Las Vegas Rings in 2026 with exosphere countdown, fireworks, and drone show
2 January 2026(PRESS RELEASE) -- Las Vegas welcomed 2026 in spectacular fashion with the 25th edition of “America’s Party,” lighting up the Strip with a synchronized Drone Light Spectacular and an eight-minute rooftop fireworks display by Fireworks by Grucci. Pyrotechnics launched simultaneously from the rooftops of 10 resorts.
For the first time ever on New Year’s Eve, 600 LED drones lit up the Las Vegas sky in perfect harmony with the city’s world-famous fireworks, delivering an electrifying aerial spectacle themed “Rockin’ into 2026 – Vegas Style.” The drone display painted the night sky with iconic imagery including the “Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas” sign, the city skyline illuminated with “2026” rotating above, a spinning roulette wheel, a slot machine, and a “Happy New Year” greeting.
The drone show culminated in a stirring red, white and blue finale honoring the kickoff of America’s 250th birthday celebration. To round out the New Year’s celebration and mark the beginning of a yearlong America250 tribute, resorts throughout Las Vegas displayed coordinated messages across marquees and digital screens.
Sphere once again served as Las Vegas’ official countdown to the new year, debuting a custom content show on the Exosphere, the world’s largest LED screen, that counted down to midnight and featured Orbi™ in 2026 glasses, and a debut piece from Sphere's latest XO/Art contributor Hugo Johnson.
Downtown, Fremont Street Experience hosted its annual Countdown Under The Canopy™, featuring live performances by Robin Thicke, CeeLo Green, Common Kings, Chingy, Pertinence, and Sammy Johnson across multiple stages, followed by a midnight fireworks display from Plaza Hotel & Casino.
New Year’s Eve visitation to Las Vegas was projected at 345,000 visitors, reinforcing the destination’s status as a favorite place to ring in the new year.
Facts about “America’s Party 2026”:
This is Las Vegas' 25th presentation of "America's Party," continuing a tradition that started in 2000
The show takes Fireworks by Grucci the entire year to plan and choregraph.
For the first time, "America's Party" included a synchronized Drone Light Spectacular, featuring a fleet of UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles) performing a choreographed multimedia display in perfect harmony with the fireworks.
The drone show added thousands of dynamic lights, patterns, and animations, extending the visual experience across the Las Vegas skyline.
This year's theme, "Rockin' into 2026 - Vegas Style," dazzled with bold red, blue, yellow, and silver hues that captured the city's electric energy and dynamic spirit, building to a patriotic finale honoring the nation's milestone 250th anniversary.
It takes five (5) days to install the pyrotechnics on the ten (10) rooftops.
More than 3,360 manhours were spent on the installation process.
The crew consisted of 74 pyrotechnicians and staff and over 100 additional security personnel on the rooftops.