Times Square NYE Countdown - 10 Things You Didn't Know

December 3, 2024

Quick, imagine New Year’s Eve.

You pictured Times Square, didn’t you.

That makes sense, of course. Every December 31st, the whole world’s eyes are focused here, waiting for the ball to drop. But the electricity of Times Square isn’t just confined to one night. That’s why we’re getting in on the celebration with a countdown of our own! Without further ado here are the top ten things you didn’t know about Times Square.

10. Times Square is busy the whole holiday season, not just NYE.

Arguably, nowhere does the holidays quite like New York, the city that brought us A Miracle on 34th Street, Home Alone 2, and Elf. That festive spirit draws visitors, tourists, and families to midtown Manhattan to enjoy traditions like the Radio City Christmas Spectacular, the Macy’s window display, and the iconic Rockefeller Center tree. Positioned at the literal and metaphorical heart of NYC, Times Square averages 286,000 visitors daily, making it a great place for brands considering a New Year ad campaign to expand their presence across the whole season (SOURCE: Times Square Alliance).

9. Something special happens here every night at 11:57pm.

For the last three minutes of each day, the digital billboards of Times Square take a break from their usual purpose, instead displaying digital art from contemporary artists, synchronized across a staggering 92 screens between 41st and 49th Streets. It’s called Midnight Moment and it’s the world’s largest, longest-running digital public art program, with a new exhibition debuting on the first of each month.

8. One billion people watch the ball drop worldwide each year.

Make no mistake about it, this is the whole planet’s New Year’s celebration, with a billion people worldwide tuned in to the spectacle. And for good reason – where else do you get the chance to watch Anderson Cooper slam tequila shots with Andy Dick? And while the ball gets all the attention around midnight, the actual broadcast lasts for six and a half hours and features the entirety of Times Square, delighting every advertiser running a New Year’s ad campaign across all of our canvases.

7. The New Year’s confetti is made from wishes.

Now through December 28, the Wishing Wall at TSQ Plaza 45-46 offers the opportunity to write a wish on a piece of paper that gets shredded and added to the ton of confetti that drops at midnight. Not in New York? You can make your wish digitally.

6. People spend a very long time in Times Square.

There’s lots to see and do at the Crossroads of the World, which explains why the median dwell time for a Times Square visitor is 81 minutes. That’s more than twice as long as the average NYC subway commute. Even better news for brands: eight of those minutes are spent actively looking at ads (SOURCE: Times Square Alliance), making Times Square ads a highly effective strategy to maximize brand visibility during the holidays.

5. There’s only one traditional static spectacular left.

One by one, the traditional Times Square billboards have upgraded to digital. There’s only one old-school, classic vinyl spectacular left: our Times Square Tower. But when we say spectacular, we mean spectacular: it’s two and a half blocks long, eight stories high, and comprised of nine faces. This massive canvas is a powerful medium for storytelling, which is why it’s so popular with movie studios.

4. It’s a major cultural hub.

From dance performances to DJ sets, from live music to art installations, Times Square offers a diverse slice of New York’s cultural scene via the TSQ LIVE program. This year, the series featured over 80 free performances curated by partners like Carnegie Hall, Jazz at Lincoln Center, and Soul Summit.

3. It’s not just for tourists.

Just because Times Square is one of the most Instagrammed places on earth and ranked #1 on TripAdvisor doesn’t mean it’s a tourist trap. It’s a real neighborhood where people live and work. In fact, a full 50% of people here are locals. Times Square advertising reaches an audience that’s young, educated and diverse; they’re also active posters on social media (SOURCE: Times Square Alliance).

2. Times Square is named after a newspaper.

They call it the paper of record. The old grey lady. It's The New York Times. Seems kind of obvious when you say it out loud, doesn’t it? The newspaper moved its headquarters to present-day 1 Times Square in 1904, prompting the rebrand of what was previously called Longacre Square. Bonus fun fact: the Longacre name is a reference to the neighborhood’s original signature industry: horse carriages.

1. Times Square advertising is more affordable than you think.

You don’t need a million-dollar budget to run a holiday campaign in Times Square. OUTFRONT has the most Times Square billboard inventory of any OOH provider, which means a range of price points that puts this powerful location within reach of most advertisers. The cost of a billboard in Times Square recoups itself with multiple forms of return on investment. Times Square delivers real-world frequency and reach, earned media, and, of course, the viral phenomenon that is social out of home (#sOOH).


The holidays and New Year’s Eve in Times Square make an iconic end to each year, and your brand can be a part of it. But only if you act quickly – our Times Square billboard inventory will sell out. Contact us today to stake a claim for your new year ad campaign!

Author: Jay Fenster, Marketing Manager @ OUTFRONT

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