Listening to the NPR report on security this AM, I don’t think I’d ever try going there. It’s cold and crowded and scary. Why do people? Just for a shot a being on TV?
A few years ago. It’s miserable. It’s nuts. You have to get there early…very early. Once you are in that area you’re not leaving but if you do you’re not getting back for an entire year. Wear a diaper. Dress warm, especially gloves.
It was slightly less awful for us as our group had a hotel down there. It was insanely expensive. Cost each one of us a couple of grand for 2 nights. And getting inside and out of that was an ordeal in itself.
But if you can afford it and can stand for hours at a time it’s worth the bragging rights. I wouldn’t do it again.*
*Then again I said I’d never go see Boston in concert and my friends talked me into that 2 summers ago. Frankly I’d rather be in Times Square in the cold. So who knows
Never have, never wanted to. I don’t like being in huge crowds, I don’t like the cold, I don’t usually stay up on NYE anyway. Chances are, I’ll be asleep by 10.
Never done it, never wanted to, never saw the appeal. But if friends wanted me to go with them I might, just to see it once. I doubt is like it, though.
A couple of times and the experience was awful. I knew it would be awful, but luckily I was at club parties nearby and was able to go back and forth. Both times were over 20 years ago. Even in my partying youth/young adult days, I never saw the point of screaming in the freezing cold for hours, drinking without access to a restroom, etc.
Cold, noise, drunks, pickpockets, terror threats - what’s not to like?
Considered it several times then realized I would be cold and miserable and decided against it. Nobody I know who did it thought it was worth it afterwards.
I went in 1995 or 1996. It was awesome! Stayed at the Holiday Inn not too far from Times Square. There were 5 of us, so it wasn’t too expensive. Filled the bathtub with cans of beer and drank a lot. Didn’t leave to go to the square too early and there were lots of police and barriers around. Showed our hotel key card to some cops get through some barriers. Used our military IDs to get through others until we were right in Times Square. Passed a theater where people were waiting for Patrick Stewart to come out. When he did, we started up a chant of “Make it so!” and yelled it until he smiled and waved. Drank beers we carried with us in the Square. Bought a $10 bottle of champagne off of some guy for $80 and drank that. Formed a circle and peed right there in the street when it got late. Cold as hell but my friend took his shirt off and got on the shoulders of another friend and they walked around for a while. Watched the ball drop.
It was pretty awesome. Would I do it again? Probably not.
We did it once. The crowd was so dense, you could lift up your feet and still be held up by the people shoved around you. And everyone was drunk and/or high, and all you could smell was beer, pot and urine.
But an even more dense crowd was right at the Eiffel Tower the evening of Bastille Day, looking up at the utterly amazing light show. The crowd was sober, well-behaved and celebratory. But afterward, with all those thousands of bodies trying to move in opposite directions, it took HOURS to get back to our hotel.
I’m a native New Yorker. I had always wanted to do it but the only time I did was maybe 20 years ago when a friend from college was in town and wanted to go. It wasn’t too cold and the others in our corral weren’t too rowdy. We were maybe four blocks north of Times Square.
It was fun. Just after the ball drop it was magical with the air filled with enormous clouds of swirling brightly lit confetti.
This said, once was enough.
I did it in 1963 when it was not a madhouse and there was no TV. There were crowds, but nothing like today. I walked to Times Square, saw the ball drop and … meh. I sort of did it in 2005. My son was living in a building at 52nd and 8th, inside the security perimeter. About 11, we walked down 52nd to 7th and saw the humungous crowds and went back to his apartment and watched the ball drop on TV.
No. And no. Crowds make me stabby.
Did it once, around 1985. Hated it for all the reasons stated. Unbelievably crowded (mostly drunken idiots) and absolutely nothing to do. As I recall, we left before midnight and went back to our apartment and watched it on TV. These days, I don’t even have any interest in watching it on TV. It’s a stupid tradition with no redeeming value.
I think I love you.
When I lived on the Upper West Side, I went down to the area 3 times but always for a play (Chicago, Copenhagen, and Urinetown, I believe) . I usually got home by 10.pm and went to sleep. With show tickets, the cops would let you in and out of the area relatively painlessly.
I did once, many years ago. We planned to in advance, but as it turned out, it was a relatively warm night. Wouldn’t do it again unless I had a hotel room there.
You basically have two choices, get there early (like noon) to get a good spot. Of course there isn’t really room to bring a cooler & chairs so you’re standing, outside, in Dec, for a long time w/o access to food or restrooms or get there late, in which case you may be able to see Times Square but you won’t be able to see the ball drop.
How crowded was it? It took me about ½ hour to go to the bathroom…& that was to the Mickey D’s pretty much 90° from my position in the middle of the street…& I’m usually one who’s good getting thru crowds.
I honestly cannot think of a single aspect of it that would appeal to me.
So, no.
mmm
When I was living in NJ, you with the face and her boyfriend at the time were visiting me and insisted we do NYE in Times Square. I’m a homebody fuddy-duddy, so I expressed my reservations. But they really wanted to do it, so I relented.
It sucked. We got there three hours early but it felt like we were a mile from Times Square. Like a bunch of rubes, we had brought camping chairs so we could sit down. Ha! We were jammed in like sardines. And it was freakin’ cold! And everyone around us was wasted. Someone surfing the crowd kicked me in the face. There was nowhere to pee.
But as horrible as it was, I’m so glad we did it. I think if I had never done it, I’d always be wondering if I was missing out on something fun.
Seriously. I see absolutely ZERO upside to this. It sounds like many hours of miserable time … for what?
You couldn’t pay me to go.