The New York City Ball Drop. Worth it or not?

Feb 22, 2024

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New York City is very famous for its New Years Eve celebrations, from its parties at the clubs, the firework show across the city, the events at restaurants and venues, and of course, the ball drop in Times Square. In 2022, I travelled to New York City during the holiday to experience what it had to offer for New Year’s Eve celebrations. I decided that the Ball Drop was a bucket list experience that I wanted to see for myself.

After doing a lot of research on what to expect for the Ball Drop and finally experiencing what it was really like, I am here to share my experience and for you to determine whether this is experience is for you or not.

If you want to experience the Ball Drop in its most authentic way and in its cheapest way, this is the way I experienced it. However, there are many other ways to experience the Ball Drop. Many restaurants in Times Square host NYE events with a set price, which could be between 100 to 300 USD per person depending on the restaurant. Getting that entrance ticket to the restaurant could allow you to have a more enjoyable time because you will have an indoor place where you can stay at, accessible washrooms, food, etc. However, it of course comes at a cost. There are also hotels that host events with a view on Times Square.

Although I would not go again, I think that the ball drop is worth it to experience once in your lifetime. I believe that life is about experiencing all the different types of activities possible, as long as you are interested. Even if an activity isn’t picture perfect, you still leave with funny memories. You can read below the things to expect for this Ball Drop event and some of my tips in order for you to decide whether or not this is for you.

So, what should you expect for the New York City Ball Drop, and what are some things to prepare for?

Once you enter Times Square, you will not be able to leave for any reason. If you do decide to leave, you will lose your spot.

I am being serious. Before going to this event, I searched for hours on if it would be possible to leave for a few minutes to go to the washroom. NO! I honestly didn’t believe the reviews of people online and thought, there must be SOME WAY. I am here to break the news that no, if you leave, you really do lose your spot.

You cannot use the restroom or order any food during the time of confinement.

This goes with the fact that you cannot leave Times Square and expect to have your spot back. For the restroom, we honestly just did not drink a lot of water throughout the day and held it in. Many other people also wore diapers, but for me it was a bit extreme and I was not super excited to commit to that. I do have to say that the fact that I did not drink fluids throughout the day caused me to have a huge migraine by 7 pm, which was very unpleasant considering the fact that I was very uncomfortable and it gets very noisy with the crowds and the performances. As for food, we brought some snacks and a bit of fast food that we bought right before entering Times Square.

To minimize the time you cannot go to the restroom, while in line, you can take turns with friends or strangers to go to the restroom while saving each other’s spots.

If it weren’t for great people that we met in the line, we would have switched turns to going to the restroom. Luckily, we met some amazing people that offered to save our spots while we go to the restroom right before entering Times Square. The nearest washroom that we found was in Rockefeller center. They were clean and not too crowded considering that it was NYE.

If you want a good view of the performance stage and of the ball, you will need to get there early.

Not only do you need to get there early, but you should also choose a good entrance that will give you the best view.

I recommend getting in line at 1:00 pm (was a great time in 2022).

If you arrive at 1:00 pm, you will definitely be very behind in the line. In fact, we waited in line until 3:00 pm to actually get into Times Square. However, getting a good spot is not just about whether you are in front or in the back of the line. You also should choose an entrance that is close to where you would like to be, whether it is close to the ball, the stage, etc. Also, this leaves you around 2 hours if you ever really need to go to the bathroom because once you pass security and enter Times Square, there is no going back.

There are three main lines to get into Times Square: 49th avenue, 52nd avenue, and 56th avenue.

This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is img_1678-2.jpg — You might be wondering, what are all these number of avenues? I am a very visual person, so here is the map. One Times Square is where the ball is (in red). Therefore, everyone is facing that direction. For the lineups, people line up on 49th avenue (in blue), 52nd avenue (in purple) and 56th avenue (not shown on the image). Since there are so many people lining up, the lines continue on 6th avenue (in green) and on 8th avenue (in green). All of these lines have the goal to reach 7th avenue (in orange), which is where most of the crowd will be. The crowd thus goes from One Times Square (in red) all the way towards the back (in orange), as far as it can take you. The green cross is approximately where we started to line up. The blue cross is approximately where you will pass security, and therefore the point of no return. I hope this image helps!

