The best places around the U.S. for New Year's Eve celebrations

While Times Square is definitively the most famous place to celebrate New Year's Eve, New York City ranks far from the best cities in the U.S. to wait for the ball-drop. Between hotel and food price hikes, local laws prohibiting fireworks and overall safety in massive crowds, New Year's can either be fun or dreary depending on which city you're in.

Looking at the 100 most populated cities in the U.S., WalletHub has unveiled their picks for the best and worst places to ring in the new year. Their methodology compares three key dimensions: 1) Entertainment & Food, 2) Costs and 3) Safety & Accessibility.
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Top 10 Places for New Year's Eve

1. Orlando, FL
2. San Francisco, CA
3. Atlanta, GA
4. Denver, CO
5. Buffalo, NY
6. Cincinnati, OH
7. Miami, FL
8. St. Louis, MO
9. Pittsburgh, PA
10. Las Vegas, NV
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Bottom 10 Places for New Year's Eve
91. Chula Vista, CA
92. Henderson, NV
93. Fort Worth, TX
94. Gilbert, AZ
95. Arlington, TX
96. Fremont, CA
97. San Bernardino, CA
98. Garland, TX
99. Newark, NJ
100. North Las Vegas, NV
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Within WalletHub's methodology, they ranked several metrics to influence its overall score on the key dimensions.

Entertainment & Food (50 points) - metrics included: New Year's Eve Popularity, Legality of Fireworks, Number of New Year's Eve Festivals, Performances & Galas per Capita, Duration of the 2016 Fireworks Show, Number of Restaurants per Capita, Luxury Shopping, Number of Nightlife Options per Capita, Number of Music Venues per Capita, and Recreation.

Costs (30 points) - metrics included: Average Price of a New Year's Eve Party Ticket, Affordable Fine Dining, Average Beverage Price, Restaurant-Meal Costs, Lowest Price of a Three-Star Hotel on New Year's Eve: Full Weight, and Pampering.

Safety & Accessibility (20 points) - metrics included: Walkability, Traffic Congestion, Neighborhood Security, Pedestrian-Fatality Rate, Forecasted Precipitation for Dec. 31.

Of the top five most populated cities in the U.S., New York City ranked #38, Los Angeles ranked #27, Chicago ranked #28, Houston ranked #85, and Philadelphia ranked #31. New York City also ranked as having the 'Highest Average Price of a New Year's Eve Party Ticket.'



Orlando took home the #1 overall ranking, which scored #2 in 'Entertainment & Food,' #8 in 'Costs,' and #82 'Safety & Accessibility.'



180 million people will be watching the Times Square ball-drop on TV, according to WalletHub, and 83 percent of consumers will spend up to $200 celebrating the event.

If you're spending the holiday at home, be sure to tune into Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve with Ryan Seacreast beginning at 8 p.m. ET/PT on ABC.