We live in such a multicultural world that it is impossible not to notice how diverse Christmas and New Year’s traditions and customs different parts of the world have. Winter holiday season is the best time to cherish traditions and meet with the family. And it’s also the best time to take advantage of the public holidays and days off work so you can travel. You can be sure we spent many Christmas and New Year’s days abroad. So when in Rome, do as the Romans do. Or in our case – follow the locals!

It turns out that just following the locals will ensure (most of the times) that you will celebrate those holidays properly. And have tons of fun! So let’s see how we greeted the New Year and celebrated Christmas in several consecutive years.

Don’t forget – enjoy your holidays!

New Year’s traditions and celebrations

Kavala, Greece

Party, party, party, island hopping, party! Start early in the afternoon to warm up with ouzo and then continue the way you like it – wine, rakia, or just water! But be sure you’re in order for the next morning’s visit to the beautiful, even in the winter, island of Thassos.

Watamu, Kenya

Although we struggle to decide if this place is more Kenyan than Italian, you can always have a decent pizza and ditch the fireworks in order to have a good night’s sleep before going to the beach the next day!

Montevideo, Uruguay

The tradition says everyone should be bathed on New Year’s Eve! That means a “war” on the streets, weapons are water pistols, buckets of water, anything that can contain and spread water actually. Once you are clean and dry, you can move on to rooftop celebrations with new friends, watching the “war” of fireworks everywhere around you. Don’t go on the streets after midnight!

London, UK

If you like big parties and fancy DJs playing top hits, then hit the Westminster bridge or any other public space in central London and enjoy dancing closely with everyone around you and those fireworks!

Christchurch, New Zealand

If you are feeling social but not a party animal – something peaceful yet with lots of people you can find in one of the city’s parks. Music on stage, plenty of food but no alcohol, blankets on the grass – that’s how you can really have fun without disturbing anyone else. Meet the New Year on a clear head as well!

Christmas traditions and celebrations

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

The Christmas tree! Inside a lake, changing colors and shapes to tell you few stories. Stunning and shining from dusk to dawn. The most fascinating fairy tale for free. As a karioka or a guest, you can admire it as long as you want to.

Barcelona, Spain

We did follow the locals in their indulging with fresh seafood. And other delicious food – tapas, olives, and wine. It’s about food, right? Sangria is a food group, right?

Blenheim, New Zealand

We found our new family in the faces of our hosts, their friends, and total strangers. Everyone had prepared a meal or two and we ate, and ate, and ate. Accompanied by cool NZ wines, of course. After some fun games, we all had to cleanup and do the dishes together. Union is strength!

Encarnación, Paraguay

Lie on the beach of Paraná river. That’s it! Spend a nice summer sunny Christmas day around the mate together with friends and family and don’t forget to dip in the water!

Nakuru, Kenya

How about Santa delivering some presents to you while you are on a game safari? Well, Christmas doesn’t mean snow here but it means getting together with many human and animal friends. And some traditional music and songs can never hurt you.

This year we seem to remain true to our own “tradition” of being somewhere abroad during Christmas and New Year’s. Stay tuned for new adventures and enjoy that quality vacation/family/winter/summer time!

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