How to Spend New Years’ Eve at Times Square

On December 31, 2005, we stood in streets of downtown Manhattan with millions of other people, counting down to 2006, watching the famous ball making its descent. When the lights of the ball went out and the top of the building flashed 2006, we all screamed and cheered. Unlike millions of the people standing on that street, my friends and I were warm and had full stomachs. You too can do the Times Square celebration without freezing your butt off. Let me explain how.

First of all, I think I should explain what is necessary to spend New Years’ Eve in Times Square. The day before New Years’ Eve, we had a discussion with one of New York’s finest, a NYPD officer, in Times Square. He explained that the street would be completely closed to traffic around 5 or 6 p.m., but that people begin getting there around 12 noon. Since you are not allowed to stand in the street that early, people just stay in Times Square, go in shops, stand on the sidewalk, and hang out.

As they start to close off the street, they section people off into pens. Basically, it is one pen per block, and there are a few hundred people per pen, except for right by the stage in Times Square where they allow a bit denser crowd. As one pen fills up, it just moves farther down the street.

Before you are assigned to a pen, you go through a very detailed security checkpoint. No backpacks are allowed, basically nothing bigger than a large purse. Any bags you do have, including shopping bags, will be searched. Think like the airport; do not bring anything that could be considered a weapon. Then a NYPD officer will scan you with a metal detector, and then you will be let into a pen.

Once you are in a pen, you are in that pen for the duration of the evening. You cannot leave to go to the bathroom, and even if you could there is no where to go anyway. You also cannot leave to buy food, and the traditional street vendors from the day are not there. If you want to eat, you must bring your own food.

We arrived at about 5:30 p.m., and ended up about 12 blocks down from the ball. It took an hour and a half to get through the security checkpoint into our pen. When we finally got into a pen, it was about 7 p.m., and we were already freezing cold and starving with 5 hours to go. We could see the ball from where we were, but we were definitely too far away to hear any of the music or to see any of the entertainment.

Now, if you plan well, dress very, very warm, expect to sit on the ground, and bring food, then this will probably be fine, and you can spend New Years’ Eve in Times Square without spending a dime. However, we decided to spend the money to enjoy the evening indoors.

A few blocks up we saw a TGI Friday’s restaurant and we thought, “Boy, would it be nice to go in there and eat right now.” But it was farther up than we were, and we knew that you cannot be let back into your pen if you leave. My husband called information to get the phone number of that Friday’s restaurant. He talked to someone at Friday’s to find out if there were tables available. The hostess on the phone told him yes, but that there was a $20 cover, and we had to have reservations to get through the police blockade. She allowed him to make a reservation right then, and we headed to the nearest police officer. After explaining that we had reservations, he had an officer escort us through the blockade to the restaurant, where we paid the $20 cover and headed to a warm table.

Paying $20 to dine at a restaurant that already has a special menu with higher prices for New Years’ may seem like a rip off, but with that price we were able to spend the entire evening there. We ate dinner, had dessert, and then spent hours enjoying drinks from the bar and chatting with fellow patrons. At 11:45 p.m., the bartenders began passing out all kinds of fun New Years’ favors, and we were ushered outside into a pen, about four blocks up from where we had been before. Then we counted down with everyone else and celebrated. We felt like we got the fun of the event without freezing or having to urinate on the street. It was wonderful.

So if you decide to spend New Years’ in Times Square, I highly recommend that you do some research before. There are restaurants and bars all over the Times Square area, and I imagine that it is possible to get much further up than we were. By staying off the street, you may miss the entertainment, but you will also miss freezing your butt off.

Make a reservation with a restaurant ahead of time, and find out around what time you should arrive. Plan on spending money, but realize that it will be 100% worth it. Then show up within enough time to make it to the restaurant, and enjoy your evening!