For some people, New Year’s Eve is just a night like any other, and bedtime remains the same. We know those people as parents of young children. (I’m one myself, so I can speak with authority here: if my wife and I stay up late on December 31st, our toddler is still going to wake up in the 6 AM hour on January 1st. And five hours of sleep is no way to start off a year, dammit.)
Besides, why stay up until after midnight just because the calendar will read a different year when comes the morning, anyway? Why pound glass after glass of champagne? Why all the music, the glitz, the fireworks, and other such whatnot? Oh, right… because it’s fun to cut loose and party, especially when you have a globally accepted excuse to do so. And indeed New Year’s Eve is one of the biggest party nights of the year no matter where on earth you go.
Related: New Year’s Even Champagne FTW
But just how are people the world over celebrating this special night? Well…
In the United States…
…the most famous New Year’s Eve celebration takes place in downtown New York City’s famed Times Square. As many as a million people will flock to Gotham’s crowded heart to listen to Anderson Cooper and Kathy Griffin attempt to create witty banter and await the midnight drop of the Big Ball, which is a sphere sporting 2,688 Waterford Crystals and illuminated by more than 32,250 LED lights. As for where one goes to relieve oneself during this gather, I have no idea… but that’s what I wonder every year.
In Brazil…
…they take partying pretty seriously. In fact, the party that takes place in Rio de Janeiro has set past records as the largest New Year’s Eve party on earth, with estimates of more than four million revelers taking part in the festivities. A four kilometer-long stretch of the city’s beach will be occupied by celebrations, fireworks blast off in a massive 20-minute display at midnight, and restaurants open at 3 AM on New Year’s Day to start catering to the horde of drunks stumbling off the sand or away from the city’s squares.
In Australia…
…it’s all about the fireworks. On any average day the average Australian person consumes three to four gallons of beer, so there’s hardly a noticeable uptick in the boozing on New Year’s Eve down under. But if you like watching things explode in the sky, then get yourself to the waterfront in Sydney, because boy oh boy do the Aussies do fireworks right! There will be two displays, one taking place at 9 PM, the other at midnight. An estimated seven tons of explosives will be detonated in the form of more than 23,000 individual fireworks, all of it going up in smoke in just about 12 minutes.
In India…
…you’re going to want to go to Goa. At least, if you’re a tourist visiting India during the New Year holiday, Goa is the place to be. Residents and visitors alike add up to a party populace of well over one million people, but carefully orchestrated security means that this is a relatively safe spot to party. Get ready for lots of dancing, drinks, and soft sandy beaches. Just make sure to book your hotel room way in advance if you want to stay in style.
In Japan…
…you can actually expect a more subdued, traditional approach to the New Year than in most other major, developed nations. Rather than cutting loose and partying with abandon, many Japanese use the occasion to honor old customs, such as visiting shrines, the ringing of temple bells, the donning traditional clothing, and waiting for the sunrise on New Year’s Day, a ritual that’s supposed to help bring luck during the New Year. Of course that doesn’t mean Japan doesn’t know how to party: parts of downtown Tokyo, like the Shinjuku Ni-chome neighborhood, will see plenty of booze, fireworks, carousing, and general revelry.