We lined up at 49th avenue. This street is the closest one to the ball. Since we were behind in the line, we were also not the closest to the ball. However, I think that our spot was honestly one of the best because we were very close to the ball AND we had a view of the stage, where the performances were held.

This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is img_0246.jpg — This was our view as we were walking on 49th avenue, towards 7th avenue, which is the street where everyone ends up at to see the ball.

This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is img_0266-2.jpg — This was our view of the stage. We saw the stage from behind. We were able to see the artists perform, although the view was not from the front. However, only a small amount of people at this event can actually see the performers, so I think that our position was pretty good.

This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is img_0280.jpg — This was our view of One Times Square. You can see the building pretty clearly. You will also be able to see the screen when the hourly countdown begins.

Do not bring a backpack! You can bring a small purse or fanny pack instead.

This is written on the New York City Ball Drop website, but we just saw so many people get refused to get in because they had a backpack, or people that decided to give up their backpack on the street just to get in.

You will have to stand for the whole time, unless you sit on the floor or bring something to sit on.

We didn’t bring anything to sit on, but at one point I just sat on one of our unused ponchos. I saw many other people bring small stools or collapsible seats, which is honestly really smart. If not, you will be standing for almost 12 hours straight, and it can honestly be very painful.

If I had to do this again, I would bring some type of game, because you can get easily bored.

Yes, there are performances of amazing artists. Yes, there are great people everywhere that you can talk to. Yes, there are countdowns every hour. BUT you will get bored despite all of that! I saw a kid with a nintendo switch, and I thought to myself “wow that is honestly such a great idea.”

If you want to experience the Ball Drop from Times Square, the event is free.

We heard that some people could pay to get in. However, this event is free, so you should not have to pay. Make sure that the seller is not scamming you. There are paying requirements if you attend an event at a restaurant, so make sure to inform yourself on the legitimacy of what the sellers offer.

Surprisingly, the subway wait time was not that long after the event.

I expected for the subway to be super crowded and for us to wait in the subway station for a long time. However, the transport back home was pretty quick using the NYC public transportation system. I would not recommend getting a taxi or an uber because of the traffic.

When you are waiting, it does get crowded, but you do have space to move a bit.

You are not squeezed to the maximum as it can happen during some concerts or at music festivals. However, you do not have enough space to run around or do big movements. This did not bother me because I did not require a lot of space to be comfortable.

What does a typical day in the life look like at the Ball Drop in Times Square?

We started waiting in line at 1:00 pm. We chose to make the line on 49th avenue.

By 3:00 pm, we passed security. This was the point of no return.

By 4:00 pm, we arrived at our spot in Times Square. You must be wondering, how did it take us 1 hour from security to Times Square, considering the fact that we just passed security. Well, the huge crowds are still present, and the police does not allow everybody to move quickly. They need to control the number of people in each area, so we need to wait for signals from the police in order to move from an area to another.

At 5:00 pm, there are practice performance rounds by the singers. Although they are practices, they are all heard and seen live from Times Square. The reason these are called practice is because those tentatives are not aired on television yet.

By 6:00 pm, most people attending this event are in Times Square. This is also when the hourly countdown begins. Every hour starting from 6:00 pm until midnight, there is a 10 second countdown.

This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is img_0455.jpg — This was the hourly countdown at the last hour, at 11:00 pm.

At 9:00 pm, the real performances starts. It is honestly the same thing as the practice, so you get to see and listen to the performance twice. This time, it is aired on television.

At 12:00 am, it’s the new year! There are small fireworks and a lot of confetti.

This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is img_0306.jpg

Now that you have a better understanding of what to expect for the Ball Drop, it is up to you to decide whether you are interested or not. Attending the ball drop requires sacrifices, but it can be a memorable experience if you are up for the challenge and if you don’t mind the harsh reality of this event.

For more information, you can check out the Times Square NYE website.

If you have any comments, questions or suggestions, please let me know!