Crime And Public Safety
Starting in the mid-19th century, the United States became a magnet for immigrants seeking to escape poverty in their home countries. After arriving in New York, many new arrivals ended up living in squalor in the of the neighborhood, an area between and the , northeast of . By the 1820s, the area was home to many gambling dens and , and was known as a dangerous place to go. In 1842, visited the area and was appalled at the horrendous living conditions he had seen. The area was so notorious that it even caught the attention of , who visited the area before his in 1860. The predominantly Irish was one of the country’s first major entities.
As Italian immigration grew in the early 20th century many joined ethnic gangs, including , who got his start in crime with the Five Points Gang. first developed in the mid-19th century in and spread to the during the late 19th century following waves of Sicilian and Southern Italian emigration. established , forming alliances with other criminal enterprises, including the , led by , the leading Jewish gangster of that period. From 19201933, helped create a thriving in liquor, upon which the Mafia was quick to capitalize.
Relax At A Rooftop Bar
Times Square has several lounges and bars where you can take in great views of the lights on Broadway.
To find out about other rooftop bars near Times Square and throughout the city, see our post Rooftop Bars with great skyline views.
If you want to skip the drink and just enjoy the view, see our post, Best New York Skyline Views.
The Nye Celebration Has Had A Ball Drop For Over A Century
Records show New Yorkers have been celebrating the New Year in Times Square since The New York Times took up residence in the neighborhood. But the ball drop dates back to 1907, wood-and-iron globe decorated with 100 light bulbs was lowered from the top of a flagpole. Now, the Times Square Ball weighs nearly six tons and is illuminated by 32,256 LEDs.
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Primary And Secondary Education
The system, managed by the , is the largest public school system in the United States, serving about 1.1 million students in more than 1,700 separate primary and secondary schools. The city’s public school system includes nine to serve academically and artistically . The city government pays the to educate a very small, detached section of the Bronx.
The New York City Charter School Center assists the setup of new . There are approximately 900 additional privately run secular and religious schools in the city.
Fact #: It Has A Fascinating History
So how did Times Square get its name? Did you know it hasnt always been called Times Square? It once went by the name Longacre Square. It took the name Times Square from the New York Times headquarters, which in 1904 moved to One Times Square.
While One Times Square is pretty much empty, it is the home for a giant wall of over 50 billboards that generates over $20 million in income each year. Its also the home to the famous New Years Eve ball that millions of people watch drop to ring in the New Year. In fact, it was on December 31, 1907 when the first ball started its descent together with the countdown to the New Year.
To be there in the middle of it all, to participate in the countdown, to feel the anticipation and excitement is a feeling everyone should have at least once in a lifetime.
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Best Things To Do In Times Square Ny Top Activities & Places To Go
- Tanner Wilkes
If you want to be in the center of everything, better spend some time in Times Square.
Encompassing the general area of midtown Manhattan, from 40th to 53rd Streets, finding stuff to do wont be hard for you.
And as youre in the City that Never Sleeps, boredom will be the last thing on your mind. So enjoy the thriving things you can do during the day and go wild at night.
Cant wait for your dream vacation here in Manhattan?
Heres a list of the best things to do in Times Square, NY, to get you started on your planning.
Times Square At Night
Times Square is open 24 hours. Many of the free activities listed above are excellent night activities, like the Midnight Moment or people-watching.
Some of the top attractions listed above, like Madame Tussauds stay open until 10 pm or beyond!
Below are some more things to do at night. For more ideas, see our post about things to do at night in NYC.
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See The Tonight Show With Stephen Colbert
NYC has lots of free TV tapings, including The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.
The show taping goes from around 5.30 pm to 7 pm. For information on how to get tickets, .
Also learn how you can get tickets for other popular shows like the Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon or The Daily Show With Trevor Noah!
TIP: For even more suggestions of things to do in the area and around the city, be sure to stop by official NYC Information Center in Times Square located on Broadway between 43rd and 44th Streets.
Also, check out our guide to things to do at night in NYC.
Podcast Episode: Listen to tour guides Lori and Katherine discuss things to do in and around Times Square on an episode of our NYC Travel Tips podcast.
This podcast offers bite-sized audio clips with tips on how to plan your trip to NYC. You can get our podcasts on Apple, , or wherever you get your podcasts.
Things To Do In Times Square
There is never a dull moment in Time Square, as there is truly something for everyone to enjoy. Smash Broadway hits like the Lion King continue to be performed nearby. Famous retailers like Lids, Sephora, Sunglass Hut, Gap, Steve Madden, and even Disney have outlets lining the streets, making it a destination for any shopper. Time Square offers a wide diversity of culinary options. World class Italian restaurants like Carmines, exotic Cuban lounges like Havana Central, sushi bars like Blue Fin, and fast-food staples like Shake Shack serves visitors a taste of why New York City is known as the Capital of the World.
