New Year’s Eve in New York 31-12-2024

Spending New Year’s Eve in New York is a dream for many. New York is famous for its parties and the New Year’s Eve ceremony on Times Square. Whether you’re young or a bit older, with friends or young kids, New York has something in store for everyone. Don’t want to stay in a bar or club all night? New York has many other options for celebrating the New Year, at Central Park for example, or on a boat tour!

Events for NYE 2024 are not available yet
Would you like to receive an email as soon as the events are available? Send me a message at eric@newyork.com.au and I’ll email you on the day the tickets go on sale.

New Year’s Eve Ball Drop on Times Square

The world-famous New Year’s Eve Ball Drop ceremony takes place every year on Times Square. Hundreds of thousands of people gather to watch a giant ball drop from the One Times Square building. As the ball lands at midnight, the crowd bursts into celebration. This looks amazing on TV but in reality the experience is not so impressive. First of all, as it is in the middle of the winter, it gets very cold in New York. To get a good spot, people must arrive there 12-18 hours prior to the event. Imagine standing in the harsh cold all day without any toilets available. That is a lot of trouble to go to for something that lasts for 10 seconds. There is no party afterwards (at 00:15 Times Square is empty because everyone goes looking for a bathroom), there are no fireworks on Times Square and it’s forbidden to drink alcohol on the streets. So my advice is to skip the ceremony.

New Year’s Eve Times Square Ball Drop Party

A normal ticket for a New Year’s Eve party in a New York bar or restaurant will cost between $250 and $500. The live Ball Drop can also be seen from some parties.

Best New Year’s Eve option: Boat Tours

The best way to have a good time on New Year’s Eve in New York is to take a boat tour. It won’t be a typical boat cruise but rather a New Year’s Eve party on a boat, overlooking Manhattan and watching the fireworks above the Hudson River at midnight while sipping champagne. There are different tours you can choose from on New Year’s Eve, some include dinner or a live DJ, while others are more luxurious. All of them include an open bar, champagne toast at midnight and a great time is guaranteed.

View all the available New Year’s Eve Boat Tours here

New Year’s Eve parties

New York always has a lively nightlife, imagine the craziness during New Year’s Eve! For anyone who wants to celebrate the New Year dancing, there are an abundance of parties to choose from. I made a personal selection and categorised them based on age/group type. If you are celebrating New Year’s Eve in New York without any plans, chances are you will plunge into the new year highly disappointed. You can’t just show up last minute; if you manage to get a ticket at all, you’ll end up paying double. The best thing to do is to make sure you secure your tickets as early as possible.

Take a look at my personal favourites on this site and book tickets directly

Central Park on New Year’s Eve

Families spending New Year’s Eve in New York should head to Central Park. Children of all ages can enjoy the celebrations there. Fireworks are launched at midnight from Bow Bridge-Cherry Hill, at the centre of Central Park (situated between 71st and 74th Streets), and they can be seen from most spots in Central Park.

New Year’s Eve Dinner

Most restaurants in New York close early on New Year’s Eve to get ready for their own party, especially the ones around Times Square. This makes it difficult to have an extensive dinner somewhere or to stay until midnight.

If you would like to have dinner later in the evening and celebrate New Year’s Eve there, you can book this New Year’s Eve Dinner Gala at Rockefeller Center.

What to expect on New Year’s Eve in New York?

Crowds. Since it’s one of the most popular times to visit The Big Apple, the city will be packed with people. Most shops, restaurants and attractions will be open as usual on the 31st of December although they close a little earlier than usual. Because Times Square begins to fill up and prepare for the Ball Drop around noon, attractions, stores and other activities in the area will not be open during the day. See here what is open on New Year’s Eve in New York.