Ringing In The New Year at NYNY Brooklyn Bridge Bash

New contributor Lisa Sanchez shares her NYE experience at NYNY’s Brooklyn Bridge Bash…

When my boyfriend and I decided to extend our late December Vegas/Bruno Mars concert-going trip to include New Year’s Eve, we knew we had to find a Vegas NYE party that would let us ring in 2017 in the right style. After some internet investigation, we narrowed down our options and finally settled on the New York New York Brooklyn Bridge Bash.

Our requirements were:
-Fun and festive atmosphere that didn’t feel too young, too old, too stodgy, or too hip for our level of comfort.
-Didn’t break the bank; we set our budget at a maximum of $250 each, which seems to be on the conservative side for NYE in Vegas.
-Afforded the ability to watch fireworks. We had never been to Vegas for New Year’s Eve before, so we wanted to be able to partake of the full experience.

We purchased our tickets for the Bridge Bash online through the New York New York website about two weeks before NYE. On the night of, we walked over to NYNY from our hotel, picked up our wristbands from the Zumanity box office, and entered through Nine Fine Irishmen.

The entry fee covered an open bar from 8 pm to midnight and access to the party venue for the night, which encompassed all of Nine Fine Irishmen, their back patio area, and the Brooklyn Bridge area outside NYNY, which was enclosed with barriers.

Nine Fine Irishmen had a live band who performed a combination of Irish music and covers of the ’80s and ’90s music (if you’ve never heard a rollicking cover of Wonderwall followed immediately by an Irish jig, you’ve never lived). The Brooklyn Bridge area of the event included seating, bars, and an outdoor dance floor complete with a disco ball, a DJ spinning a danceable variety of the ’90s, 2000s, and current hits, and go-go dancers dressed as flappers. The outdoor area was interspersed with heat lamps to ward off the desert chill.

The event was busy but not packed, and we found it easy to dance, find a spot to sit for a bit, maneuver the crowd, and get drinks in a timely manner. The drinks were plentiful, and the open bar was not bottom shelf/well alcohols; we drank Jameson or Absolute and soda the entire night. Bartenders did not skimp on the alcohol, and we definitely got our money’s worth. Just before midnight, most of the crowd moved outdoors and off of the bridge area to the steps to take in the fireworks. It was an excellent spot from which to watch as there was a fairly unobstructed view of the MGM Grand display and fireworks from further down the strip could be observed as well.

Our final consensus was that the NYNY New Year’s Eve Bridge Bash was worth the price of admission and something we would definitely consider doing again if we find ourselves in Vegas for another New Year’s Eve.

Full disclosures and pro tips:
Our cost of entry was $183.30 per ticket, including taxes and fees (rumor has it the ticket prices start at $135.00, and increase in price as the event approaches). The price of admission does include an open bar, but does not include the gratuity – please tip your bartenders!

There was no dress code for the Bridge Bash, and I saw every type of attire from club and evening wear to cargo pants and hoodies. Temperatures were in the 40’s, and we found it comfortable to be outdoors as there were regularly interspersed heat lamps.

The entire Strip is shut down to traffic for New Year’s Eve, which we were aware of ahead of time. What we were not aware of ahead of time was that the bridges/walkways were also shut down. A walk that would normally take us 10 minutes ended up taking almost 40; be aware and plan ahead to get to your NYE destination early.

The one drawback of the Bridge Bash was the lack of bathrooms at the venue. Nine Fine Irishmen has only one small bathroom each for men and women and no restrooms in the outside area. Rather than waiting in line, I found it more expedient to exit the venue and use one of the casino bathrooms.

[Photos: Lisa Sanchez]

Lisa Sanchez

Lisa is a Vegas connoisseur (some may say addict), who has been visiting Sin City 3-8 times per year since 2007. When she’s not in Vegas, you’ll find her reading, watching sports, and playing trivia with her boyfriend in Colorado’s higher elevations.