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Travel To New York City And Stay In The Action At Our Times Square Hotel
Enjoy all the excitement that the Big Apple offers when staying at the Holiday Inn New York City Times Square. Nestled in the heart of the bustling Garment District, our Midtown Manhattan hotel is steps away from the citys must-see attractions, including Hudson Yards, Madison Square Garden, The Javits Center, Times Square, Bryant Park, Herald Square and much more! For further exploring, our Hells Kitchen location offers easy access to public transportation. The 42nd St. Port Authority Bus Terminal and New York Penn Station are located less than a half-mile from the hotel. If youre looking to travel like the locals, try renting a Citi-bike and enjoy the amazing food, shopping and sightseeing in the city that never sleeps.
After a day of exploring the lively city, relax and rewind in our renovated guest rooms. On top of sweeping NYC views, our inviting Midtown West hotel offers a variety of thoughtful amenities and perks that appeal to all our guests from children to business travelers! Some of our key features include: kids stay and eat for free, affordable room rates, in-room desk & coffee-maker, free high-speed internet, an on-site business center and a 24-hour fitness center. We look forward to making our Times Square hotel your home away from home!
Things You Didnt Know About Times Square
Even if youre not specifically planning to visit Times Square, you may find its impossible to avoid this bustling thoroughfare, which is not just the convergence of Broadway, Seventh Avenue, and 42nd Street but also the cultural confluence of New York City.
Here, at this frenetic intersection known to some as The Crossroads of the World travels will find some of the greatest theater productions on Earth, as well as many of the most prominent buildings and cultural attractions in the Big Apple.
But its not all neon signs and crowds, though youll find plenty of both in Times Square. Even if you regularly find yourself in this neck of the New York City woods, theres always a thing or two to learn. Here are 8 things even long-time New Yorkers may not know about Times Square.
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Nyc Scales Back Times Square New Year’s Eve Celebration
Dec. 23 — New York City Bill de Blasio announced Thursday that the city’s scaling back New Year’s Eve celebrations at Times Square amid rising COVID-19 cases.
Under the new guidelines, about 15,000 people will be allowed to attend the festivities from the outdoor viewing areas, down from about 58,000 in normal years. All attendees 5 years old and older must show proof of vaccination and wear masks. Those who can’t receive a vaccine because of a disability must show a negative COVID-19 PCR test.
Attendees also won’t be able to enter the viewing areas until 3 p.m., later than in normal years.
“New Yorkers have stepped up tremendously over the past year — we are leading the way on vaccinations, we have reopened safely and every day we work toward building a recovery for all of us,” de Blasio said.
“There is a lot to celebrate and these additional safety measures will keep the fully vaccinated crowd safe and healthy as we ring in the New York.”
Last year’s Times Square festivities were closed to the general public.
The announcement comes amid rising cases of COVID-19 in New York City due in part to the spread of the Omicron variant.
Fox also canceled the planned live broadcast of its New Year’s special, Toast & Roast 2022, from Times Square.
Where Is Times Square In Nyc
This is a great question because Times Square is actually a specific area. The official boundaries are 42nd Street to the south and 47th Street to the north and between Broadway and 7th Avenue to the east and west. This can be confusing because the billboards extend much further than that, and the theaters are everywhere, making Times Square look much bigger.
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Top Attractions In Times Square
The below attractions are perfect for families and also make for great night activities as many of these options stay open until 10 pm or beyond!
TIP: Several of the attractions listed below are included free with the purchase of most NYC tourist discount passes as well as several bus company combo tickets.
Check out our extensive post, Tourist Attractions in NYC.
Art Is Hidden Everywhere
Enter Times Square, and youll be surrounded by hidden artworks. At the pedestrian corner where Broadway meets 7th Avenue, between 45th and 46th streets, visitors might hear a strange humyoull have to be alert to hear the sound emanating over the cacophony of visitors and street vendors. This is a work by sound designer Max Neuhaus, originally installed in 1977 and revived in 2002. And if youre in Times Square in the minutes before midnight, you might notice a synchronized art display on the districts billboards. Called Midnight Moment, the digital exhibits change every month. In March, Jeffrey Gibsons She Never Dances Alone will fill the screens of Times Square with a celebration of indigenous culture.
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Icipate In Official Times Square Events
From innovative public art projects to entertainment options for all ages, check their website to see what is happening that day, that month, and seasonally.
