New Year’s Eve: Customs and traditions at a glance

For many, New Year’s Eve is the highlight of the year. With glittering outfits, delicious food and lots of good humour, people celebrate passionately on the night before a new year dawns. While there are a lot of similarities in how people around Europe celebrate the New Year, there are also many quirky and fun things that are unique to each country. Here are some exciting facts about New Year’s Eve and some interesting New Year’s Eve traditions from throughout Europe.

5 facts about New Year’s Eve and our New Year’s Eve traditions

Who celebrates New Year’s Eve first? Or why do we have fireworks on New Year’s Eve? You can find the answers to these and other questions in our short list of five interesting facts about New Year’s Eve:

  • New Year’s Eve is not celebrated uniformly around the world on 31 December. While we welcome the new year on this day, other countries celebrate the turn of the year later. For example, China traditionally celebrates the New Year on the day of the new moon, which falls between the 21st of January and the 21st of February.
  • People in Samoa are the first to welcome the new year on New Year’s Eve. Their new year begins at 11 am CET. The inhabitants of Baker and Howland Islands are the last to see the new year as the clocks turn midnight at 1 pm on January the 1st CET.
  • The crew of the ISS can celebrate New Year’s Eve 16 times. That’s how often they cross the International Date Line in space.
  • For many, colourful fireworks are an integral part of our New Year’s Eve traditions. Surprisingly, this New Year’s Eve custom dates to the Middle Ages. Even then, a lot of noise was made on the night of the first of January to drive away evil spirits and start a happy new year. This is the reason that traditional lucky charms such as chimney sweeps, ladybirds, four-leaf clovers, or lucky pigs are so popular on New Year’s Eve.
  • Since the earth does not always rotate at the same speed, a leap second may have to be added on 31 December to balance the world time. This makes the last minute of the year one second longer than usual. The Earth Rotation Service (IERS) decides whether to add the second to ignore it. The leap second was last added on New Year’s Eve 2008.

NoteWant to celebrate New Year’s Eve more sustainably? Then consider doing without fireworks, as this can reduce litter and particulate pollution in cities. As an alternative, you can make some noise by playing music or even instruments to drive away the evil spirits. Even without rockets and firecrackers, you can ring in the new year with plenty of fun!

NoteWant to celebrate New Year’s Eve more sustainably? Then consider doing without fireworks, as this can reduce litter and particulate pollution in cities. As an alternative, you can make some noise by playing music or even instruments to drive away the evil spirits. Even without rockets and firecrackers, you can ring in the new year with plenty of fun!

New Year’s Eve in Europe: Customs of countries throughout Europe

How do other European countries celebrate New Year’s Eve? Which beautiful, but also funny New Year’s Eve traditions are lived there? We present a few New Year’s Eve customs in Europe:

  • Austria: Things get very classical at midnight in Austria. The Austrians and especially the Viennese dance the waltz to see the New Year in.
  • Denmark: The Danes start the New Year in a rather strange but fun way. It is customary to jump into the new year from a chair at midnight. This is supposed to bring good luck.
  • Czech Republic: On New Year’s Eve, the Czechs want to see into the future with the help of an apple. The apple is cut in half and if the core is in the shape of a star, it means that the year will be a lucky one. However, if the core forms a cross, the year may not go as planned.
  • Bulgaria: This New Year’s Eve tradition is especially fun for the children. They decorate a branch of the cornelian cherry tree and then parade around the houses on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day, giving everyone a hearty pat on the back with their branches. This is supposed to bring luck and wealth. In return, they receive sweets, biscuits, or some small change.
New Year’s Eve customs: group toasts together with champagne.
  • Italy: In Italy, a very special item of clothing takes on a new meaning on New Year’s Eve. It is traditional to slip into the New Year wearing red underwear. It is supposed to promise luck and success.
  • Spain: Grapes play a very special role in the celebration. At the stroke of midnight, a grape is eaten with every stroke of the bell. Those who master the challenge and eat in time can look forward to some good luck in the new year.
  • Portugal: The Portuguese hope to gain more wealth in the coming year by holding a coin in their hand at midnight.
  • Greece: The Greeks have made it a tradition to gamble until the early hours of the morning on New Year’s Eve. Whether it’s a card game or a dice game, if you win, it’s thought to bring you luck for the year and at the same time you’ve made some extra cash.
  • Germany: Carps are a lucky charm in Germany. Many families will eat carp over the holidays. Some people even keep a carp scale in their wallet as it is thought to guarantee that it will be full of cash all year.

