Around the world, the transition between one year and the next is filled with fanfare, but some places take it to the next level with their New Year festivities. In these seven cities around the globe, you can welcome the new year by visiting a shrine, learning to waltz, or swaying to the beat of a colorful parade. Whether you want to roll into 2026 in North America, Europe, Asia, or Oceania, these are our picks for seven of the most festive cities for New Year’s Eve fun. Note that some of the recommend hotels below may be fully booked for December 31, 2025, but bookmark this guide for 2026.
New York City, United States
New York City is arguably the most famous place to spend New Year’s in the United States. The heart of all the pent-up excitement is in Times Square, where a nearly 12,000-pound sphere descends as soon as the new year hits. (It’s a tradition that’s been a part of the city since 1907.) If you decide to see the spectacle in person, get there early; about a million people gather to see it. If you want a less crowded, more heart-pumping way to ring in the new year, New York City Marathon organizers the New York Road Runners have an annual four-mile race in Central Park that starts at midnight.
Where to stay: Kimpton Hotel Theta
If you’re going to pack in for the ball drop at Times Square, book somewhere nearby to bed down for the night. On the border between the Theater District and Hell’s Kitchen is the 364-room Kimpton Hotel Theta, a space so calming that it’s named “theta” after the type of brain waves that occur when you’re dreaming or deeply relaxed. This is one of 16 stylish, affordable New York City Hotels we love, though of course New Year’s Eve rates will be higher than average. Rooms have a palette of warm woods, concrete grays, and deep, soothing blues, with soft lighting and accents of mossy green. Don’t miss the rooftop Bar Sprezzatura, which serves spritzes and cicchetti (aka Italian tapas).
Related: Times Square Is Not Just for Tourists: A Surprising Guide to New York City’s Most Polarizing Neighborhood
Edinburgh, Scotland
To celebrate the New Year, Edinburgh hosts a three-day party with a torchlight parade and polar plunge.
Photo by Marco Bicci/Shutterstock
Hogmanay is Edinburgh’s giant end-of-year party. Celebrations on the 31st are similar to those in any world capital—live music, fireworks, and general revelry—but with more tradition, including a procession in which pipers and drummers lead torch-wielding locals on a medieval-like procession through the Old Town.
Even better, you can celebrate New Year’s Eve twice in Scotland. Drive north to the small coastal town of Burghead to take part in the Burning of the Clavie, an ancient pagan ritual that gained steam in the 1750s when the Catholic Church replaced the Julian calendar with the Gregorian one. The decision moved the first day of the New Year back by 11 days, but instead of rioting like the rest of Scotland, Burghead locals simply decided to observe both holidays.
After celebrating on January 1, they gather on January 11 to honor what they still consider the real New Year’s Day, walking a burning barrel full of staves, or wooden sticks (the clavie), through town before leaving it to fall down a hill. Grab a piece of charred wood; it’ll supposedly bring you luck in the New Year.
Where to stay: 23 Mayfield
Bed-and-breakfast 23 Mayfield is housed in a stately Victorian with seven bedrooms filled with carved mahogany furniture, south of the city center and close to Arthur’s Seat. In the bathroom are toiletries from Noble Isle, which uses extracts and botanicals from the United Kingdom. Fuel up in the morning with a traditional Scottish breakfast, then sip whisky on the chesterfield sofas next to the fire after a day touring around Edinburgh. Note: As of press time, this hotel was fully booked for December 31, 2025. Consider 100 Princes Street, InterContinental Edinburgh The George, W Edinburgh, and Kimpton Charlotte Square Hotel.
Related: How to Have the Perfect Long Weekend in Edinburgh, According to Locals
Osaka, Japan
When in Osaka, start the New Year with a temple visit and traditional foods like prawns, herring roe, and mochi.
Photo by Komsitt Vikittikornkul/Shutterstock
In Japan, the New Year begins with a wholesome focus. Shōgatsu (New Year) is usually celebrated with a visit to the local temple to exchange last year’s lucky charms for new ones. At Osaka’s Sumiyoshi Taisha temple, about 2 million people visit during the first three days of January in a custom known as hatsumōde, the first Shinto shrine visit of the year. Queues can be hours long, but head to smaller shrines and temples, such as Tsuyuten Shrine or Isshinji Temple, and you’ll find an equally atmospheric event without the long wait.
Afterward, be sure to feast on traditional New Year foods. Packed neatly into a tiered jūbako box, osechi-ryōri are the snacks of the season and include prawns (believed to bring a long life), herring roe (to boost fertility), and mochi (rice cake). You can purchase the bento box–like treats from department stores or supermarkets throughout the holiday season.
Where to stay: Four Seasons Hotel Osaka
One of the newest debuts in this Japanese port city is the Four Seasons Hotel Osaka, which opened in August 2024. The 175-room hotel offers Japanese hospitality and service with a Western twist. It features references to Japan throughout, with grand lacquerware art pieces like a floating black rock at the entrance, or elevators in dark red lacquer that evoke torii gates. In the lobby at the Cha tearoom, on display are Kaikado tea canisters handmade by shokunin craftspeople in Kyoto. There are spacious Western rooms on the 29th to 35th floors, while the 28th floor, called Gensui, offers 18 ryokan rooms with tatami straw mats. On a visit from her home base of Tokyo, Afar contributor Yukari Sakamoto was most impressed by the hotel’s approach to dining, which reflects the sophisticated palate of Osaka residents and the city’s warm hospitality.
