Most New Year traditions around the world aim at the same three things: luck, money and a clean break from the year just ended. Spain eats twelve grapes on the twelve strokes of midnight, Brazil dresses in white and jumps seven waves, Denmark leaps off chairs at midnight, Japan rings temple bells 108 times, and Colombia walks around the block with an empty suitcase to bring travel in the coming year. If you are spending New Year's Eve abroad, knowing the local custom tells you what to pack, what to eat and where to stand at midnight.
This guide groups the best-known customs by what they are meant to bring, explains where each one comes from and how visitors can join in, and links to our full New Year 2027 guide for each country. Customs vary from family to family and from region to region, so treat these as what you are most likely to see, and follow your hosts when you are invited into a home.
New Year traditions at a glance
The best-known New Year customs travellers can join are Spain's twelve grapes on the midnight chimes, Brazil's white clothes and seven waves on Copacabana, Denmark's jump off a chair at midnight and Japan's 108 temple bell strikes. The table shows when each happens and whether visitors can take part.
The table lists the customs travellers ask about most, with the moment each one happens and whether a visitor can easily take part.
| Country | Tradition | When it happens | Can visitors join? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spain | Twelve grapes, one on each chime | The twelve strokes of midnight | Yes, in any square or at a hotel dinner |
| Brazil | White clothes, jumping seven waves, flowers for Iemanjá | Around midnight on the beach | Yes, on Copacabana and most city beaches |
| Denmark | Jumping off a chair at midnight; broken plates on doorsteps | Midnight, at home or at parties | The jump, yes; plates are for friends' homes |
| Japan | Joya no kane, 108 bell strikes; first shrine visit | Late evening into the first days of January | Yes, many temples let the public ring the bell |
| Colombia | Walking the block with an empty suitcase; yellow underwear | Just after midnight | Yes, it is done in the street |
| Philippines | Twelve round fruits, polka dots, jumping at midnight | The Media Noche meal and midnight | Yes, if you are invited to a family meal |
| Scotland | First-footing at Hogmanay | The first visitor after midnight | Yes, with a small gift |
| Greece | Vasilopita cake with a hidden coin | Midnight or New Year's Day | At a family table or a bakery cutting |
| Italy | Lentils for money; red underwear | The New Year's Eve dinner | Yes, most restaurants serve lentils that night |
| Germany | Watching "Dinner for One"; lucky charms | Evening television and midnight | Yes, it is on TV in most homes |
Traditions for good luck
Luck is the most common reason behind a New Year custom. The ideas are simple and repeat across continents: start the year with the right foot, the right first visitor or the right food, and the months ahead should follow.
Spain: twelve grapes at midnight
In Spain, people eat one grape on each of the twelve chimes at midnight, one grape for each month. Finishing all twelve before the last chime is meant to bring a lucky year, and failing usually ends in laughter and a mouth full of fruit. The custom became widespread in the early 1900s, and the main gathering is at the Puerta del Sol clock in Madrid, which national television shows live. Supermarkets sell tins of twelve peeled, seedless grapes in December for people who want to avoid choking on seeds against the clock.
Visitors can join in almost anywhere. Hotels and restaurants that serve a New Year's Eve dinner usually hand out a small cup of grapes before midnight, and the crowds in Madrid, Barcelona and Valencia bring their own. Small grapes help. Our guide to New Year 2027 in Spain covers where to stand in each city and how early the main squares fill.
Scotland: first-footing at Hogmanay
Scotland calls New Year's Eve Hogmanay and treats it as a bigger holiday than many other countries do, with 1 and 2 January both public holidays. The custom of first-footing says the first person to cross a home's threshold after midnight sets the luck for the year. Traditionally a tall, dark-haired man was considered the luckiest first-foot, and he would bring small gifts such as coal for warmth, shortbread or black bun, salt and a dram of whisky. Many families still keep the custom in a lighter form, and a visitor who arrives with a gift is welcome.
Edinburgh's Hogmanay is one of the best-known New Year events in Europe, with a torchlight procession, a street party and a concert in the gardens below the castle. Auld Lang Syne, the song sung at midnight in English-speaking countries, comes from a poem by Robert Burns. You will find Edinburgh and the other Scottish cities in our New Year 2027 guide to the United Kingdom.
Denmark: jumping into the New Year
Danes stand on chairs and sofas in the last seconds of the year and jump off together at midnight, literally leaping into January. Before that, many watch the Queen's or now the King's New Year speech at 6 pm, a fixed part of the evening, and eat a dinner that often ends with kransekage, a tower of almond rings. Another old custom is throwing chipped or old plates at the doors of friends and family; the more broken crockery on your doorstep in the morning, the more friends you have. It is done among people who know each other, so visitors should leave the plates alone.
See our Copenhagen and Denmark guide for the city's fireworks, which are mostly set off by residents in the streets, with no single official display.
