Hundreds of families have gathered on The Strand waterfront to ring in the New Year with picnics, sausage sizzles and fireworks.

Hosted by Tauranga City Council, Tauranga residents and visitors are invited to welcome in 2018 with a night of family-friendly events and fireworks.

The night will feature a special kid's countdown at 9.30pm for little ones who can't make it to midnight and New Year's Eve fireworks will also be seen at midnight from across the city.

Mayor Greg Brownless is also cooking up a storm with a free sausage sizzle.

Along with the mayoral barbecue, roving performers, samba, games and more are on hand to keep everyone entertained.

If you can't make it down there, SunLive will bring you photos of the fireworks later on tonight.