747heavy

I know it's pure speculation, but...
Would you feel sufficiently safe going to Times Square on New Year's Eve? or staying at a Times Square hotel?

Anyone here who went last year? Was the security quite intense/reassuring?

I'd like to go, but am just having some second thoughts -- not about the ordinary big city things (pick pockets, etc.)... I mean the big stuff.

Thanks in advance.

cordelli

I have been, and I would go again in a second.

It's really not as much fun as it looks on TV, you have to get there like at 5 or 6 to get near the square, you can't leave until it's over because you can't get back in, stuff like that, but you are in the middle of like a million people, and if that's fun to you (it was for me) then do it.

I wouldn't be all that worried about security, if something happens, it happens. Yes, it's a huge target, but at the same time they take so many more precautions then they do in that area any other day.

wsbombers

I would feel completely safe in Times Square. I'd much rather be somewhere else, though.

Analise

I've already done it and I felt perfectly safe. I was also perfectly inconvenienced because when you see all of those 10s of thousands of people, remember, there is no men's room or women's room to for all of the booze consumed.

KathyWdrf

I was wondering what this would be like as well. Not just from the safety and security angle, but also, just what the experience is like.

I do understand that you have to get there around 5 or 6 PM, so that's 6 or 7 hours of.... what, exactly? Just standing around, milling around, waiting for the ball to drop?

And once you're there, can you really not escape until after midnight? Also, if you happen to be staying at a hotel in the TS area, can you move freely to and from your hotel?

Are businesses (restaurants, stores, etc.) open? Can you have a meal while you're waiting?

More details, please. I found a website with general info here, but I want to hear people's individual experiences.

Thanks!

747heavy

Thanks to all who replied. It looks like I'll be there, so when you turn on your TV just look for the tiny little down down in the corner ... squished between a zillion other tiny little dots! :-)

techtoot

I'll be at Times Square for the first time this year too. The NYC tourist website says:
...just remember to dress warm, bring your own food and drink (non-alcoholic) and get here early.

Does this mean no alcoholic beverages are allowed period, or can you purchase them once you go in?

We're staying at the Westin on 43rd (gotta love those no-blackout Starwood redemptions!). If we didn't show up to the crowd corrals until around 8, how far away would we most likely be from 43rd?

Also, has anyone seen the Holiday show at Radio City Music Hall? Is it worth seeing, or should we opt for a Broadway show instead.

Thanks in advance for any advice.

Analise

Times Square is outside; it is illegal to drink alcohol outside so unless you go inside a bar or restaurant, you won't be buying any booze. This ain't New Orleans!

JeremyZ

They walk the camels from the show in front of 75 Rock on 51st at about 8:45 AM, for whatever that's worth.

amarain

I did this last year for NYE. We had reservations for a dinner at the Olive Garden in Times Square. It was expensive, but totally worth it. We didn't have to stay there all day - got there about 10 pm, went through security (had to show our tickets/reservation) had dinner inside which was fantastic (plus had available restrooms). There was dancing, and at midnight, they had champagne. Everyone else went outside at midnight, and we ended up with a perfect view of the ball through the window from the warm, cozy inside. It was a wonderful, memorable NYE. I definitely felt safe.

As for hotels, I'm not sure, since we lived there at the time so didn't need a hotel.

themicah

Putting aside the sheer heresy of ever eating at an Olive Garden in NYC , trying to find a place indoors where you can watch it would make a lot of sense to me (maybe even the Olive Garden :gasp. Personally I'd recommend getting a room with a ball-drop view at the Doubletree (or a similar hotel), although I have no idea how much that would cost. Then get some take-out from one of the millions of great restaurants on 9th Ave, and come back to your hotel room to drink all the champagne you can in your nice warm room with a clean toilet of your own.

Keep in mind that the problem isn't that you're "trapped" once you're there. The cops are perfectly happy to let you out. They just won't let you back in once they consider it full. The NYPD use a method of crowd-control where they segment the crowd into a bunch of "pens" separated by police barricades with plenty of space in between. Once they fill a pen, they will not let anyone go anywhere near it. That means that if at 11pm you decide you need to go to the bathroom, and wander over toward 8th Avenue to find one, the cops are going to have the side streets blocked off and you won't be able to get back into the square.

KathyWdrf

Thanks for all the responses. It is especially useful to know that you are herded into "pens" and that there is space between them! So it isn't just a solid mass of people. Good thing! ^

dr

Called Olive Garden -- the way they do it is $165 for a ticket to the party -- buffet + drinks served.

Anyone have any ideas where I could go with my family? Olive garden is too expensive, plus has an age restriction.

They'd like to see the ball drop, but I have no desire to be outside in the massive crowd.

Analise

I just can't imagine coming to NYC and going to the Olive Garden, probably the biggest insult to Italian cooking as Pizza Hut is to pizza. And for Olive Garden to charge that kind of money? Unreal that anyone would pay it.

There are so many Italian restaurants in midtown. I like La Locanda on 9th Ave and 49th Street.

dr

The question isn't about a good place to eat -- it's about a restaurant or other establishment near Times Square where we could watch the ball drop.

Obviously the OG is not for the food!!!!!

9th ave wouldn't have much of a view of times square, would it? And we're staying too far from there to be in the hotel room.