When New York Night Falls: What Time It Gets Dark, Month by Month
The short answer. In New York it is fully dark by about 4:59pm in early December and not until about 9:05pm at the end of June. Sunset moves four hours through the year, from 4:28pm to 8:31pm, and full dark follows about half an hour later. So a night tour of new york city that leaves at 6pm is dark from the start only in the winter months, and one that leaves at 8pm ends in the dark all year.
Sunset and full dark, month by month
The table gives the U.S. Naval Observatory's times for Times Square in 2026, on the local clock. "Full dark" is the end of civil twilight, when the sun is six degrees below the horizon and the last blue has gone from the sky: the moment the lit towers stand out against black. Other years fall within a minute or two of these, so read them as "about".
| Date | Sunset | Full dark | A 6pm ride, back 7:30pm | An 8pm ride, back 9:30pm |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15 January | 4:53pm | 5:23pm | Dark all the way | Dark all the way |
| 15 February | 5:31pm | 5:59pm | Dark all the way | Dark all the way |
| 7 March | 5:54pm | 6:21pm | Dusk, then dark | Dark all the way |
| 8 March, clocks forward | 6:55pm | 7:22pm | Light, then dark | Dark all the way |
| 15 April | 7:35pm | 8:04pm | Daylight all the way | Dusk, then dark |
| 15 May | 8:06pm | 8:38pm | Daylight all the way | Light, then dark |
| 15 June | 8:29pm | 9:02pm | Daylight all the way | Light, then dark |
| 27 June, latest | 8:31pm | 9:05pm | Daylight all the way | Light, then dark |
| 15 July | 8:26pm | 8:58pm | Daylight all the way | Light, then dark |
| 15 August | 7:54pm | 8:23pm | Daylight all the way | Dusk, then dark |
| 15 September | 7:05pm | 7:32pm | Light, then dusk | Dark all the way |
| 15 October | 6:15pm | 6:43pm | Light, then dark | Dark all the way |
| 1 November, clocks back | 4:52pm | 5:20pm | Dark all the way | Dark all the way |
| 15 November | 4:38pm | 5:07pm | Dark all the way | Dark all the way |
| 7 December, earliest | 4:28pm | 4:59pm | Dark all the way | Dark all the way |
| 15 December | 4:29pm | 5:00pm | Dark all the way | Dark all the way |
The last two columns are worked out from the first two, for a 90-minute ride. They show the pattern most evenings follow. A 6pm start is dark from the first minute only from November to February. An 8pm start always finishes in the dark, and in June it spends its first hour in daylight and dusk.
The 6pm and the 8pm open-top
The clearest case is the open-top double-decker from 7th Avenue, which leaves at 6pm and at 8pm every day for a 90-minute loop, $59 a person. In mid-June the sun sets at about 8:29pm and it is dark by about 9:02pm. The 6pm bus is back an hour before sunset, so it never sees the city lit. The 8pm bus leaves in daylight, the sun sets about half an hour in, and it finishes in the dark. In winter it is the other way round: by 6pm in January it has been dark for more than half an hour.
So in summer, book the later bus. It is the single most useful thing to know about an evening on an open deck, and the rest of the night bus tours follow the same logic. A closed-top bus such as the three-hour bus from 8th Avenue shows its start time at booking; check it against the table before you choose a date.
Evenings that follow the sun instead
The harbor cruises sold as sunset or harbor lights do not keep a clock time. They are timed to the sunset, so they leave later in summer and earlier in winter, and the time for your date shows at booking. The Harbor Lights cruise from West 42nd Street goes out in the golden hour and comes back under the lights. The NY Waterway golden-hour cruise from West 39th Street is planned to sail through the sunset period, which gives you the day, the dusk and the lights in two hours.
The flights are the most flexible of all. The shared flight from New Jersey lets you choose the departure time, so choose one after full dark for your date: after about 9pm in June, after about 5pm in December.
The two nights the clock moves
Daylight saving time runs from 8 March to 1 November in 2026, and those two dates move the dark by an hour overnight. On 7 March the sun sets at 5:54pm and it is dark at 6:21pm; on 8 March it sets at 6:55pm and is dark at 7:22pm. A 6pm start goes from dusk to daylight in a day. On 1 November it works the other way: sunset jumps back to 4:52pm and full dark to 5:20pm, and every evening that starts after about 5:30pm is dark from then until March.
Using the table for your own dates
Find the row nearest your trip. If you are booking an evening with a fixed start, compare that start with the full-dark column. If your start is later, you get the lights from the first minute; if it is earlier, you get the change from day to night, which some people come for. If you are booking a cruise timed to the sunset, you do not need to choose: the time for your date shows when you book. If you choose your own flight time, pick the first slot after full dark.
If you only have one evening, you can still decide what you see. Book the later departure in summer, an earlier one in winter, and you will be out while the city is lit.
Which season suits which evening
- November to February: dark before most evenings start. Everything is lit from the first minute, and the cold is the price.
- March, September and October: sunset between about 6pm and 7:10pm. An early start sees the lights come on, the change many people come for.
- April to August: light until 7:30pm or later. Book the later departures, or a sunset cruise, which follows the sun wherever it is.
- December: the lights season. Sunset is before 4:35pm all month, so every evening out is in the dark.
What stays open once it is dark
Plenty of the city runs later than the light. The Empire State Building is open until 10pm or 11pm this autumn, depending on the date, with the last entry an hour before closing. SUMMIT One Vanderbilt is open until midnight, with the last entry at 10:30pm, and One World Observatory closes at 9pm. The Staten Island Ferry runs all night, free, and the crossing takes about 25 minutes.
Each of those, with what it looks like after dark, is on things to do at night. The kerbs and piers where the evenings start are on the meeting-point map, and what to expect on the night covers the rest.
Evenings that start at the hour you want
New York Night Tour Open Top Bus Tour
Ninety minutes on an open-top double-decker from 7th Avenue, with a live guide and no stops on foot. It leaves at 6pm and 8pm daily; in summer, only the 8pm bus runs after dark.
From $59 per person
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Sightseeing Night Tour by Open-top Bus with Live Guide
Two hours on an open-top double-decker from 7th Avenue at 48th Street, with a live guide in English and a free drink at the end. Arrive 15 to 30 minutes early; the start times show at booking.
From $67 per person
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New York City Ghost Tour of Greenwich Village
Two hours on foot in Greenwich Village, from 6th Avenue at Waverly Place, starting promptly at 8pm: latecomers may not catch up. Up to 25 walkers, rain or shine.
From $39 per person
Check AvailabilityNext: Pick your month from the table, then choose the start that gives you the light you came for. Every fare sits side by side on New York Night Tours.