Spend the New Year in London was a wish that I had for a few years, and I managed to fulfil it for the New Year 2018. As many choose the capital of England as a destination for their New Year, I decided to gather in this post all the useful information for getting organised better.
Admission tickets: yes, for some years now, to attend the fireworks show, you need to buy an admission ticket which costs £ 10 per person. This serves to have an organised flow of people who have access to the area, especially regarding security. Tickets are now on sale, and you can buy your ticket from the government website (in December there will also be a second possibility of purchase). I refer you of course to the official website of the city government, to keep an eye to know all further information about the event. In the confirmation email you will also be shown the place where the ticket pick-up point will be set up, which will be open on December 29, 30 and 31 (on the 31st, of course, with reduced hours compared to the other two days.In 2018 it was in Trafalgar Square, a middle ground between the various entrances to visitor areas).
Areas: fires are “fired” by the London Eye. The area around the show has been divided into four areas, and each has a dedicated ticket and entrance area. I chose (for New Year’s Eve 2017/2018) the ticket for what was called the “blue area”: ​I made this choice because it was the area exactly opposite the Ferris wheel, on the other side of the Thames. The Elizabeth Tower (this is its name since 2012 and “Big Ben” is the name of the bell) is under renovation from 2017 until at least 2021, but on the occasion of New Year’s Eve, however, will return to play to mark the arrival of the new year.
Ticket collection: at the time of purchase you can choose whether to have your tickets delivered directly to your home or pick them up in the city (since I would have started shipping at the end of November, I preferred to pick them up once in London). If you choose to pick them up in London, the pick-up point is in Trafalgar Square, next to the fountain and you will need to have the reservation number and ID (NB: the person who purchased the ticket is the only one who may collect cards).
Security checks and entrance to the area: you will be shown an entry time slot (usually 20:30 – 22:00), and you will have to pass security checks (metal detectors, bags check and ticket control). At 9 pm I found a line already long enough, but at the end still entirely flowing.
Waiting time: take into consideration the fact that you have to wait between 2 and 3 hours, once the checks are over before the show starts. During my wait, I noticed how people, to warm up and spend time, also enjoyed dancing to music (the organisers have thought of everything, including music, to keep up the mood of the people waiting for the show).
Food, drinks and bags: you can bring food and beverages. You can bring some alcohol, but in quantities appropriate compared to how many you are (so if you are 4 people and bring alcohol for more people you will throw it, in number at their discretion). However, in the blue area, where I was, there were food trucks to buy food and drinks. As for the bags, it goes without saying that it is better not to have significant and bulky bags! I brought a small baby carrier where you can put the bare minimum (subway card, a few pounds, the mobile phone and the key to the apartment).
NB: there were only chemical baths. My advice is to use them long before the end of the event, and after the fireworks, because of the great crowding,​ you will find there.
Public transport: from 11.45 pm to 4.30 am public transportation will be free. The stops near the London Eye, such as Westminster and Embankment, will be closed by a particular time before the show (if I’m not mistaken at about 10pm) and will be reopened only at 00:30 to let the people out. Needless to say, after the pyrotechnic show everyone will pour into the subway and, therefore, I strongly recommend you to think of moving on foot! No, I’m not crazy to tell you this, it’s just because of the flood of people taking part to the event you could need a lot of time just to get to the platforms (I assume half an hour – forty minutes at least). The only flaw, if you decide to avoid the subway, is that if you have to cross the Thames, you will find all the bridges closed from Westminster Southwark Bridge (at least)! If you are afraid to find yourself in the middle of a screaming crowd that literally runs to grab a place in the metro, I can tell you that I have not encountered any kind of agitation (at least from the blue area to the subway).
Pyrotechnic show: it lasts about 15 minutes and is considered one of the most beautiful in the world! It is broadcast live on TV and those who attend the event in person, along with the banks of the Thames, will hear the voice of the presenter live. I noticed much participation of the crowd along the river, both before and during the fires, an aspect that makes the evening even more pleasant and “noisy” (the wait becomes much less boring). Apart from “beautiful”, “beautiful”, “phantasmagoric”, I would not be able to find less trivial terms to describe that quarter of an hour of performance: so I show you, through a video of just over 3 minutes, with original audio of evening.