Amazing things appear in Times Square – in 2012 a coordinated project for Yoko Ono’s conceptual art piece IMAGINE PEACE took place in Times Square.
Cnbc Health & Science
On Dec. 19, the city reported a 15% Covid test-positivity rate, a five-percentage-point increase from just four days before. The World Health Organization estimates that omicron cases double every 1.5 to three days in places of dense population.
“We know that vaccination is the key and we know boosters are particularly effective against omicron. Our health-care leaders have been abundantly clear about that,” the mayor told reporters at a news conference on Wednesday.
Previously, the Times Square Alliance, the group in charge of organizing the New Year’s Eve ball drop and celebration, said it would require proof of full vaccination for almost all attendees over the age of 5. At the end of 2020, before vaccinations were widely available, the group also hosted a scaled-down event, with social distancing and masking for a significantly smaller audience than normal.
De Blasio told reporters at the news conference he expects omicron will peak in the city soon, but people will have to take extra precautions in the meantime to keep everyone safe.
“We focus, obviously, every day on the Covid crisis, on the challenge of omicron and how we overcome it, and I’m very confident the city will overcome it. In fact, it looks like it’s going to be a very brief period intense and challenging but very brief, and we have a lot of tools to fight back,” he said.
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Wealth And Income Disparity
New York City, like other large cities, has a high degree of , as indicated by its of 0.55 as of 2017. In the first quarter of 2014, the average weekly wage in New York County was $2,749, representing the highest total among large counties in the United States. As of 2017, New York City was home to the highest number of of any city in the world at 103, including former . New York also had the highest density of millionaires per capita among major U.S. cities in 2014, at 4.6% of residents. New York City is one of the relatively few American cities levying an on its residents. As of 2018, there were 78,676 in New York City.
American Revolution And The Early United States
Manhattan was at the heart of the , a series of major battles in the early . The was forced to abandon Manhattan after the on November 16, 1776. The city, greatly damaged by the during the campaign, became the British military and political center of operations in North America for the remainder of the war. The military center for the colonists was established in New Jersey. British occupation lasted until November 25, 1783, when returned to Manhattan, as .
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Personal Life And Death
From 1899 to 1907, Cohan was married to , a musical comedy actress and dancer. Levey and Cohan had a daughter, actress Georgette Cohan Souther Rowse . Levey joined the Four Cohans when Josie married, and she starred in Little Johnny Jones and other Cohan works. In 1907, Levey divorced Cohan on grounds of adultery.
He died of cancer at the age of 64 on November 5, 1942, at his Manhattan apartment on Fifth Avenue, surrounded by family and friends. His funeral was held at , New York, and was attended by thousands of people, including five governors of New York, two mayors of New York City and the Postmaster General. The honorary pallbearers included , , , , , , , , , , , , and . Cohan was interred at in The Bronx, New York City, in a private family mausoleum he had erected a quarter century earlier for his sister and parents.
Sexual Orientation And Gender Identity
The New York metropolitan area is home to about 570,000 self-identifying and people, and one of the world’s largest. were legalized on June 24, 2011 and were authorized to take place on July 23, 2011. Charles Kaiser, author of The Gay Metropolis: The Landmark History of Gay Life in America, wrote that in the era after , “New York City became the literal gay metropolis for hundreds of thousands of immigrants from within and without the United States: the place they chose to learn how to live openly, honestly and without shame.”
The annual traverses southward down and ends at in Lower Manhattan the parade rivals the as the largest pride parade in the world, attracting tens of thousands of participants and millions of sidewalk spectators each June. The annual is held in and is accompanied by the ensuing Multicultural Parade.
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National Geographic Ocean Odyssey
226 West 44th Street between 7th Avenue and 8th Avenue
Using photo-real animation with giant projection screens and immersive sound, your simulated ocean voyage will feel real.
This is a great activity for families with children as there is a great deal of interactive technology including touch screens, holograms, and games involving ocean conservation/research.
This is also a good activity for night owls since it is open late .
Find out about prices, hours, and more at their website.
Browse The Colorful Midtown Comics Store
200 West 40th Street bet. 7th and 8th Avenues
Midtown Comics is a comic book and toy marketplace and it is open late! This colorful store is fun to visit even if you aren’t a huge comics fan.
Comic book lovers can buy new releases and find vintage issues. They also sell graphic novels, sci-fi books, and collectibles.
Their hours are Mon-Sat 8 am to Midnight and Sunday Noon – 8 pm. See their website for more information.
TIP: Superhero fans should take a look at our free self-guided Superhero tour to visit many sites from your favorite superhero movies!
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