Japan: 108 bells and the first shrine visit
Japan's New Year, called shogatsu, is a quiet family holiday. On the night of 31 December many Buddhist temples strike their great bell 108 times, a ritual called joya no kane. In Buddhist teaching the number stands for the worldly desires a person carries, and each strike clears one. Some temples let members of the public take a turn at the bell; queues form well before midnight at popular temples in Tokyo and Kyoto, and a few give out numbered tickets.
From 1 January people make hatsumode, the first shrine or temple visit of the year, to pray for health and buy lucky charms and fortune slips. Meiji Jingu in Tokyo draws millions of visitors over the first three days. Families eat toshikoshi soba, long buckwheat noodles for a long life, on the 31st and osechi, boxes of symbolic dishes, on New Year's Day. Many shops and restaurants close from 1 to 3 January, so plan meals ahead. Our New Year 2027 guide to Japan lists temples where visitors can ring the bell.
Greece: the coin in the vasilopita
Greek families cut a round cake called vasilopita at midnight or on New Year's Day, the feast of Saint Basil. A coin is baked inside, and whoever finds it in their slice is said to have luck for the year. The first slices are cut for Christ, for the household and sometimes for the poor, then for each person from oldest to youngest. Bakeries and businesses hold their own cuttings in January, and visitors are often offered a slice. More customs and Athens events are in our Greece guide.
Traditions for money and plenty
Food is the usual New Year money charm, because round shapes look like coins. Italians eat lentils at the New Year's Eve dinner, often with cotechino or zampone sausage, and many also wear red underwear for love and luck.
Food sits at the centre of many New Year customs, usually because its shape or colour looks like coins.
Italy: lentils and red underwear
Italians eat lentils at the New Year's Eve dinner, often with cotechino or zampone sausage, because the small round lentils look like coins and are said to bring money. Wearing red underwear is another widespread custom, said to bring love and luck, and shops sell red underwear in the weeks before. In some southern towns people used to throw old belongings out of the window at midnight as a fresh start; it is rare now and discouraged for safety. Our Italy guide covers Rome, Naples, Venice and the fireworks rules in each city.
The Philippines: twelve round fruits
Filipino families put twelve round fruits on the table for the Media Noche, the midnight meal, one for each month, because round shapes stand for coins. Grapes, oranges, apples and melons are common. People wear polka dots for the same reason, keep coins in their pockets and shake them at midnight, and children jump at midnight in the belief that it will make them grow taller. Loud noise from fireworks, horns and pots is meant to scare off bad luck. See our Philippines guide for Manila's countdowns.
The Netherlands and Germany: fried dough and lucky charms
In the Netherlands, New Year's Eve means oliebollen, deep-fried dough balls dusted with sugar, sold from stalls all December. Germany has its own fried treat, the Berliner, sometimes with one filled with mustard as a joke. Germans also give small lucky charms such as marzipan pigs, chimney sweeps and four-leaf clovers, and a large part of the country watches "Dinner for One", a short British comedy sketch in English that has been shown on German television on New Year's Eve for decades. Read more in our Germany guide and Netherlands guide.
Estonia: several meals on one night
An old Estonian custom says you should eat seven, nine or twelve times on New Year's Eve, numbers thought to be lucky, so that you will have strength and plenty in the year ahead. In practice that means grazing through the evening on small portions. Food is sometimes left on the plate for the spirits of ancestors. Tallinn's Old Town and the Freedom Square concert are covered in our Estonia guide.
Traditions for love, travel and a fresh start
For love, travel and a fresh start, Brazilians wear white and jump seven waves at midnight in honour of Iemanjá, Colombians walk round the block with an empty suitcase in the hope of a year of travel, and other customs clear out the bad parts of the old year.
Some customs look further ahead: a new love, a trip, or simply clearing out the bad parts of the year.
Brazil: white clothes and seven waves
Brazilians wear white on New Year's Eve for peace and a fresh start, often with a touch of colour for a wish: yellow for money, red for love, green for health. On the beach, many people jump seven waves at midnight and make a wish for each one, a custom linked to Iemanjá, the sea goddess of the Afro-Brazilian Candomblé and Umbanda religions. Offerings of white flowers and small boats are set out on the water for her. Copacabana in Rio de Janeiro holds one of the largest New Year parties in the world, with fireworks fired from barges along the beach and crowds often reported in the millions.
Visitors join in easily: pack white clothes, arrive early and keep valuables to a minimum. Our New Year 2027 guide to Brazil covers Copacabana, Salvador and the beaches outside the big cities.
Colombia and other Latin American countries: the empty suitcase
In Colombia and several other Latin American countries, people grab an empty suitcase just after midnight and walk around the block with it, hoping for a year of travel. Some put lentils in their pockets for money or eat twelve grapes as in Spain. Yellow underwear, worn for luck and money, is sold in street markets in late December. Ecuador and parts of Colombia burn the año viejo, a life-size doll stuffed with sawdust and old clothes that stands for the old year, often dressed up as a well-known politician or celebrity. Our Colombia guide and Peru guide cover where these customs are most visible.