If you are planning a party for New Year’s Eve and are expecting international guests, you can share your New Year’s Eve customs. You can find good tips and ideas for your New Year’s Eve party in our articles. Your New Year’s Eve party is sure to be an unforgettable night.

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New Year’s Eve ideas: A group of friends at a New Year’s Eve dinner.

New Year’s Eve party planning: Tips & checklists

So that you can use the time between Christmas and New Year’s Eve to relax, you should plan your New Year’s Eve party well in advance. You can avoid extra stress by having everything perfectly prepared well in advance of the evening. Whether you want to celebrate as a couple, with the family, or hold a large party – you will find helpful tips and checklists to make the organisation easier. You’ll also find great inspiration if your New Year’s Eve celebration is to be a theme party.

Glittering golden New Year’s Eve decorations and champagne glasses on a table.

Ideas for stylish New Year’s Eve decorations

What would a New Year’s Eve party be without the right decorations? In this article, you’ll find lots of great ideas for decorating your party room to match the New Year’s Eve theme. From the perfect table decoration to sustainable decoration ideas, you’ll find lots of great inspiration here. This will get your guests in the party mood right away and you’ll create the perfect backdrop for your souvenir photos.

Glittering golden New Year’s Eve decorations and champagne glasses on a table.

CheckMany people use lucky clover plants for atmospheric party decorations and as little lucky charms for the New Year. To be sustainable and take proper care of the little plants, you can plant them in a bed in the garden or in a flower box in spring. This way, you’ll give your clover a chance to bloom, grow new leaves and be part of the celebrations again next New Year’s Eve.

CheckMany people use lucky clover plants for atmospheric party decorations and as little lucky charms for the New Year. To be sustainable and take proper care of the little plants, you can plant them in a bed in the garden or in a flower box in spring. This way, you’ll give your clover a chance to bloom, grow new leaves and be part of the celebrations again next New Year’s Eve.

New Year’s Eve games: Group dresses up and takes a photo together.

Fun New Year’s Eve games for your party

To create a good mood and lots of laughs at your party, choose the right party games and keep your guests having fun until midnight. You will find some great game ideas and activities in this article. We present games for small and larger groups that will certainly fit into your party planning.

AttentionIf a rocket or table firework doesn’t work, don’t light it again to avoid accidents. Leave the dud for a few minutes and then extinguish it with water to be on the safe side.

AttentionIf a rocket or table firework doesn’t work, don’t light it again to avoid accidents. Leave the dud for a few minutes and then extinguish it with water to be on the safe side.

New Year’s Eve with children: Family lights sparklers together.

Celebrating New Year’s Eve with children

For children, New Year’s Eve is a very special experience: not only can they marvel at fireworks, but they also often get to stay up just as late as the adults and welcome the New Year. However, the hours until midnight can quickly become very long for the little ones, so clever planning is called for here. In this text, we present various game ideas that will make the hours fly by. We also give tips on how to celebrate the first New Year’s Eve stress-free with a baby.

New Year’s Eve with children: Family lights sparklers together.
Eye shadow, highlighter, and make-up brushes on a dressing table.

Ideas for the perfect New Year’s Eve makeup

To round off your New Year’s Eve outfit, you need a fantastic makeup look. We show you step by step how to perfect your makeup for your party. Even with little experience, you can quickly create an elegant and exciting look for the last night of the year.

References:

https://www.nasa.gov/feature/facts-and-figures
(accessed on 23.11.2021)

https://www.livescience.com/57344-the-origin-of-7-new-years-traditions-revealed.html
(accessed on 23.11.2021)

https://greenglobaltravel.com/celebrate-new-year-traditions-around-the-world/#NEW%20YEARS%20FESTIVALS
(accessed on 23.11.2021)

https://www.visitdenmark.com/denmark/things-do/winter/new-years-eve
(accessed on 23.11.2021)

https://www.austria.info/en/things-to-do/skiing-and-winter/new-years-traditions
(accessed on 23.11.2021)

https://www.winetraveler.com/travel-resources/best-places-to-spend-new-years-in-europe/
(accessed on 23.11.2021)

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(accessed on 23.11.2021)

https://www.dw.com/en/10-german-traditions-on-new-years-eve/a-36648029
(accessed on 23.11.2021)

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