New Year 2021 is slowly drawing near. Indeed, many people are starting to get into a tizzy as they try to prepare and endlessly wonder how to celebrate New Year’s Eve this year.
2020 is possibly one of the most significant and toughest years for many people. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many difficulties emerged and changes in people’s lives inevitably transpired. The work from home setting became prevalent, social distancing measures locked up people inside their homes, and many businesses were halted. Above all, the pandemic affected people’s physical and mental health—prompting them to prioritize their safety and well-being.
Due to social distancing measures, ringing in the new year for 2021 means getting locked up inside our homes or having an intimate celebration with just a couple of friends or family members. Although the New Year’s Eve festivities this year could be a little different, they can still be enjoyable and memorable. Indeed, there are lots of things you can do to achieve the perfect New Year’s Eve party for you.
Have a rocking New Year’s Eve celebration while staying in the comforts of your home with these best party ideas.
Traditional New Year’s Eve Party Ideas
Have A Dance Party
Dancing your way through the night is one of the best party ideas you can do. Upon celebrating the New Year 2021 festivities, you can groove to the beat as you blast the songs from your Spotify Wrapped playlist. This is also a great way to look back on the tunes you listened to the most this 2020. On another note, you can have everyone dancing by playing disco tunes from the ’70s. For those who wish to party hard to modern songs, blasting Post Malone or Lady Gaga hits could surely set the mood.
Use Sparklers
A lavish New Year’s Eve celebration won’t be complete without bright sparklers. So, try to gather your loved ones as you light up the night with sparklers when the clock strikes 12. Don’t forget to take cute pictures with them to post on the ‘Gram and help you remember the special day in the years to come.
Mix and Serve Festive Cocktails
Without a doubt, champagne is truly one of the most popular drinks for any New Year’s Eve party. However, you can always try something new this year by mixing and serving festive cocktails of your own making. This is a great way to entertain your guests and even impress them with your bartending skills. Indeed, there’s no better time to have a happy hour than New Year’s Eve.
Put Up New Year Decorations
You can never go wrong with shiny decorations and ornaments for your New Year’s Eve party this year. Give your home a festive flair by adorning your walls with shiny banners. Glittery balloons could also make your party look even more festive. As far as New Year is concerned, there’s no such thing as too much sparkle. So, don’t hold back and go as bright and as shiny as you want with your decorations for the New Year 2021.
Wear Your Best Outfits
An extravagant party demands the best outfits and hairstyles. Learn how to style short hair or achieve the perfect holiday makeup look so you can have an elegant New Year’s Eve fashion style. You can also opt for bold and shiny outfits that would go perfect for your party. Undoubtedly, there are countless ways to help you look and feel good as you welcome the new year with your best holiday style.
Take Lots of Pictures
Throwing a party comes hand in hand with taking lots of pictures. Make sure to capture the best New Year’s Eve images to post on your social media accounts and above all, remind you of the memories you made.
While we’re on the topic of pictures, festive props should also not be overlooked. While you can buy them online, you can always opt for creating your own to save money that you can spend on other things (champagne, maybe?), instead. Crafting glitter-infused props that are related to the holiday could definitely up your photo booth and photography game. Moreover, these props can serve as cool souvenirs or special trinkets that can remind you of the fun holiday you had.
Create A Festive Photo Booth
Make your celebration even more extravagant by setting up a makeshift photo booth through the use of a backdrop. If you weren’t able to prepare for a photo booth, you can just set up a cute little spot where your guests can take new year photos to their hearts’ delight.
Prepare an Extravagant Dinner
Ring in the new year with a great party and most of all, an extravagant and hearty meal. You can whip up the best Christmas dinner ideas and recipes that are truly delightful no matter what occasion you’re celebrating. Moreover, there are a lot of New Year’s Eve buffet menu ideas that you can try this year. These will surely make your holiday dinner even more enjoyable and memorable.
