Just like in the pre-pandemic years, the Marina Bay precinct was packed full of people as they ushered in the new year.

Marina Bay Singapore said in a Facebook post that "500,000 people" were in the area on Dec. 31, 2022, including those at the Esplanade and spectators at the Star Island fireworks entertainment show.

An estimate by Chinese-language newspaper Lianhe Zaobao puts the number at around "a few hundreds of thousands" of people.

Closed areas

As the crowd grew, the Singapore Police Force began closing off sections of the precinct as locations reached full capacity.

Due to large crowds, the police closed access to areas including Fullerton Waterfront, Marina Bay Sands Waterfront and The Promontory, according to a tweet published at 11:08pm on Dec. 31, 2022.

Due to large crowds at the Marina Bay Singapore Countdown 2023, the Police have closed access to the following areas:

1. Fullerton Waterfront (including Merlion Park)
2. Jubilee Bridge
3. Marina Bay Sands Waterfront
4. Esplanade Waterfront
5. Mist Walk
6. The Promontory pic.twitter.com/hc73qrL2ar

— Singapore Police Force (@SingaporePolice) December 31, 2022

This is what the areas within the precinct looked like:

At around 1:37am on New Year's day, SPF said that the crowd situation around Marina Bay has eased and that the area has reopened to the public again.

Return of fireworks

The New Year's Eve 2023 countdown marks the return of the fireworks display at Marina Bay since the start of the pandemic in 2020.

There were also more than 20 community celebrations in Singapore, of which five heartland locations featured fireworks displays.

These community celebrations were said to see more than 70,000 residents celebrate the new year.

Top image from Lianhe Zaobao and Avex Asia.