Skylift Opens at Rockefeller Center’s Top of The Rock

Skylift at Top of the Rock, a new attraction atop 30 Rockefeller Plaza, has opened, elevating visitors nearly 900 feet in the air above street level for a spectacular, entirely unobstructed, 360-degree view of New York City. The design team for the Skylift included owner Tishman Speyer Properties, architect Richard J. DeMarco, AIA, principal of MADGI, and experiential designer THG Creative.

Situated at the Top of the Rock Observation Deck on the 70th floor of 30 Rock, visitors step onto Skylift’s open-air, revolving platform and ascend an additional three stories above the building’s topmost floor. Once elevated, the platform turns for a 360-degree experience and a panoramic photo moment, creating a sensation of floating among skyscrapers.

“Rockefeller Center is full of amazing experiences, but none quite as breathtaking as Skylift,” said EB Kelly, senior managing director at Tishman Speyer and Head of Rockefeller Center. “Skylift is the crown jewel of our revitalization of Rockefeller Center, which has brought a new vibrancy and energy to every corner of campus.”

Designed to parallel and celebrate Rockefeller Center’s classic Art Deco architecture, Skylift’s circular, open-air, steel platform with glass insert panels and marble-like tiers echo the iconic design motifs found throughout the Center. Skylift features 96 LED pixel flutes, which cast a dramatic light show seen across the city skyline and can be customized to commemorate notable dates and holidays.

“As the architect for this project, we worked closely with Tishman Speyer and THG Creative to create an unforgettable experience for both visitors and New Yorkers alike, allowing them to enjoy breathtaking, never before seen, unobstructed 360-degree views of New York City,” DeMarco said. “Four-tiered and 12 feet in diameter, the Skylift’s wedding cake-like base telescopes up, with each tier featuring a striking LED light show.”

Skylift is the last element of the full modernization of Top of the Rock, which also recently brought The Beam, an interactive attraction and photo experience on the 69th floor of 30 Rockefeller Plaza that recreates the famous 1932 photograph “Lunch Atop a Skyscraper.” In summer 2024,  the Welcome Gallery also opened to the public, featuring an immersive theater show that introduces the history of Rockefeller Center. Architect Richard J. DeMarco, AIA, principal of MADGI, and experiential designer THG Creative also designed the Beam and the Welcome Gallery.

The opening of Skylift also marks the completion of Rockefeller Center’s multi-year, campus-wide revitalization. This transformation includes new fine dining via the acclaimed restaurants Jupiter, Le Rock and Naro, a new generation of shopping destinations including N. Peal, Todd Snyder, Rough Trade and McNally Jackson;and continued dedication to the public art program with contemporary and international works from artists like Basil Kincaid, Melissa Joseph and Dominique Fung.

One floor below Skylift, guests enjoy another new rooftop experience, The Beam, which recreates the iconic 1932 “Lunch Atop a Skyscraper” photo depicting 11 ironworkers perched on a steel beam while 30 Rockefeller Plaza was under construction. Today, visitors are strapped into their seats on a recreated beam located on the 69th floor of 30 Rockefeller Plaza and lifted 12 feet above the observation deck platform. The Beam then rotates 180 degrees, providing spectacular views of the Big Apple, including Central Park, the Hudson River and the skyscrapers of Midtown and upper Manhattan.

Source: Mann Report / Photo Credit: Diane Bondareff, AP Images for Tishman Speyer