best places to celebrate new year

New Years Eve in Bratislava is as unpretentious as it gets

The grand boulevards and bridges of St. Petersburg are at their most beautiful covered with a layer of snow and illuminated by holiday lights. The lavish Hermitage Museum is particularly striking on December 31, when its surrounded by crowds waiting for the fireworks show over the partially frozen Neva River. As the clock ticks down, they drink champagne and send hundreds of paper lanterns up into the night sky. Russians celebrate both Catholic Christmas on December 25 and Orthodox Christmas on January 7, so visiting now means coming smack in the middle of the holiday season, when the citys main drag, Nevsky Prospect, is decorated in Christmas lights and images of Father Frost (the Russian version of Santa) are everywhere. And Russians turn out yet again on January 13 to celebrate Old New Year, a remnant of the Julian calendar used prior to the Revolution.

New Years Eve in Maui offers options for any taste a lively hotel party; a romantic dinner for two on the beach; fireworks seen from a catamaran cruise or with the kids at a traditional Hawaiian luau. The real show happens the next day for those who rise early and head to the summit of Haleakala to start the New Year with one of the most spectacular sunrises in the world. Hawaiis melting pot culture means New Years traditions vary widely; among people of Japanese descent, its customary to eat ozoni, a mochi soup, to ensure prosperity. Throughout the islands, if you want to wish someone a happy New Year, try your hand at saying, Hauoli Makahiki Hou.