Empire Journal | Times Square New Year's Eve hotels
New Year's Eve in Times Square With Kids: Where to Stay
The public viewing pens are not workable with children. These hotels are — suites, ball drop windows, and a way in and out of the crowd.
With children, the street version of New Year's Eve in Times Square does not work. Nine hours of standing, no re-entry, no bag storage and no bathrooms is not a plan. The whole trip rests on the room.
The night itself, in one paragraph
New Year's Eve 2026 falls on Thursday, December 31, and the ball sits on the roof of One Times Square at 47th Street and Broadway. It is raised at 6:00 p.m., and it begins its 60-second descent at 11:59 p.m. Public viewing areas fill from the afternoon up Broadway and 7th Avenue; the NYPD runs screening checkpoints, there is no bag storage, no alcohol, and once you leave a viewing pen you do not get back in. That single rule is the entire argument for staying inside the square: a hotel room, a lobby bar or a rooftop terrace is the only way to see the ball drop and still use a bathroom.
The rooms that make this possible
- New York Marriott Marquis — more than 100 rooms and suites with a direct view of the ball, so you watch it from a bed at 11:59 and everyone is asleep by 12:20. Ask for a lower Broadway-facing room; the top floors look over the ball rather than at it.
- Residence Inn Central Park — suites with kitchens and high-floor rooms overlooking the intersection area. Distance from the crowd, room to spread out, breakfast without leaving the building.
- Millennium Hotel Broadway Times Square — floor-to-ceiling windows facing the square in the right category, on the square itself.
- Margaritaville Resort Times Square — dedicated Ball Drop View rooms and a family-friendly format; call early, they sell out.
- The Pearl Hotel — beside the square, and past guests have received passes to move in and out through the police barriers, which with kids is the most valuable thing on this page.
- Hilton Garden Inn Times Square Central — the value option, with top-floor rooms guests consistently praise.
With children, the right answer is a window and a door you can close, not a better angle from the pavement.
The plan for the day
Do the square in daylight, eat early, then go up to the room. Countdown from the window, and skip the exit crowd entirely. On January 1 nothing opens early, so a hotel pool or a slow breakfast is the whole morning.
Next step: book a suite or a Broadway-facing room, and confirm the sightline with the hotel before you pay.
Frequently asked questions
Can kids go to the Times Square ball drop?
They can, but public viewing means hours of standing with no re-entry or bathrooms. A hotel room with a view is the workable version.
Which Times Square hotels have suites for families?
Residence Inn Central Park has suites with kitchens, and the Marriott Marquis and Margaritaville both sell suites with views.
What is there to do with kids on New Year's Day in New York?
The city opens late. A hotel pool, a slow breakfast, and an afternoon museum is a realistic first day.
Book it
Book a family room for the night:
- Expedia — hotels, flights and activities in one checkout, and the fastest way to price Times Square rooms side by side on the same dates.
- Hilton Honors — for Tempo by Hilton New York Times Square and Hilton Garden Inn Times Square Central.
- World of Hyatt — for Hyatt Regency Times Square and Hyatt Centric Times Square.
- ResortPass — day passes to hotel pools and spas, useful for the flat New Year's Day when nothing else in the city is open early.
- Luxury Escapes — packaged rates at the higher end, worth checking against Expedia before you commit to a premium view room. Flying in: JetBlue for East Coast routes, Southwest for domestic with two free bags, United through Newark, Alaska from the West Coast. Affiliate links: we earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. See our Disclaimer and Affiliate Disclosure.
What Rich Off Travel AI is, and why it matters for a night like this
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Plan your New Year's Eve at empireexperience.org.
