As 2024 approaches, take a look at these interesting New Year traditions in other countries. Included on the list are places mentioned in my 2023 blog posts.
New Year’s Eve is known as “Silvester” in some countries because it falls on the Feast Day of Saint Silvester. Whatever you call it, the holiday is associated with a fun assortment of superstitions and New Year traditions around the world…
Argentina
Argentina sits below the equator, so the New Year there is a summer event typified by trips to the beach. Some Argentines wear pink underwear to find love in the new year. In Buenos Aires, office workers shred old files and toss the resulting “confetti” from windows at noon on New Year’s Day. Personally, I like the Argentine tradition of running around the house with an empty suitcase to boost your odds of traveling in the new year. (Running around the block is believed to boost your chances even further.)
Costa Rica
Costa Ricans, too, choose their underwear carefully as the new year approaches. Yellow is believed to bring good fortune, while green brings money and red promises love. If your assortment of undergarments isn’t up to the task, you can substitute ribbons of the same colors on your door. Remember to toss water over your shoulder as you enter the new year there.
Czech Republic
In the Czech Republic, revelers cut apples in half and study the cores to divine their futures for the year ahead. Seeds in the shape of a star bode well. Pick another apple, though, if your seeds are shaped like a cross! Be sure to eat lentils for good fortune but leave nothing on the clothesline (or someone may die).
Germany
In Germany, the ancient practice of lead-pouring to predict the future still survives, although wax and tin now substitute for lead. Melt your substance of choice in a spoon over a candle flame, then pour it into cold water. Observe the shape it takes and interpret the meaning— a frog, for example, foretells a lottery win! A guide to the shapes comes with each lead-pouring kit. (They’re sold throughout December in German-speaking countries, as well as Finland, Bulgaria, and Turkey.)
Hungary
Hungarians choose their New Year meals carefully. Lentils and pork bring good fortune. But skip the chicken— it’s believed to scratch away all your luck. Say no to fish, too, which is said to swim away with your luck. (The latter superstition is bad news for Germans, for whom carp is a traditional New Year’s meal.) And don’t expect to get much rest after dinner— Hungarians make as much noise as possible on New Year’s Eve to scare away evil spirits.
Iceland
Icelanders celebrate New Year’s Eve on a schedule. At 8:30 pm, people gather around large bonfires— there are 10 of them in Reykjavik alone. These aren’t the backyard campfires and fire pits that Americans are accustomed to. They’re huge conflagrations in large open areas around which crowds of people gather. Then at 10:30 pm, a large swath of the population heads indoors to watch a satirical recap of the year’s events on television. An hour later, everyone goes outside again to watch the epic fireworks displays for which Iceland is renowned.
Ireland
The Irish include their departed loved ones in New Year’s Eve celebrations. They set a place at the dinner table for relatives lost in the preceding twelve months and leave the doors and windows unlocked for their spirits to enter. They also bang loaves of Christmas bread on the doors and walls of the house to chase bad luck from the home. According to Irish lore, the first person to appear at your door in the new year is a harbinger of the ensuing twelve months. A dark, handsome stranger bodes well. A red-haired lass does not.
Morocco
Moroccans get a jump on spring cleaning by giving the house a thorough cleanse in the weeks leading up to January 1. Then they festoon their homes with colorful decorations. In Morocco, it’s also tradition to wear new clothes and light a candle or lantern at the new year.
The Netherlands
You know the new year is approaching when oliebollen vendors appear on Dutch streets and the deep-fried balls of dough go on sale in stores. On the big night, many people wait eagerly for the after-midnight results of the multi-million-Euro New Year’s lottery. Then on January 1, the Dutch dive into the new year— literally— with a swim in the sea.
Spain
As midnight on December 31st approaches in Spain, residents wait eagerly with bunches of green grapes in their hands. As the clock strikes twelve, they stuff one grape for each month of the new year into their mouths for good luck. The trick is to swallow them all before the twelfth chime. As soon as the clock finishes, Spaniards take the first step of the new year with their right foot. (Some argue that the crucial moment is when you first enter, or exit, your home in the new year.)
United Kingdom
As the clock strikes midnight in the UK, people join hands and sing Auld Lang Syne. In Scotland, it’s widely believed the first person to enter the house after midnight affects the fortunes of everyone within. A stranger is considered to be the luckiest visitor of all. (I think that one could go either way!)
However you choose to mark the occasion, best wishes for a healthy and happy new year! Please join me again in 2024 for more ways to enrich your travels.
Ready to hit the road?! Check out my curated list of packing essentials for international travel and tool for finding impossibly low airfares. And if you’re curious about more international customs, see my blog about summer solstice celebrations around the world.
