New York | Times Square

Times Square is a major commercial intersection, tourist destination, entertainment hub, and neighbourhood in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, United States. It is formed by the junction of Broadway, Seventh Avenue, and 42nd street. Together with adjacent Dutty Square. Times Square is a bowtie-shaped space five blocks long between 42nd and 47th Streets.

Times Square is brightly lit by numerous digital billboards and advertisements as well as businesses offering 24/7 service. One of the world’s busiest pedestrian areas, it is also the hub of the Broadway Theatre District and a major centre of the world’s entertainment industry. Times Square is one of the world’s most visited tourist attraction, drawing an estimated 50 million visitors annually. Approximately 330,000 people pass through Times Square daily, many of them tourists, while over 460,000 pedestrians walk through Times Square on its busiest days. The Times Square-42nd Street and 42nd Street-Port Authority Bus Terminal stations have consistently ranked as the busiest in the New York City Subway system, transporting more than 200,000 passengers daily.

Times Square is often called the “crossroads of the world”, and with good reason. At 300,000 visitors every day (and around a million on New Year’s Eve), it’s one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world. Located in Midtown – the geographical heart of Manhattan – the lights of Times Square are so bright they can be seen from space.

Formerly known as Longacre Square, Times Square was renamed in 1904 after The New York Times moved its headquarters to the then newly erected Times Building, now One Times Square. It is the site of the annual New Year’s Eve ball drop, which began on December 31, 1907, and continues to attract over a million visitors to Times Square every year, in addition to a worldwide audience of one billion or more on various digital media platforms.

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Broadway

You can’t turn your head in Times Square without seeing a billboard or marquee for a Broadway show.

Broadway is definitely one of, if not the most popular thing to do here. So popular, in fact, that all the Broadway shows make more money than all the sports team in New York combined. That probably makes them one of the most popular attractions in the world, and you can only do it in New York City.

There are currently 41 theatres in Times Square, each one offering a different play or musical waiting to entertain you with the best actors and artists in the world. It’s a one-of-a-kind experience, and an absolute must for any trip to New York City.

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Times Square Without Dropping a Dime

The lights of Time Square are an attraction on their own. Some billboards can take up the side of an entire building and cost upwards of $500,000 a month for advertising. Some even have an implanted camera, allowing you to glimpse yourself on an actual Times Square billboard.

Impact of COVID-19

The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in New York City during 2020 reduced the number of people travelling to Times Square. About 108,000 pedestrians visited Times Square each day in late 2020 compared to the 380,000 before the pandemic. From March to October 2020, 26 of the area’s 46 hotels closed, as well as 39 of 151 stores and 84 of 162 restaurant. Times Square was closed to the public for New Years’s Day 2021 and observers were dispersed into enclosures measuring 8 by 8 ft (2.4 by 2.4 m).