Lucky and Traditional New Year’s Eve Party Ideas
Indulge in Lucky Food
This New Year 2021, reel in good fortune by indulging in lucky food. You can look up New Year’s Eve recipes that people eat from all over the world to make your party a lucky and memorable one. For instance, Latin American countries eat grapes to bring in good luck for the coming new year. Countries from South America also believe that eating green, leafy vegetables can bring good fortune. On the other hand, many Asian families serve and eat round fruits for a lucky New Year’s Eve celebration as well.
Aside from these two, there are other lucky food recipes you can try to prepare. Besides serving various delectable dishes, you can also have an interesting dinner as you share the origin and significance of each one to your guests, too.
Make a Toast for The New Year
Of course, making a toast is one of the New Year’s Eve traditions that you shouldn’t miss out on for your holiday party. Raise your glasses as you reflect on the New Year’s Eve meaning and toast to a prosperous year ahead. Make your party even more fun by serving drinks and boozy desserts to entertain your guests all night long.
Wear Red
Donning red clothes for the Chinese New Year 2021 can help bring good fortune. Chinese people believe that the red color helps ward off bad luck and evil spirits. Moreover, it represents great fortune, and most of all, it symbolizes ultimate happiness.
Make Some Noise
Making noise is one of the customary New Year’s Eve traditions that people believe to bring in good luck. So, get loud as you blow on your horns or bang your pots as the ball drops this new year. Lighting up fireworks could also create a loud noise and bring light into your sky, and hopefully, bring good fortune in your life.
Cozy and Simple New Year’s Eve Party Ideas
Have A New Year’s Eve Movie Marathon
Sometimes, self care comes in the form of a quiet, toned-down celebration. Watching New Year’s Eve movies could definitely keep you more relaxed and at ease.
To help get you in a festive mood, watching Christmas movies could do the trick. Most of all, they offer valuable lessons on friendships, family, and life that could help you welcome the New Year with a change of heart. Eating delicious New Year’s Eve finger foods as you watch the best movies on Netflix could also make your holiday even more snug, pleasant, and worth-remembering.
Play Games With Loved Ones
New Year’s Eve events won’t be complete without party games. Getting loud and festive through games will surely align with the New Year celebration. Playing the best Switch games such as Mario Kart 8 Deluxe could be an enjoyable activity for the whole family. On the other hand, playing the best PS4 games will surely have everyone laughing and cheering. For adults, drinking games will put their brains (and alcohol tolerance) to the test. Indeed, bonding with your friends and family will surely make your holiday a night to remember.
Throw a Cozy Pajama Party
There’s no better way to spend the night, especially New Year’s Eve, in a comfy set of pajamas. If you’re aiming for a cozy and happy New Year’s Eve celebration indoors, why not throw an intimate pajama party? You can invite your loved ones as you welcome the lunar New Year 2021 while you wear your best set of pajamas. With these clothes, you can still take part in the festivities—staying cheerful yet comfortable all the same. The best part? After taking part in the New Year countdown, you can just directly hit the hay and maybe just worry about the party mess in the morning.
Come Up With New Year Resolutions
Welcoming the New Year 2021 with a positive mindset and the right attitude can help you have a great year ahead. Indeed, practicing the art of manifestation can help you achieve some new year resolutions. In turn, this could help lead you to success and acquire personal development.
You could quietly reflect on your New Year 2020 wishes and determine if you achieved them this previous year. If not, you could ponder on how you could attain them this 2021. Looking up and reading New Year’s Eve quotes could also help inspire you as you come up with new ways to make yourself and your life even better.
Bake Party Treats
For an intimate and homely New Year’s Eve party, making party treats and desserts with your family could be a great way to celebrate the night. Having warm cookies and milk while waiting for the New Year’s Eve ball drop moment makes for a relaxing way to welcome the coming year. Moreover, nothing beats the feeling of bonding with the people you care for as you serve and indulge in the food that you all made with love.
Eat Brunch
One of the unique things to do on New Year’s Eve lies in what you eat. For a cozy and different way of welcoming 2021, try skipping typical New Year’s Eve dinner ideas and make the best brunch recipes instead. Whipping up some delicious oatmeal pancakes could make both the young and young-at-heart smile as they watch the fireworks and gobble up their meal.
