What is the best place to celebrate New Year’s Eve? There are so many options.
In this blogpost I will tell about the best spots to say happy new year and where to stay during this holiday!
London
Fireworks and lights! There are so many options if it comes to lights. Do you like to see some nice sparkling lights? In London, The New Year’s Eve fireworks are light up big in central London. An evening with spectacular dazzling fireworks! If you want to watch the NYE fireworks in the city, you need to buy ticket, but you can also watch it live on television. Obviously you have fireworks, but what about the enchanting sparkling lights? You can see a magical trail of sparkling lights after dark at Christmas at Kew or the Magical Lantern Festival in Chiswick. There is never enough lights! At the Shard you can watch a special New Year’s Eve light show. To start the new year day nice as possible, you can start it off with the London New Year’s Day Parade 2018, which sees around 10,000 performers through Central London.
Lisbon
Start of the evening with a nice dinner! Get a taste of typical dishes from Portugal. As you maybe already know, Portugal is known for nice seafood. One of the most popular seafood restaurants in Lisbon is Cervejaria Ramiro. To get that amazing view of fireworks, you can go up to São Pedro de Alcântara Belvedere or St. George’s Castle. It’s gives a extra and special feeling when you see the fireworks on the high points in Lisbon. An alternative to watch fireworks is Parque das Nações, it is in a more modern area in the city. For a magical evening, you can walk along the river to the Tower. The Belém Tower is a nice place to see the fireworks. It gives you also a different feeling then if you´re watching fireworks in the city center. Nearby you can have a great dinner and then you can walk along the river to the Tower. For a calmer vibe, you can visit some Fado Houses. In the Fado Houses you can enjoy live Fado (traditional Portuguese singing). One of the most common Portuguese tradition is to eat twelve raisins with sparkling wine. Some say that each raisin is for each stroke at midnight. The raisins stands for each month of the year. You can make wish for each raisin! A traditional Portuguese cake (Bolo-Rei) is usually eaten between Christmas (25th December) and Dia de Reis (Kings Day) on the 6th January. Want to try it? Go to the beautiful tea house Confeitaria Nacional in Lisbon to experience the taste!
Barcelona
In Barcelona you can go to several big events. The official Barcelona New Year’s Celebration called the Barelona New Year Chimes celebration at the ‘’Font Màgica de Montjuïc’’ (Montjuïc fountain). It starts at 11:30 pm and is officially not a party but a ceremony. It’s perfect if you’re celebrating with your family! The celebration is one big show with performing arts, live music and big fireworks at midnight. For the real party people, Barcelona has many great NYE parties. It is smart to buy the tickets in advance. One of the biggest NYE party’s in Barcelona is at Poble Espanyol. A Spanish tradition is to eat 12 grapes before midnight. The twelve grapes represent each month of the year and Spaniards eat it with every chime of the clock at midnight for good luck! Other traditions are wearing red lingerie: The red stands for love and it is supposed to bring you luck to fall in love this year! And before midnight, the Spaniards drop a golden object into their glass of Cava before the midnight toast. You have to drink the entire glass of Cava for good luck.
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is one of the popular cities in Europe to celebrate New Year´s eve! You can enjoy the fireworks around the canals, but be careful when you walk! You’ll find many street parties at the city’s main squares such as Dam square, Rembrandtplein, Nieuwmarkt and Leidseplein. At these places you’ll able to find cozy beer tents, music and fireworks! If you’re in Amsterdam at this time, it’s worth to visit the Amsterdam light festival. It is running from 1 December 2017, until 21 january 2018. You can see light sculptures around the Canal Ring, and the canals are illuminated with full of colorful lights! A typical dutch New Year´s Eve celebration wouldn´t be complete without eating ´´oliebollen´´ (oily balls). It is one of the most common thing to eat at midnight on New Year´s eve. You’ll find them sold at street vendors throughout the city. It is also made by the people themselves at home.
Paris
If you’re going to Paris at New Year’s eve, you definitely can’t miss the Champs-Elysées. It is the center of the party and it starts around 9 pm. Also it’s a great point of view of the Eiffel Tower. The Eiffel Tower Sparkles and is full of lights at the stroke of midnight. There are many spots to go if you want to dance or dining before or after midnight in this area. There will be a special event at the Arc de Triomphe in 2017/2018. This event will be announced later. On January 1st, 2018, a New Year’s parade will proceed down the Camps-Elysées, starting around 1:00 pm. Grab you glass of champagne and ‘’Bonne Année!’’
Milan
In Milan you can enjoy and spend your evening on 31 December, on different squares. The most historic and popular squares are the Piazza Duomo or Piazza Castello. The night will be filled with colorful fireworks and a lot of Italian live concerts! You’ll have a pleasant evening and raise up that glass of bubbles! Keep in mind that restaurants and clubs in the Duomo are usually closed for safety reasons. The concert in Piazza Duomo, has live performances by Italian musicians from 8 am to midnight.
Prague
Prague is amazing to celebrate New Year. The city has many historical sights, so It’s perfect to first visit some nice sights and then see the beautiful firework display. The fireworks are launched by various organizations and many locals! Prague has 2 big popular squares: Wenceslas Square and the Old Town Square. There are many fireworks on the streets, so be careful if you’re going as a family with little children. Another popular spot is the Charles bridge. You can view the fireworks at the streets along the river or view the bridge from the restaurant ‘’Kampa Park’’ if you want a warmer option with a great meal. You can also party the night away on a boat along the Vltava River. On the boats you can get a buffet-style dinner, champagne and enjoy the fireworks at midnight.
Dubrovnik
A big Winter Festival?! In Dubrovnik you have an amazing one. It will begin with the lighting of the first advent candle, followed by a performance of Croatian pop singer Gibonni in front of the church of St. Blaise at 9 pm. The festival is running from 2 December until 6 January. You have also the ability to tasting various and typical creation food at the Holliday cottages on Dubrovnik streets and squares. The New Year celebration on 31 December, starts officially at 10AM. There is a special New Year’s Eve celebration for children that starts at noon where ‘’Severina’’ will give fun to children of all ages can enjoy the evening. Severina is Croatian singer and will be also the big star of the night.
Istanbul
Istanbul is not the first city you´ll think about if it comes to celebrating New Year. But it is actually a nice city to spend the evening here. Even though Christmas isn´t celebrated in this region, New Year’s Eve comes alive and there are still events going. Turkish people love fireworks so in the city it´s quite spectacular. Also there are a lot of parties. There are special parties with belly dancers for a specia; vibe. For a nice atmosphere you can visit the Taksim Square and Istiklal street. In the evening, there will be fireworks at midnight that are launched from several points around the city. The most popular point to go for fireworks is the Bosphorus Bridge. Enjoy the stunning skyline and amazing fireworks at night!
Buenos Aires
Not searching for a city in Europe during New Year’s eve? In Buenos Aires you can also enjoy the nice vibes during this special occasion! Take a walk around the Puerto Madero area. Watch the fireworks from the famous Puente de la Mujer. It starts around 10pm and you have great view around the river. The bridge is lighten up and the colors will amaze you! You can make it cozy by yourself to bring a glass of bubbles to have a great quality time with friends or/and family. For a more romantic night, you can visit El Palacio Barolo. You will follow a tour and it ends shortly just before midnight in the building’s lighthouse, where you have a great view of the fireworks display. For Nice restaurants and bars near the area you can walk along the Avenida.
We wish everyone the best in 2018!
