Home Special Interests New Year's Travel New Year’s Eve Countdown Ball Drop Live Plus Other Livestream Events

New Year’s Eve Countdown Ball Drop Live Plus Other Livestream Events

It’s almost New Year’s Eve, and this year the ball drop will look different with no crowds gathering, but one thing that will never change is the ticking of time and the arrival of a New Year at midnight on December 31st. This unique tick of the clock has always prompted us both to celebrate and to step outside the day-to-day activity we’re always busy with to reflect, look back, take stock, assess the year, count our blessings, remember those that are no longer with us, and resolve to do better. 

We’re sharing how to watch the ball drop in Times Square, as well as several NYE live-stream options around the world. Keep in mind the time change if you want to watch any of them. Check out our post When the New Year Starts Around the World for more details.

Times Square, New York will provide live, commercial-free, webcast coverage including the lighting and raising of the New Year’s Eve Ball at 6pm EST, hourly countdowns & live musical performances. The Times Square official website offers a live webcast directly on their site…TimesSquareBall.net, with mobile streaming on NewYearseve.nyc You can also watch on social media via their Facebook and Twitter pages.

First Night Boston is a New Year’s Eve celebration of artistic performances, the wonders of the season, and the beginning of a new year. In keeping with this fantastic Boston tradition, the First Night celebration will open 2023 with an array of performances and interviews. In-person and live events will not be held as they transition to an online and broadcast format. First Night Boston coverage will be provided on NBC10 Boston, NECN, Telemundo Boston, and a live stream on firstnightboston.org on New Year’s Eve.

Seattle’s New Year’s at the Needle show goes virtual with spectacular digital effects to be safely enjoyed at home. Using sky-mapping technology and real video footage. Hundreds of drones to be part of New Year’s Eve fireworks show at Space Needle. Join Team Evening on King 5 at 11:35 pm for this virtual display or stream on www.king5.com. Use the hashtag @NYESeattle to share your celebration from home. Viewers outside of western Washington can stream it live on spaceneedle.com/newyears.

Sydney, Australia’s New Year’s Eve celebration this year will not offer 9 pm fireworks or activities around the Harbour. There will be one 7-minute midnight fireworks display from the bridge, which will be broadcast on ABC. Streaming is available via the ABC TV Youtube channel, which also has the Official Sydney New Year’s Eve app for Android and iPhone, making it available from where you happen to be.

Auckland, New Zealand’s fireworks display will go ahead with the Sky Tower’s New Year’s Eve party featuring a laser display running alongside the fireworks with animations showing in the hours leading to midnight. You can stream live via SKYCITY livestream or watch Sky Tower fireworks live stream.  The coverage starts at 9 pm and ends at 1 am with a 30-second countdown in sync with SkyCity followed by a five-minute show to complement the fireworks display on the Sky Tower.

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil – Copacabana beach normally hosts plenty of partying and a massive fireworks display on New Year’s Eve. The in-person event has been cancelled this year. A small-scale light show and performances will take place. EarthCam delivers streaming webcam views of Copacabana Beach. A virtual New Year’s celebration is being planned with an online broadcast of artists performing remotely all over town and a light show at midnight that can be seen across the city’s skyline.

Seoul, Korea, New Year’s Eve offers new year traditions unique to Seoul, with the main event being the Bosingak Watch-Night bell ceremony, where local dignitaries and celebrities head to Jongno to ring in the new year. Seoul also has its very own Times Square, a mega shopping mall that offers countdown concerts on New Year’s Eve with different types of music to appeal to most tastes. Well-positioned webcams help give live views of the evening’s events, including skyline views that capture some of the city’s fireworks.

New Year’s Day Concerts have long been a Philharmonic tradition to present a lively and nostalgic program from the vast repertoire of the family of Johann Strauss and its contemporaries. The concerts delight audiences in the Musikverein in Vienna, as well as people in 90 countries around the world. These concerts grow and grow in popularity over the years, drawing joy and optimism for the New Year ahead. The Vienna Philharmonic, as musical ambassadors of Austria, sends people all over the world a New Year’s greeting in the spirit of hop,e friendship, and peace.

Other New Years related posts that may interest you include New Years Lucky Colors, Unusual Questions About New Years Even Superstitions, New Years Lucky Plants & New Years Traditions & Superstitions.

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Sue Lobo is a four-time Condé Nast Traveler Top Travel Specialist (2023, 2024, 2025 & 2026) and Senior Travel Advisor at Atlas Travel Center, one of the most decorated travel agencies in the United States. With more than 35 years of experience in the travel industry, Sue has planned, booked, and personally accompanied trips for thousands of clients — from first-time cruisers to seasoned luxury travelers who have circled the globe multiple times. Sue's areas of deep expertise include ocean and river cruising, European tours, group travel coordination, luxury travel, honeymoon planning, and family vacation design. She is a CLIA-certified cruise specialist and works within an agency that holds IATA and ARC accreditation and maintains an A+ rating from the Better Business Bureau. Over her career, Sue has been involved in more than 30,000 bookings and has personally coordinated over 200 travel groups — from faith-based group cruises and HBCU alumni trips to women's retreats, family reunions, and corporate incentive travel. What sets Sue apart is not just the credentials — it is the firsthand experience behind them. Sue has personally traveled to more than 20 countries across three continents, including Cuba, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, and throughout Europe. She has sailed on dozens of cruise ships across nearly every major line, walked the river cruise routes she recommends, and eaten at the restaurants she suggests to clients. Her recommendations come from personal experience, not brochures. In addition to advising clients, Sue writes extensively about travel for The Traveler's Atlas blog — covering everything from cruise line comparisons and overtourism trends to destination guides and practical travel tips. Her writing is grounded in the same expertise she brings to every client conversation: honest, specific, and built on decades of real-world travel experience. Sue is based in the United States and available to help travelers plan cruises, European tours, group trips, river cruises, honeymoons, family vacations, and more. To work with Sue, contact Atlas Travel Center at atlastravelweb.com.
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