Just like Christmas and Thanksgiving, New Year’s is also a time when families and friends come together to eat and celebrate. 
Those who have hosted one of these parties will tell you that a New Year’s party can be a bit challenging to plan compared to the others. For example, Christmas is a day with a theme behind it, whereas New Year’s is basically about a 10-second countdown to midnight.
If you are considering throwing a New Year’s party this festive season, but lack the inspiration or idea how to do this, worry not! Below are five excellent party ideas that will keep your friends and family entertained until the few hours after the countdown.
1. Get Your Food Prepared
The first and most important thing that must be at a party is food. This generally depends on how many guests you estimate will be at the party. As a matter of fact, knowing the number of people who will attend will allow you to be extremely flexible with the food you are preparing. For example, if you are having a small gathering, it would be beneficial to put together a full meal, because unlike other major celebration days, you can be as creative as you want.
On the other hand, if you are having a huge gathering, then it would be great to have a wide range of savoury and sweet bites for your guests to eat as much as they would like. To get some ideas or inspiration consider checking the Food Network’s New Year’s Eve recipes.
2. Make a Playlist Everyone Can Enjoy
Today, it is easier than ever to put together electrifying music mix for any occasion because of the availability of various streaming services available today. These services have made things much easier because it allows you to alter what music you want to play for your guests. If a majority of your guests are of similar age, then your playlist should have songs compatible with that age group.
If there are parents and teenagers attending the party, it is wise to have a wide range of music options to keep everyone happy. Getting inspiration from live music in Shoreditch is always a good idea as they are renowned for good music there.
3. Play Interesting Party Games
Party games do make a party interesting. However, it is important to remember that party games are much dependant on the range of guests coming to the party. Card games are interesting, especially when it comes to parties. For example, you may decide to have a card game where everyone fills their New Year’s resolution. The cards can be made as silly as you like.
The moment everyone has completed them read them anonymously and try to guess who wrote the card. If your guest list is short, then you should consider having an end-of-year quiz pitting guests against one another.
4. Celebrate the Global New Year’s
Global New Year’s celebrations are excellent for both adults and children. This is because it allows everyone to get a taste of the countdown, which gives a great opportunity for a person to know how other countries are celebrating the New Year’s. As such, you can plan to celebrate the New Year’s with another country. For example, India celebrates their New Year’s at 6.30PM London time, Moscow Russia at 9PM London time and Germany 11.00PM London time, and you can add any other countries.
Remember, celebrating early New Year’s from other countries give your kids who are too young to stay late up to midnight an opportunity to celebrate. You may try to borrow themes from those countries; for example, you can try making foods and drinks for a certain country.
5. Go Alternative with Your Party Plan
If you are not interested in the standard procedures of a New Year’s Eve party, you can try something different. In other words, you can choose to have an alternative. For example, you may decide to have a dinner party. If cooking is not your strongest suit, why not have a movie marathon with friends and family? With this option, you can put together a list of the best movies and make some popcorn, chips, crisps and drinks. If you have decided to just have a drink with other adults, you could play drinking games. To get ideas and inspiration, consider checking out Drinking Cinema.
You can also decide to socialise with family and friends through classic board games. If you love dressing up, you can host a dress party with a theme you want. This may even include having a Downton Abbey or Game of Thrones party as an alternative New Year’s party.
