Dreaming about jetting off to celebrate the New Year in style? After spending Christmas at home, scrambling with your loved ones over the last chocolate truffle, a New Year city escape can often sound like Heaven. Therefore, we’ve come up with a few places to get excited about:
Edinburgh
If you’re not a fan of traveling but still want the excitement of jetting away, Edinburgh is the perfect solution. There are many ways to get there on a budget, whether that be a road trip, scenic train journey or a quick 50-minute flight from Cardiff Airport; Edinburgh will welcome you with New Year Spirit.
New Year in Scotland celebrates Hogmanay: one of the biggest and best New Year celebrations in the world. The bustling Royal Mile will boast a spectacular torchlight procession, with bag pipers and fireworks all leading up to the grand finale. In Princes Street, around 80,000 people will gather to celebrate the New Year with a concert in the gardens, this year headlined by Rag ‘n’ Bone Man before the sky lights up with fireworks showering the historic castle.
Berlin
If you want to go a little further afield, and don’t mind the crowds, Berlin is a great location to celebrate the beginning of 2018. Not only will the beer be outstanding, but so will the backdrop. Situated at the world-famous Brandenburg gate, where more than 1 million visitors come to party each New Year’s Eve, with a world of traditional treats and food and drink stalls lined up around the crowd, not to mention party tents and the light-and-laser shows. The fireworks lighten up the city in an electrifying display as soon as the clocks strike midnight – it’s one not to be missed.
Prague
Considered one of the prettiest cities in the world, Prague is a spectacular place to spend New Year. If partying hard isn’t quite your style, there are plenty of other options. Why not sit back and watch the tremendous firework displays over a fancy dinner known as “a deux”? If you’re a foodie, there are all-inclusive nights of food and drink. For the dancers, night clubs in which to dance your socks off. For the groups, bar crawls to have a laugh in. Finally, there are the ever-popular river cruises that you can sail down to enjoy the sparkling wonders that arise when welcoming the New Year.
words ALYS CLARK