LIVE: Thousands in Las Vegas to ring in the New Year with fireworks, parties

LAS VEGAS (KLAS) -- Las Vegas is putting on a major party for New Year's Eve, following a subdued celebration last year. More than 300,000 New Year's Eve revelers are expected to ring in 2022 on the famous Las Vegas Strip.

One of the most visited streets in the world will be closed to vehicle traffic -- it only happens once a year -- and become a pedestrian party scene.

A spectacular fireworks show is planned on the Strip with fireworks being launched from the rooftops of eight resort properties, including the newly opened Resorts World. The other casinos that will take part in the 8-minute show are The STRAT, The Venetian Resort, Treasure Island (TI), Caesars Palace, Planet Hollywood, Aria, and MGM Grand. "Deuces Wild" is the theme for this year's fireworks show.

If you can't be there in person, you can still see it all. Nexstar Media Inc.’s Las Vegas television station, KLAS-TV, will host “Countdown to New Year’s Eve 2022,” a live New Year’s Eve special with coverage tonight from 8:58 p.m. to 12:35 a.m. PT, featuring live musical performances, special entertainment, a countdown to midnight across all four-time zones, the midnight ball-drop in New York City, and spectacular firework shows from Dallas’ Reunion Tower and from Denver’s downtown area, as well as the Las Vegas fireworks.

The show will air in the following 13 cities: Los Angeles, San Diego, Sacramento, San Francisco, Portland, Denver, Salt Lake City, Albuquerque, Honolulu, Fresno, Bakersfield, Grand Junction, and Colorado Springs.

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Airbnb adds restrictions to Fourth of July rentals, parties

SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) -- The Fourth of July is one of the major U.S. holidays to come as the country continues to ramp up COVID-19 vaccinations and ease capacity and face mask rules.

But even as the CDC advises that fully vaccinated people are protected enough to do away with face masks, Airbnb has not appeared to change its own rules to keep parties out of rentals.

In April, Airbnb announced that "guests without a history of positive reviews on Airbnb will be prohibited from making one night reservations in entire home listings in the United States during July 4th weekend."

"As the July 4 weekend approaches, we are deploying more stringent restrictions on one and two-night reservations that may pose heightened risk for parties," Airbnb adds. "For example, we will leverage our technology that restricts certain local and last-minute bookings by guests without a history of positive reviews on Airbnb and also block reservations within an expanded radius."

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The company first initiated a global ban on using Airbnb rentals to host parties back in August 2020, just before the COVID-19 pandemic hit a new deadly low.

The ban prevents more than 16 people from gathering in the rental. Guests who are caught violating the party ban can be suspended or removed from the platform.

And rental hosts are impacted too.

If a host authorized a rental that violates the party policy, Airbnb said it would remove the listing, and in some cases suspend the host.

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"Hosts should not attract disruptive parties and events in their home by advertising their space as party- or event-friendly. Similarly, hosts should not advertise their space for gatherings larger than 16 people," according to Airbnb.

The company said anyone who booked a one night reservation for July 4 prior to April 12, 2021 -- when the 'Summer of Responsible Travel' plan launched -- will be able to keep their reservation, even if they do not have the required history of positive reviews.

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