Where’s a good place in Europe to go for a short touristy break and enjoy New Year’s Eve? (Somewhere that isn’t the UK, because that’s where I live).
Last year I picked Vienna, almost at random, and it proved to be a great choice: excellent touristy city, friendly place, easy to enjoy, truly brilliant NY EVE celebrations where they turn the whole city into one massive, well-organised steet party.
While we’re at it, anyone care to recommend good travel-based websites where I can ask other people questions like this?
I spent New Years Eve in Barcelona once. It was pretty fun. Everyone stands in the main square to count down and it’s traditional to eat grapes. When midnight struck, there were so many bottles of champagne being opened, we thought that they had turned on a fountain or something.
Other than that though, the streets were pretty dead. The people at our hotel told us that most locals pay a lot of money to get into a private club for the night.
Don’t know if this helps, but I can tell you where to avoid!
Berlin - it is a madhouse - they start selling fireworks a week before and by about 10:30 PM on NYE you have wild-eyed drunks shooting Roman candles directly at you from balconies when you walk along the street. The entire city smells like rotting eggs from the sulfur and the next day, the streets are littered with burnt out fireworks everywhere. As much as I dearly love Berlin, New Year’s Eve is one night I wouldn’t wish my worst enemy to have to experience. I usually stayed home, or took a taxi and went out after 2:00 AM when it calmed down somewhat.
However, I have heard that Prague is simply beautiful on NYE, but having never been there, am only going on what I have heard. You might look into that option.