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Seen the ball drop in New York’s Times Square?
Caught the fireworks over Sydney Harbour?
There are plenty of other ways to ring in the New Year.
Byron Bay, Australia
Among the first places in Australia to see the sun rise, Byron Bay in New South Wales hosts one of the country’s largest parties on New Year’s Eve.
This year, for the first time, the three-day Falls Music & Arts Festival will take over the town from December 31 to January 3, which means tunes from MGMT, Grizzly Bear, The Roots and Vampire Weekend.
Away from the North Byron Parklands, festivities will feature family friendly activities from 9 p.m., plus an early morning event on Main Beach on the first day of the New Year.
If you don’t have a ticket to Falls, aren’t a local or don’t have a hotel booked, you won’t get in. The mayor is planning to “lock” everyone else out in order to “curb alcohol-fueled violence and destruction of property in the town.”
Good times apparently await those who have prepared in advance.
The Falls Music & Arts Festival
Goa, India
Balmy weather, beaches, al fresco bars and restaurants — India’s smallest state is one of its biggest party centers.
Goan celebrations kick off on December 27 with the three-day Sunburn music festival — headliners include Pete Tong, Markus Schultz and Afrojak, among other DJs.
Parties on New Year’s Eve range from masquerade balls to beach raves.
If you don’t mind crowds, Anjuna Beach has dance performances, Goan folk music and plenty of feni (a local liquor), while the sunset party at Querim Beach’s nightclub Kitty Su takes things outdoors with some of the country’s top music acts on the sand.
At the Hill Top event, near Vagator Beach, a globetrotting roster of trance musicians will entertain revelers well into New Year’s Day.
Sunburn Goa
Hill Top Festival Goa
Prague, Czech Republic
In Prague, not all vantage points are created equal.
Prague locals love their fireworks, so much so that many contribute their own to the New Year’s Eve festivities around town.
The official show explodes over the Old Town Square and Wenceslas Square at midnight; the best vantage points are from the Charles Bridge, Petřín Hill and near Prague Castle.
Vltava River cruises are free from crowds and provide Czech beer and live jazz.
January 1 is particularly poignant to Prague locals as it marks the day the Czech Republic was created after the breakup of Czechoslovakia in 1993.
A special fireworks display will be held at Letná Park on the day, kicking off at 6 p.m. to ensure that families with young children can attend.
Harbin, China
New Year’s Eve festivities don’t get much cooler than those held in the northern Chinese city of Harbin.
Not far from the Russian border, the city gets temperatures well below freezing in winter, perfect for the annual Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival.
Celebrating 30 years, the festival sees larger-than-life ice sculptures crafted around town, lit either by lasers or with traditional lanterns.
Visitors can walk on icy replicas of the Great Wall, check out St. Basil’s Cathedral or stare at a replica Eiffel Tower before fireworks light up the night sky.
Another icy tradition takes place when swimmers jump into the city’s Songhua River.
Harbin Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival
Niagara Falls, Canada
Billed as Canada’s largest free New Year’s Eve extravaganza, the December 31 concert at Queen Victoria Park in Niagara Falls is expected to draw more than 40,000 people.
Kicking off a 7.30 p.m. and held against the epic backdrop of Niagara Falls, which straddles the American and Canadian border, this year’s event features music from the Sam Roberts Band and Serena Ryder, with Demi Lovato headlining.
The party includes food stalls, entertainers and two fireworks displays, at 8.45 p.m. and midnight.
You can continue the noise on the first day of 2014 with a Journey Behind the Falls tour, allowing you to stand in the mist where the mighty Horseshoe Falls tumbles from a height of 13 stories, traveling at 65 kilometers per hour.
Niagara Falls Festival
Reykjavik, Iceland
The area around Reykjavik’s Hallgrimskirkja church will have bonfires and fireworks.
December 31 sees crowds converge on 10 bonfires lit around Iceland’s capital before revelers make their way to Hallgrimskirkja church, a dramatic 73-meter-high building designed to resemble the country’s lava flows.
Perlan (The Pearl), a hemispherical building atop Öskjuhlíð hill with a winter garden and dining areas, provides a more panoramic view of town.
Fireworks are sold throughout the city, which means that explosions can be heard from the moment the sky darkens.
The intensity builds toward midnight, when a spectacular choreographed display lights the city.
The festival of lights can often continue on New Year’s Day when tourists head off in search of the aurora borealis.
MORE: 11 of Reykjavik’s coolest bars
Cruise ship, Various
If you can’t decide on one destination, a cruise offers a roster of ports.
All cruise lines ring in the New Year with pomp and ceremony, but a few go the extra mile.
Crystal Cruises hosts a balloon drop in the atrium of its two ships, followed by a ship-wide countdown at midnight, with champagne. On New Year’s Day, celebrations continue with a boozy brunch.
On December 31, Crystal Symphony will be docked in Sydney Harbour, under the bridge, so you’re guaranteed a dazzling introduction to 2014.
Norwegian Cruise Line ships will have fireworks and a captain’s countdown from the bridge. “The Pride of America” is scheduled to arrive next to Hawaii’s volcanoes on the first day of 2014.
Weather permitting, the Oceania Cruises’ fleet will hold New Year’s Eve soirees on their decks, as well as parties throughout the ships. Passengers can look forward to live music, noisemakers, party hats and plenty of bubbles.
Crystal Cruises
Norwegian Cruise Line
Oceania Cruises
Whistler, British Columbia
The Canadian winter sports resort town is hosting a Youth Dance and NYE kids’ countdown in Millennium Place, with fire spinners, dancers, circus entertainers, live music and a giant bubble wrap stomp and balloon drop at 9 p.m.
At the Fire and Ice Show, Whistler’s best skiers and riders jump through blazing rings of fire as guests dance into the New Year.
A dazzling display of lights and sounds will ring in the new year.
Fireworks are best viewed from Skier’s Plaza located at the base of Whistler Mountain, or from the skating rink at Whistler Olympic Plaza.
Whistler New Year’s Eve
Walt Disney World, Florida
Plenty of distractions keep you busy till midnight at Walt Disney World.
Most evenings at Walt Disney World near Orlando go off with a bang, but the entertainment on New Year’s Eve is particularly spectacular.
The attraction — home to four theme parks, two water parks and 24 themed resorts — fills up fast, so it’s wise to arrive early.
Most of the theme parks welcome visitors an hour earlier than normal and stay open until 1 or 2 a.m. on New Year’s Day.
At The Magic Kingdom, Electrical Parade at 7 p.m. and 9 p.m. will prepare guests for the Holiday Wishes fireworks at 8:30 p.m. and Fantasy in the Sky fireworks at