Giving typical brunch recipes a festive flair and serving them alongside some bubbly champagne could also make them fit the holiday celebration better. The best part: waking up to the first day of the new year will feel even better as you have plenty of brunch leftovers in the morning.
Watch a Virtual New Year’s Eve Countdown
If you aren’t able to travel to famous cities for New Year’s Eve this year, you can always opt to participate in online events and parties as you count down the moments before the ball drops. Watching a New Year’s Eve livestream show could help you appreciate and manifest the holiday’s traditions and essence in the comfort of your home. Above all, you will get to bond more with the people who surround you and matter the most to you.
Meaningful New Year’s Eve Party Ideas
Reminisce on 2020
If you’re wondering what to do on New Year’s Eve, you can always have a sentimental celebration by reminiscing on the previous year’s events and important lessons. Reflect on the meaningful and happy new year message 2020 brought and how it affected your decisions and life milestones this year. Notably, this can also help you prepare for 2021 and keep your well-being in check.
Prepare a Romantic New Year’s Eve Date
Aside from Valentine’s Day, New Year’s Eve also makes for a romantic holiday. Indeed, watching New Year’s Eve fireworks light up the sky could set the romantic and dreamy mood as easily as candles do. If you are spending the holiday with your partner or spouse this year, why not have a meaningful celebration of romance with them?
Have a romantic New Year’s Eve date by preparing a candle-lit dinner for two while dreamy wedding songs play in the background. You can also serenade your significant other with your own rendition of The Carpenters’ sentimental New Year’s Eve song, “What Are You Doing New Year’s Eve.” Additionally, slow dancing your way through the night with dreamy tunes from Taylor Swift could also make for a romantic and memorable New Year celebration.
Take Note of New Year Wishes
For a meaningful New Year’s Eve party, gather your loved ones and share New Year wishes for the year to come. You can come together by the cozy fireplace and exchange stories or reflections on your aspirations for the New Year 2021. Simply writing down your wishes or dreams for the coming year on your own paper sheets could also make your celebration feel more intimate and significant.
Make Up for A Missed Holiday Vacation
This year, you might have canceled holiday or travel plans due to unforeseen circumstances. In turn, your family members might be feeling down and bummed out. Instead of going out for a holiday trip, why not bring the vacation to your home by preparing food and decorations that align with your canceled plans?
If you have missed your supposed French cruise plans for the holiday, try having Mediterranean food as New Year’s Eve appetizers instead. While they are delicious, serving them can also provide you with unique options and dishes to try for the new year. Serving them with champagne could also give you the cruise vacation vibes that you should have experienced.
You can also make up for a missed Disneyland trip and can cheer up the little ones by bringing the magical world of Disney into your home. Decorate your house with the kids’ favorite Disney villains and characters to make them feel like they are meeting them in person. You can also watch movies on Disney Plus as you wait for the ball to drop. Having a Disney trivia quiz night could also excite and hype them up.
Without a doubt, there are a lot of ways and things you can do to make up for a missed holiday vacation this New Year’s Eve. These simple gestures could cheer you up and give your loved ones a memorable celebration, as well.
Create a Scrapbook
A meaningful party idea you can try is creating a scrapbook with your loved ones this new year. This will serve as a great way to bond and look back on 2020 as well. You can collate memorable and happy New Year 2020 images of your memorable moments in the past 12 months. You can also input some New Year quotes that can inspire and motivate you for the year to come.
Throw an Online Party with Relatives
This New Year’s day, why not welcome 2021 with all of your loved ones? Learning how to use Zoom and other online platforms can help bring you and your friends or family together virtually. You can catch up, watch the ball drop, and make significant memories together without needing to travel for miles. Indeed, having an online party for New Year’s Eve could truly make you feel close at heart no matter how far apart you are.
All The Best
We hope that this guide helped you garner fun party ideas to make your New Year 2021 celebration even more enjoyable and above all, truly memorable. Most importantly, we wish for you to have a safe, healthy, and prosperous new year ahead.
Cheers to more memories and milestones to come!
