Reunion Tower gearing up for New Year's Eve show

DALLAS - Reunion Tower in Downtown Dallas is gearing up for an over-the-top New Year’s Eve celebration.

Reunion Tower Over the Top NYE 2018 is being put on by Southwest Airlines. They're kicking it up a notch with fireworks expected to go off on 93 different points of the tower.

It will also be the first year that other Downtown Dallas buildings will be part of the show by coordinating colors starting around 11:30 p.m. Then everything will go dark just before midnight and the countdown will begin.

Dallas will mark the new year with ten minutes of fireworks and LED light effects on Reunion Tower ball, along with 4,000 pyrotechnic special effects and even more new additions.

“We have the new, a new effect we're calling a sunset. And it will happen in like... I’m going to call it four corners or four quadrants of the sphere. If you were to envision the sun setting into the horizon and you're seeing the upper half of the sun, our products will emulate that. It will be really neat; it will be a different angle than what people are familiar with,” said Matt Peterson, a pyrotechnician.

Guests are invited to watch the show from a private area on the Reunion Lawn. Several businesses are also hosting watch parties. The best vantage points will be on the west side of the Trinity River along the levees and Trinity Overlook Park. The show will also be simulcast on Alt. 103.7 and streamed live on the Reunion Tower Facebook page.

Arlington’s new entertainment center is also ready for a party. Texas Live! calls its event the biggest indoor and outdoor New Year’s Eve party in North Texas. Partiers will be able to watch a New York-style ball drop at midnight.

Those planning to celebrate in Dallas can get a free ride on Dallas Area Rapid Transits buses or trains thanks to Coors Light. The free rides start at 6 p.m. and will continue until the last trains leave each station.

The Trinity Railway Express will also provide free train rides between Dallas Union Station and Centreport / DFW Airport Station.