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8 Best Destinations to Spend the New Year in Europe
Are you looking for a change this year? Are you in the mood to travel this New Year and explore new ways to celebrate it?
Lucky you! We have compiled a list of 8 best destinations to spend the New Year in Europe. Find out which countries have the most unique traditions or the fanciest ways to say goodbye to the old year and welcome the new one.
8 Best New Year Destinations in Europe:
- Scotland - Hogmanay
- Spain - 12 lucky grapes
- Denmark - jumping into the New Year
- Austria - waltzing into the New Year
- Bulgaria - festive banitsa and branches with popcorn
- Portugal - coins and a festive ocean dip
- Ukraine - ashes in champagne glasses
- Italy - red underwear
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Scotland - Hogmanay
Scotland topping the list of best destinations to spend the New Year in Europe doesn’t surprise anyone. Even if you haven’t visited the country, you have probably heard of the flourish with which the Scotts celebrate the New Year.
Hogmanay is the Scottish word for the last day of the year, but the festivities usually stretch far beyond the 31st of December. They can last for three or four days straight, and they are not for the faint of heart.
For 400 years, Christmas celebrations were banned in Scotland. During that time, the Scotts had to bottle up all the joy and merriment of the holiday for an extra week. Once they let it explode, they went all out—and they still do, even though Christmas is legally celebrated nowadays.
Hogmanay is full of fire shows, open-air parades, concerts, fireworks, and, of course, unbridled joy. The most famous festivities take place in Edinburgh, but you can celebrate anywhere in the country.
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Spain - 12 lucky grapes
It should come as no surprise that the origin country of the word “fiesta” is high on the list of best places to spend New Year in Europe. The Spanish don’t need a reason to celebrate, so it gets even better when they do have it.
If you are familiar with partying “the Spanish way”, you know that the local fiestas start late into the night and last until the morning. Spain isn’t the right place to spend New Year’s Eve for those who only wait until midnight to see the fireworks to go to sleep immediately afterwards.
However, what really makes celebrating the New Year in Spain different is the local custom of ingesting 12 grapes at the strike of midnight. You need to pop these bad boys like there’s no tomorrow with every chime of the clock. One second is not enough to chew and swallow each grape, so it does take some practice!
Each successfully ingested grape is supposed to bring good luck for one month of the new year. So, if you give up halfway through, you’re in for 6 months of misfortune.
Luckily, Spanish supermarkets sell special packets of grapes just for this occasion. Each packet contains exactly 12 small and seedless grapes to ensure a smooth and safe experience.
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Denmark - jumping into the New Year
The Danes may not be primarily known as a particularly party-loving nation, but they can celebrate when given an occasion. After 11 o’clock, the streets of Copenhagen are flooded with people making their way to Rådhuspladsen (City Hall Square) to watch the fireworks show.
But the Danish people have one unique tradition that not many outsiders know about - they jump into the new year. Right before midnight, the Danes climb onto tables, chairs, or any other available pieces of furniture, and jump off when the clock strikes midnight.
This ensures that they enter the new year with a bang - literally. Jumping is supposed to bring prosperity, fortune, and success in the new year. And hey, who wouldn’t want an excuse to dance on a table for a little while?
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Austria - waltzing into the New Year
Austrians celebrate the new year with a gusto. Their country brings to mind classicism, culture, and good taste - and their New Year celebrations are no different.
People in Austria waltz into the new year - literally. They begin the countdown to midnight with a dance to Blue Danube Waltz, honouring their national musical legend, Johann Strauss. This tradition is especially popular in the streets of Vienna, but who says you can’t spring into waltz anywhere else.
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Bulgaria - festive banitsa and branches with popcorn
What does Bulgaria have in common with Spain? At first, you may think, not much. But both countries have New Year traditions associated with food.
However, the Bulgarian custom doesn’t require you to stress-swallow anything. The tradition is actually quite pleasant.
Bulgarians prepare a festive banitsa - a special kind of pie made of filo pastry and cheese. They write good fortunes on small pieces of paper, then wrap them in tin foil and hide them within bantisa. Whoever finds them is believed to enjoy good luck in the new year.
Another Bulgarian custom is especially fun for children - although we say it should be socially acceptable for adults to cultivate it as well. Before the New Year, children look for twigs, branches, or sticks, which they decorate with ribbons and popcorn.
On New Year's Day, they chase adults around and - gently - pat them on the back with their festive twigs while singing a special poem. The targeted adults are expected to reward them with money and sweets.
You see what we mean by saying that adults should be allowed to do it as well? Who wouldn’t want a free pass to smack people around and get paid for it?
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Portugal - coins and a festive ocean dip
How can a nation with access to the ocean celebrate the New Year? By a festive ocean dip, of course!
The bold ones in Portugal welcome the new year shoulders-deep in the freezing water. Some do it during the day on the 1st of January, others at the stroke of midnight on the 31st of December.
Another more common tradition is to enter the New Year while holding a coin. It can be clutched in your hand or hidden in your pocket - as long as it’s on you when the clock strikes midnight, you can expect good fortune in the upcoming year.
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Ukraine - ashes in champagne glasses
What’s better than celebrating New Year’s Eve? Celebrating it twice, of course!
According to the Orthodox calendar, New Year’s Eve falls 2 weeks after the Gregorian one, on the 14th of January. While most Ukrainians are gradually switching to celebrating on the 31st of December, some prefer to stick to the old date - or, even better, celebrate twice.
Regardless of when or how many times they celebrate, they do so with a special tradition. In Ukraine, it is customary to write your wish on a piece of paper. Afterwards, you burn it and sprinkle the ashes into your champagne glass. Drinking it at the midnight toast is supposed to make the wish come true - but you have to down your champagne until the last drop!
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Italy - red underwear
Italians say ciao to the New Year with good wine and good food. But they aren’t immune to some minor superstitions related to the New Year celebrations, either.
When celebrating New Year’s Eve in Italy, you should wear red underwear. It is said to bring good luck for the next 12 months.
The custom is also popular in many other countries, such as Spain, Portugal, and Turkey. It has also evolved over the years - different colours of underwear are now said to manifest different things.
Red is supposed to bring good luck in love, yellow ensures prosperity, white attracts peace, and green gives hope. However, most people are familiar with the simplified version and don red knickers under their festive garments.
Which of these best destinations to spend the New Year strikes your attention the most? The great thing is that you don’t even have to travel to try out some of these traditions. You can pop grapes, jump off chairs, and dance waltz anywhere in the world!
Now is the best time to adopt a brand-new custom to celebrate the New Year. At ELJ, we wish you all the best things in the upcoming year. However you enter it, we hope it will be kind to you!
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