Related: The 23 Best Luxury and Boutique Hotels in Japan
Madrid, Spain
One of Madrid’s well-known squares, Puerta del Sol, is home to one of the country’s biggest celebrations. For New Year’s Eve, people head to the area to see the clock strike 12 on the Real Casa de Correos building. (Expect confetti, cava, and churros.) Arrive a few hours before midnight, as space is limited in the square.
Don’t forget to bring some grapes. A Spanish tradition demands you eat 12 in quick succession, one for each ring of the bell at midnight.
Where to stay: Brach Madrid
From the New Year’s Eve festivities in Puerta del Sol, it’s less than 10 minutes’ walk to starchitect Philippe Starck’s newest project, which opened in January 2025 in a 1920s building on one of Madrid’s central boulevards, Gran Via. Starck has said he wanted Brach Madrid to feel like a home, and it does; there are lamps, vases, shelves of books, and throw pillows throughout. In the 57 guest rooms are leather headboards backed by an illustrated travel diary wallpaper and unusual decor elements like the green glazed terra-cotta frames on the mirrored bathroom walls.
Nassau, The Bahamas
Pace yourself on New Year’s Eve in the Bahamas, because the Junkanoo Festival makes some noise in the early hours of January 1.
Photo by Montez Kerr/Shutterstock
Tired of the winter chill that comes with New Year celebrations in the Northern Hemisphere? Fly to the balmy Bahamas, where people spend the first day of January celebrating Junkanoo. The origin of the celebration is still up for debate, but the most popular theory is that it came to be during the 1700s, when enslaved people were given a three-day break during the Christmas season, which they used to celebrate with friends and family.
Nowadays, Junkanoo is celebrated on two days: Boxing Day (December 26) and January 1. Celebrations officially begin at 2 a.m. (giving you a couple hours for a disco nap after saluting the new year) and include colorful costumes, goatskin drums, and plenty of dancing. Bahamians everywhere will be in on the celebration, but much of the hoopla will be concentrated on downtown Nassau’s Bay Street.
Where to stay: The Ocean Club, a Four Seasons Resort
This sprawling resort on Paradise Island, less than 10 minutes’ drive from downtown Nassau, has been operating since 1962. All 107 rooms and suites have private terraces or balconies and look out onto either the ocean or 35 acres of terraced gardens inspired by Versailles. The resort sits on eight miles of sugary white-sand beach, and if the Atlantic is too chilly, try the infinity or family-friendly lagoon pools. Note: as of press time, this hotel was fully booked for December 31, 2025.
Vienna, Austria
The event Silvesterpfad is more than 30 years old.
Photo by Marti Bug Catcher/Shutterstock
Hundreds of thousands of people come to Austria’s capital for Silvesterpfad, which translates to “New Year’s Eve trail.” The public party starts December 31 at 2 p.m. in Vienna’s Old Town and lasts until 2 a.m. on January 1. The event is spread across eight locations: Rathausplatz, Freyung, Am Hof, Graben, Stephansplatz, Kärntner Straße, Neuer Markt, and the winter market at Riesenradplatz in the Prater. Walk around and you’ll find art installations, waltzing, and plenty of cheer.
For classical music fans, the Vienna Philharmonic also hosts a festive concert on January 1. The event is extremely popular; ticket registrations open in February for the following year, but you can still catch the program on TV, as it’s broadcast in more than 90 countries.
Where to stay: Mandarin Oriental, Vienna
The brand new Mandarin Oriental, Vienna opened in December 2025 in a handsome art nouveau building from the early 1900s; the hotel has 86 rooms and 52 suites with parquet, period molding, and art nouveau black-and-white marble bathrooms. The hotel is five minutes’ walk from pretty Stadtpark, the Museum of Applied Arts, and the Mozart Museum.
Sydney, Australia
Head to Australia for a fireworks show over Australian landmarks, including the Sydney Opera House.
Photo by Pandora Pictures/Shutterstock
Australia is one of the first countries to experience the new year, so you’ll party before everyone else. And Sydney, the country’s most populous city, knows how to throw down. For New Year’s Eve, several events take place on Sydney’s waterfront.
At 7:30 p.m., the Tribal Warrior Association completes a purification ritual on vessels in the water, while boats covered in lights sail through the harbor at 9:15 p.m. Celebrations culminate at midnight, when fireworks shoot from landmarks that include the Sydney Harbour Bridge and Sydney Opera House. To get a premium view of the show, check out the designated vantage points throughout the city.
Where to stay: The Eve Hotel Sydney
The Eve Hotel Sydney opened in February 2025; the hotel’s owners used local designers and textiles to craft the vibe of this very chic hotel, right where Surry Hills meets Redfern: 102 rooms in soft curves and organic fabrics, many with Juliet balconies fringed with ivy, and gardens from ground to rooftop, fully embracing Sydney’s love of the outdoors. On the rooftop are some of the best amenities: Lottie, an all-weather Mexican restaurant and mezcaleria, and a serene 20-meter pool with red cabanas (open 6 a.m. to 10 p.m.!).
This article was originally published in 2019 and most recently updated on December 10, 2025, with current information. Chloe Arrojado and Sophie Friedman contributed to the reporting of this story.
