The parties of New Year are fantastic wherever you are, but certain places conjure up rather more magical feelings than others: Hogmanay in Edinburgh, the Harbour Bridge in Sydney and of course Times Square in New York.

There really is nowhere like Times Square, whether it is the fact that you have seen it on TV for as long as you can remember, or the American people’s natural exuberance and positive thinking but the Party here really is like nowhere else.

My 2007 New Year in New York was so good that I am intending to return again this year and party hard with everyone else as the rest of the World watches on. The ball dropping on One Times Square dates back 100 years and this year they are unveiling an extra special ball, I remember them replacing it with an apple (lighting effect) in the 80’s which was tacky even by American standards, but this time they promise to do it in style. The new ball will be twice as bright as the old one made by Waterford crystal with extra special lighting effects.

They reckon that there will be an astounding one million people in Times Square and millions more watching so there are certain pieces of advice I would give from my experience last year;

First is to book a hotel in advance, even now it may be too late, especially with the most popular hotels that are better placed than others:

Rennaissance Hotel
Marriott Marquis Hotel
Holiday Inn Crowne Plaza
Double Tree Guest Suites

-The best place to see the new ball drop will be on Broadway, from 43 to 50th street.
-Traffic is normally stopped by around 4pm and this will make it difficult to move around the city, so plan in advance where you want to be and try to use the subway.
-There is a designated disabled area on the corner of 43rd street, but this will fill up quickly so get there early.
-There are certain routes into Times Square so check with your hotel before arriving.
-There are no portable public restrooms.
-There is no drinking outside in New York and you will most likely have your alcohol confiscated if you bring any.
-There will be no food or drink vendors, but there are loads of restaurants but book in advance. Also if you leave your viewing spot you cannot get back to it so plan for this.
-It is likely to be cold so wear warm clothing and a lot of it because you are likely to be outside for a long time.

If you ever get the opportunity to visit Times Square for New Year in New York grab it with both hands as it will be a fantastic experience, I really don’t think anywhere can match this experience, but beware, like me you may get the bug and want to return year after year.