City Hall considers New Year’s Eve celebrations after proposal for potential events and report agreed by council members.
Council members agreed to the idea in a meeting. They want a report about potential celebrations. Councillor Tracy Kelly suggested it, with support from Séamas de Faoite who also backed the proposal.
Kelly said people look for things to do in Belfast, noting other UK cities have New Year’s events. She wants Belfast to have one too, as a past motion stalled due to Covid.
De Faoite supports focusing on New Year’s. He mentioned Halloween progress and Christmas success. He suggested drone shows instead of fireworks, highlighting they are a safer alternative.
The meeting also discussed the Christmas 2024 program. Over 10,500 people attended the light switch-on, which happened at City Hall on November 16. Free tickets vanished quickly, and the council spent £195,585 on the event.
Most attendees were from Belfast or Northern Ireland. A few came from Ireland, Britain, or elsewhere. Some stayed in local accommodations.
Most people wanted local performers for the stage acts and believe events encourage visits to Belfast. Locals said such events improve well-being. Many visitors will likely return and would recommend Belfast to others.
The Winter’s Den had almost 50,000 visitors between November 16 and December 31st. The opening weekend saw over 5,000 people.