5 Travel Ideas for New Year's Eve

Everyone waits for the New Year’s eve; a celebration above religion, place or even country! So before the prices soar or trains, flights and hotels ring ‘reserved’, we insist you plan your getaway. Here’s a lowdown on this year’s hot favourites. Eat, drink, be merry, party hard. For the New Year comes but only after a year.

1. Goa

Picture a wave of joyous crowd on the streets, dancing to high-jive trance or rock music playing almost everywhere, savouring local food and sipping anything from local beer to delicious wine, or wandering in scooters and open jeeps. Well, this is Goa on the eve of New Year. A holiday to Goa at this time is without a doubt, a list-topper! The Portuguese culture of Goa with its party atmosphere and carefree revelry together set the perfect stage to welcome the new year. Besides wild beachside karaoke nights in North Goa or letting your hair down in clubs like Titos and Mambos with your buddies, you can also head to a quieter South Goa for calmer beachside parties. Like each year, Goa is the #1 destination to be at for New Year’s eve.

2. Jaipur

On New Year’s eve, the rustic city of Jaipur has a grandeur and eloquence that’s beyond its usual charm. The dazzling temples and royal palaces of Jaipur are a spectacular sight on any festivity. If you are willing to spend for a unique experience, stay for a night at the village themed Chokhi Dhani resort. Enjoy a night high on culture, food and entertainment that’s absolutely unique to Jaipur. You could also take a city tour and visit the hill top forts of Nahargarh and Jaigarh. The Amber Fort, Rajasthan’s former capital is a remarkable sight too. Whether New Year’s or not, a holiday in Jaipur is incomplete without Pyaaz Kachori from Rawat ki Kachori and shopping for clothes and accessories at Johari Bazaar, Bapu Bazaar and Nehru Bazaar! If you have an extra day to spare in Jaipur, we suggest you explore Hawa Mahal, Jal Mahal, Birla Temple and Jaipur’s Jantar Mantar.

3. Delhi

Delhi, just like its heterogeneous population, is a party destination with all possible themes and styles on New Year’s eve. From balconies, rooftops and restaurants across the city to farmhouses in Gurgaon and five star hotels, every corner of Delhi is partying! There are parties that simply thrive on music, drinks and dinner; on themes and dress codes; on concerts and performances; and even on celebrities.

For party lovers and clubbing enthusiasts, some la crème names in Delhi’s nightlife are F-Bar & Lounge (The Ashok, Chanakyapuri), Agni (The Park Hotel, Parliament Street), Decibel (Samrat Hotel, Chanakyapuri), Dublin (ITC Maurya Sheraton, Sardar Patel Marg) and Lap (Samrat Hotel). If you find these well beyond capacity, head to one of the popular clubs like Manre, Odyssey, Ministry of Sound, Urban Pind, among others. For the subtle celebrators, there are evenings in areas like Purani Dilli and Chandni Chowk and in clubs like Gymkhana that entertain guests with culinary and artistic delights. If you and your friends are low on budget, just find a house with a roof, set up the sound system, order the food, buy the drinks and keep going till the first sunrise of the new year. Whatever you do, it’ll be hard to escape Delhi’s New Year high unscathed.

4. Agra

You celebrate to delight yourself and Agra lets you do that. The city, with its oozing history and grandiose architecture, has held imaginations of poets and historians alike. With architectural marvels lurking in the backdrop, modern Agra evolves each day. You might not need to know about the famous Taj Mahal (closed on Fridays) and how it feels to sit on its balcony or explore its hidden routes and caverns on a night-visit, but you must know that there are places like the ghost town or Fatehpur Sikri with its Buland Darwaza, the mausoleum of Itmad-ud-Daulah nicknamed ‘Baby Taj’ and the Agra Fort with structures like Diwan-ae-Aam, Diwan-ae-Khas and Sheesh Mahal in Agra. As you leave the city, don’t forget to buy some delicious petha for your friends and a marble Taj Mahal as a souvenir for your living room!

5. Andamans

​ If serenity, and not party, is what you seek this New Year, the tiny archipelago off the Indian coast holds a lot for you. From the buzzing capital, Port Blair, to one of the tranquil islands like Ross or Viper, Andamans promises a New Year experience that is unique, captivating and definitely memorable. Before the party fever sets in on nearby beaches like Corbyn's Cove, Ramnagar or distant ones like Harminder Bay Beach or Karmatang, there’s so much to keep you awed. For instance, as you take a ride to visit the famous Baratang Island 20 kms from Port Blair, you will cross the colony of an adivasi tribe known as Jarawa. Seeing the semi-nude tribesmen from your window, wearing body paint and carrying spears is an indescribable experience and an exclusive attraction in Andamans. As you move to Baratang Island, you stand on the mouth of India’s only mud-volcano and some rather unworldly limestone caves in the water. New Year or not, the best of Andamans is the Radhanagar beach on Havelock Island. One of the most beautiful beaches in Asia, Havelock’s Radhanagar or beach #7 is where the world stops to lounge and sunbathe. Bid farewell to this year on wooden cottages facing a white sandy beach and verdant rainforests looking from behind.

Wherever you travel this New Year, remember to thank God for all the good things that came to you this year.