Where to go and where to stay this New Year’s Eve, for couples and friends who want to celebrate in style.
Welcoming in the new year away from home is always a good idea. Celebrations and holidays go hand in hand too. We present five contrasting destinations for your new year’s celebrations.
Madeira
The vibe: Mix a little outdoor adventure with a cute city and the Portuguese penchant for partying.
Madeira is a fun place to be and you can easily combine one big night with four days exploring nature, notably the coastlines and volcanoes. The hiking is superb and fresh air is always a nice way to start the year.
Where to stay: Reid’s Palace, A Belmond Hotel, is the best hotel on the island. It offers a spectacular view over Funchal for the New Year’s Eve fireworks, and a sophisticated party evening.
Getting there: Direct flights from Prague with SmartWings and good options from many other cities in Central Europe.
Don’t miss: An afternoon of wine tasting. Madeira’s distinctive wine is grown on steep volcanic slopes rising up to 800 metres above the Atlantic Ocean. Most the grape varietals are indigenous.
Wildcard idea: Welcome the new year with a sunrise Champagne picnic on top of Madeira’s highest peak. It’s an early start, with a four-wheel drive ride and hike to the summit.
Amalfi (Sorrento)
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The vibe: Chic, over indulgence. New Year’s Eve is an authentic time to visit Sorrento and a quiet time to discover the Amalfi Coast, as most hotels have closed for the season.
Where to stay: Grand Hotel Excelsior Vittoria hosts one of the biggest and most extravagant New Year’s Eve parties in Southern Italy, attracting Italians and foreigners from all over.
It’s the place to be seen and the perfect view across the bay to Mount Vesuvius is a good hangover cure.
Private dinner set up in a suite at Grand Hotel Excelsior VittoriaGetting there: Direct flights from Prague to Naples over the festive period, or from other major cities in Central Europe.
Don’t miss: Rent a vintage Italian car for the day and explore the Amalfi Coast on your own. The roads aren’t blocked like they are in summer and you can find parking at each of the small towns.
Wildcard idea: Take some time to discover Naples. It’s a gritty, passionate and energetic city, great for people who like to explore local neighbourhoods. Stay at Grand Hotel Parker’s.
London
The vibe: A classic New Year destination. Lots of shopping, mega fireworks, a party atmosphere spilling out of the bars onto the cold streets.
Where to stay: Raffles London at the OWO is London’s newest and hottest luxury hotel. It’s historic, glamorous and somehow contemporary at the same time. Plus it’s just across the River Thames from the London Eye, where the New Year’s Eve fireworks show takes place.
Shopping: Festive shopping is huge in London. We suggest getting a personal shopper for the afternoon or the full day. You could get one for Harrods, Selfridges or for discovering the city’s smaller stores and boutiques.
Don’t miss: At least one afternoon tea experience (especially good when it’s raining outside). Try afternoon tea in the art deco Gatsby Room at the Beaumont, or a Victorian-style traditional afternoon tea at Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park.
Benoît Blin, the pastry chef at two-Michelin-star Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons, creates the afternoon tea at The Cadegan, A Belmond Hotel in London. It’s a very refined experience for foodies.
Clubbing? There are always big new year’s parties at clubs like Studio 338, Fabric and Corsica Studios. Londonders will tell you that the new year’s day parties are much better at these well known clubs.
Cape Town
The vibe: Hot, trendy and wild. It’s mid-summer in Cape Town, South Africa, and the city is buzzing with energy, with parties all over and a real holiday feeling.
Cape Town has dozens of superb restaurants, rooftop pools, stylish clubs and places to be seen. Yet the South African city never loses its laid-back and inviting atmosphere.
Where to stay: The Silo Hotel is the trendiest place to stay and its rooftop pool is spectacular. One&Only Cape Town has a resort feel with the city’s best facilities.
Getting there: Lufthansa, KLM and Swiss have good one-stop flights from anywhere in Central Europe. Although it’s a long flight, Cape Town is on a similar time zone as Europe so there’s no jet lag.
NYE plan: An indulgent lunch at Kloof Street House, cocktails in Camps Bay, a rooftop pool bar for sunset, then partying on Long Street. Or Pacha New Years Eve at Cabo Beach Club (where South Africa’s best electronic artists Black Coffee and Goldfish have summer residencies).
Take note: Don’t go to the beach on New Year’s Day. Local tradition dictates that everybody should start the year by swimming in the ocean, so every beach is uncomfortably busy.
Dubai
The vibe: Whatever you want it to be. There are parties galore all across Dubai, plus three mega firework shows.But you can also have a hotel on the beach and spend your time in spas and shops.
Where to stay: A Palmscape room or a suite at Atlantis the Royal. Suites and rooms on the Palm side of the hotel (not the sea side) are prime because they have balconies with views onto all three of the city’s major firework displays. Also check our top hotels in Dubai.
NYE plan: An over the top brunch, followed by the party at Nikki Beach. Or keeping it chill with dinner and then fireworks.
Fireworks? Dubai will have three main firework displays this new year. The show at Burj Khalifa is the largest and what’s beamed live around the world. There’s another at Burj Al Arab and you’ll have a view from anywhere along Jumeirah Beach. Plus a third big show around Atlantis, The Palm.
Wildcard: Combine Dubai with a few days in Oman at Six Senses Zighy Bay. It’s a destination for couples who want to get away from it all over the festive period, or start dry January at a very restorative beachfront place.
Your New Year’s Holiday
These are just selected ideas for New Year’s Eve. Of course we can plan a perfect new year holiday to any other destination that inspires you.
We have great local partners in destinations all across the world, giving us recommendations about where to stay, dine and party over the festive season. They also help us secure entrance to the hottest parties and events.
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