sentinel element not found."); return; } function isSentinelVisible() { const rect = sentinel.getBoundingClientRect(); return ( rect.top < window.innerHeight && rect.bottom >= 0 ); } function onScroll() { if (isLoading) return; if (isSentinelVisible()) { if (loadCount >= offset.length) { console.log("Maximum load attempts reached."); window.removeEventListener("scroll", onScroll); return; } isLoading = true; const currentOffset = offset[loadCount]; window.loadMoreItems().then(() => { let article = document.querySelector('#widget_1690 > div:nth-last-of-type(2) article'); intersectionObserver.observe(article) loadCount++; }).catch(error => { console.error("Error loading more items:", error); }).finally(() => { isLoading = false; }); } } window.addEventListener("scroll", onScroll); });
Join Our Newsletters

Sign up by email to receive news.

© 2025 Manila Bulletin The Nation's Leading Newspaper. All Rights Reserved.