New Year's Eve In Times Square: Your 2018 Guide To The NYC Party

TIMES SQUARE — New Year's Eve is here and there's no better place to celebrate it than the beating heart of New York City. The world will be watching Times Square as the biggest party of the night builds up to the famous ball drop that rings in the new year.

Whether you're a native New Yorker or coming in from out of town, you can be among the 1 million people who gather in the Midtown plaza every Dec. 31. There are no tickets for the free celebration, but the Times Square Alliance recommends arriving in the early afternoon to make sure you get a spot.

Each year features a slate of celebrity performances that's broadcast live on TV across the world. This year's lineup includes Mariah Carey, Andy Grammer, Nick Jonas, Andra Day and Neil Diamond.

You better bundle up if you're going to see the ball drop in person. New Year's Eve will cap a week of brutal cold in the city, with an expected low temperature of just 12 degrees.

Security will be tighter than ever — you'll have to go through two checkpoints to get into the pen around the ball drop viewing area.

This year marks the 113th New Year's Eve celebration at the Crossroads of the World and the 110th year since the first ball drop atop One Times Square, according to the Times Square Alliance.

The original ball was made of iron and wood for that 1907 celebration and wrapped in 100 lightbulbs. Today, the ball is a 12-foot geodesic sphere made entirely of Waterford crystal and illuminated by LED lights. It weighs a hefty 11,875 pounds.

Watching the ball drop can be a test of endurance. There are no food vendors or bathrooms in Times Square, and if you leave your spot you can lose it for good.

The NYPD will start closing off access to Times Square on Dec. 31 starting at 43rd Street and Broadway, moving north as the crowd fills in.

If standing in the cold for hours at one of New York City's biggest tourist traps isn't your thing, you can check out one of the city's many New Year's Eve parties. There are also plenty of other free events around the city.

Learn more about the Times Square celebration at the Times Square Alliance's website.

Also See: NYC Is Ready For New Year's Eve

(Lead image: A couple kisses on New Year's eve in Times Square in New York City just after midnight on January 01, 2017. Photo by Yana Paskova/Getty Images)