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New Year’s Eve fireworks in NYC
Check out the best New Year’s Eve fireworks NYC has to offer and ring in 2020 with a bang (literally)
As the clock strikes midnight on December 31 and neon bursts of light boom overhead, you'll want to have the perfect view. Whether it's with friends crossing the Brooklyn Bridge, suffering in Times Square with family, or bundling up with your boo in some of the best NYC Parks and New York attractions like Prospect Park, we have recommendations on where to watch this year’s awesome display of pyrotechnics.
RECOMMENDED: See the full guide to New Year's Eve in NYC
New Year’s Eve fireworks in NYC
1. New Year's Eve in Times Square
If you feel like braving the crowds, standing for hours and holding your pee, the Times Square fireworks are an option. Since 1907, a sparkly sphere has been lowered there and has become an item on many people's bucket lists. You'll need to arrive by 3pm (earlier if the weather is nice) to stake out a spot in the Broadway–Seventh Avenue bowtie, and be prepared to stay put because there are no restrooms or food vendors to keep you satisfied. It's the best kind of holiday masochism, and your endurance may be rewarded with performances held across two stages, beginning at 6pm. A burst of pyrotechnics from One Times Square, every hour on the hour through 11pm, should whet the appetite for the ball drop at a minute to midnight.
2. NYRR Midnight Run
Run as if 2019 were chasing you (and truly, can you imagine a scarier horror concept?) at New York Road Runners’ annual four-mile Midnight Run, which provides credit to finishers toward the New York City Marathon. NYRR will throw a party beforehand, starting at 10pm. At midnight, start your trek with hundreds of other festive joggers, and take in the gorgeous fireworks display. (Trust us: It’s a hell of a lot healthier than binge drinking and hooking up with a rando.) Be sure to register online before the big date.
3. New York City New Year's Eve Circle Line Cruise
Get unparalleled views of fireworks from Brooklyn and Manhattan on this New Year's Eve cruise on the Hudson River. Boogie to tunes spun by the DJ as you sip drinks from the open bar and welcome the new year with an included champagne toast.
Want to watch New Year’s Eve fireworks from a rooftop bar?
The 16 best NYC rooftop bars open during the winter
One of the greatest perks of Gotham living is the plethora of towering rooftop bars in NYC from which to soak up sweeping views alongside boozy sips.