Puerto Rico: a bucket of water out the window
Some Puerto Rican families throw a bucket of water out of the window or door at midnight to wash away the bad things of the past year. Others sprinkle sugar outside the house for sweetness ahead. In San Juan, the night ends with fireworks and music in Old San Juan and along the beaches. See our Puerto Rico guide.
Turkey: red for the New Year
In Turkey, where New Year's Eve is a secular celebration with family dinners, a lottery draw and fireworks over the Bosphorus, red underwear is also thought to bring luck. Pomegranates, a symbol of plenty, are sometimes broken on the doorstep. Istanbul's countdowns and where to watch them are in our Turkey guide.
Customs in winter countries
In Russia, Belarus and much of eastern Europe, New Year is the main winter holiday: Ded Moroz brings presents, families gather round a New Year tree for a long dinner, and some people burn a written wish and drink the ash in sparkling wine at midnight.
In the cold north and east of Europe, the New Year is often the main winter holiday, sometimes more than Christmas.
Russia and Belarus: Ded Moroz and the New Year tree
In Russia, New Year's Eve is the largest family holiday of the year. Ded Moroz, Grandfather Frost, and his granddaughter Snegurochka bring presents to children, the decorated tree is called a New Year tree, and families sit down to a long dinner with salads such as Olivier before the president's televised address and the chimes of the Kremlin clock. A popular custom is to write a wish on a scrap of paper, burn it, drop the ash into a glass of sparkling wine and drink it before the last chime ends. Our Russia guide and Belarus guide include travel advice that visitors should check before planning a trip.
Romania: the bear dance
In parts of Romania, especially Moldavia in the north-east, groups of dancers wear real or imitation bear skins and dance through villages between Christmas and New Year to chase away evil spirits. Carol singers go from house to house with the plugușorul, a New Year chant that wishes the household a good harvest. Our Romania guide covers where to see the parades.
Georgia: the mekvle
Georgia keeps its own version of the first-footer, the mekvle, whose character is thought to shape the household's year. Families bake gozinaki, a sweet of walnuts and honey, and some also mark the Old New Year on 13 January, the date of New Year in the old Julian calendar. Tbilisi's fireworks are covered in our Georgia guide.
New Year customs on other calendars
Several cultures celebrate a second New Year outside January, often bigger than the January one. Chinese New Year and Vietnam's Tết fall in late January or February, and Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Myanmar have their own traditional new year festivals.
Not every country starts its main New Year on 1 January. Lunar and solar calendars give several cultures a second New Year, often bigger than the January one.
Chinese New Year, also called Lunar New Year or the Spring Festival, falls in late January or February and is the largest holiday in China and in Chinese communities from Singapore to San Francisco. Red envelopes of money, family reunion dinners, dragon and lion dances and fireworks mark the holiday. Our guide to Chinese New Year explains the dates and the zodiac animals. Vietnam celebrates Tết at the same time; see our Vietnam guide.
Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Myanmar celebrate their traditional New Year in mid-April with water festivals, the best known being Songkran in Thailand. Iran and many Central Asian countries mark Nowruz at the spring equinox in March. In Bangladesh, Pohela Boishakh opens the Bengali year in mid-April. Many of these countries still hold 1 January countdowns in their big cities, so a December trip can include both a midnight party and a sense of how people celebrate their own New Year.
How to take part in local traditions as a visitor
Street customs such as Spain's grapes or the suitcase walk are open to anyone, but rituals inside a home belong to the family, so follow your hosts. Pack for the custom, and plan meals around closures on 31 December and 1 January in Japan, Germany and Scandinavia.
Joining a local custom is often the most memorable part of a New Year trip. A few habits make it go well.
Ask before you join a family ritual. Street customs like the suitcase walk or the grapes are open to everyone. Customs that happen in a home, such as first-footing or cutting a vasilopita, belong to the family, and the right move is to follow what your hosts do.
Pack for the custom. Bring white clothes for Brazil, something red for Italy or Turkey, and warm layers for outdoor countdowns in northern Europe, where the temperature at midnight is often below freezing.
Plan meals around closures. In Japan, Germany, Scandinavia and much of Eastern Europe, shops and many restaurants close early on the 31st and stay closed on 1 January. Book dinner well ahead, or stock up on the afternoon of the 31st.
Respect fireworks rules. Rules differ a lot between countries and cities. Several European countries allow residents to set off fireworks only around New Year, the Netherlands has tightened its rules in recent years, and many cities ban private fireworks completely. Check the local rules in the country guide before buying any.
Learn the greeting. A simple "Feliz Año Nuevo" in Spain, "Feliz Ano Novo" in Brazil, "Godt nytår" in Denmark or "Akemashite omedetō" in Japan on 1 January goes a long way.
Where to go next
If one custom has caught your attention, the country guides linked above cover the dates, the main events, transport on the night and where to stay. For a wider list of places to celebrate, see our 25 best destinations for New Year 2027, and for the biggest displays, our guide to the world's most impressive New Year fireworks.
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