Who is toasting the New Year and when?
When we are sitting at lunch on December 31, people elsewhere are celebrating the turn of the year. Others are only ready when we wake up hungover on January 1.
When does the turn of the year begin elsewhere?
There are different time zones around the world. This is why the New Year starts 13 hours earlier on some islands in the Pacific Ocean than here in Central Europe.
New Year's Day is twelve hours earlier in New Zealand and another ten hours earlier in eastern Australia. So, it goes on hour by hour towards the west.
The last place to celebrate the New Year is American Samoa, which is a unincorporated territory of the United States.
By then, it is already 12 a.m. on New Year's Day in Central Europe.
The thriller about Kiribati and the International Date Line
As is well known, the International Date Line is roughly following the 180.0° line of longitude.
The island country of Kiribati was «intersected» by the International Date Line. When one part of Kiribati celebrated the New Year, the other part had to wait a whole day.
So, in 1995, the date line was moved eastwards so that the same date applied to the entire archipelago.
As a result, all the inhabitants of Kiribati have been the first to welcome in the New Year ever since.
Countries that celebrate on December 31
- 11:00 Kiribati
- 12:00 Fiji, New Zealand, Russia (parts), Samoa
- 13:00 Marshall Islands, Nauru, Russia (parts)
- 14:00 Australia (majority)
- 15:00 Australia (Queensland), Guam, Papua New Guinea, Russia (part)
- 16:00 Japan, Palau, South Korea
- 17:00 China, Philippines, Singapore
- 18:00 Cambodia, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam
- 19:00 Bangladesch, Bhutan
Countries that celebrate on December 31
- 19:15 Nepal
- 19:30 India, Sri Lanka
- 20:00 Maldives, Pakistan
- 20:30 Afghanistan
- 21:00 Armenia, Georgia, La Réunion, Mauritius, Oman, Seychelles, United Arab Emirates
- 21:30 Iran
- 22:00 Africa (large parts), Bahrain, Iraq, Russia (part), Saudi Arabia, Turkey
- 23:00 Cyprus, Egypt, Greece, South Africa
- 00:00 Switzerland and 45 other countries, in addition to our neighboring countries also Gibraltar, Malta, Nigeria, Tunisia, Vatican
Countries that celebrate on January 1
- 01:00 Algeria, Faeroe Islands, Great Britain, Morocco
- 02:00 Cape Verde
- 03:00 Brazil (part), Greenland (part)
- 04:00 Argentina, Brazil (majority), Chile, Greenland (majority), Uruguay
- 04:30 Labrador Peninsula, Newfoundland
- 05:00 Canada (parts), Dominican Republic, Greenland (parts), Guadeloupe, Venezuela
- 06:00 Cuba, Jamaica, Panama, Peru, USA (parts)
- 07:00 Costa Rica, Guatemala, Mexico (parts), USA (parts)
- 08:00 Canada (parts), Mexico (parts), USA (parts)
- 09:00 Canada (parts), Mexico (parts), USA (parts)
- 10:00 Alaska, French Polynesia
- 11:00 Polynesia (remaining), Tahiti, USA (part)
- 12:00 American Samoa
Flowers to other countries (learn more).
More about New Year's Eve & New Year
About the turn of the year and the name «Sylvester»
What does the turn of the year mean to you? What symbolism did it have in the past? And what is behind the name «Sylvester»? You can find the answers here.
Who is toasting the New Year and when?
When we are sitting at lunch on December 31, people elsewhere are celebrating the turn of the year. Others are only ready when we wake up hungover on January 1.
Several beginnings of the year at the same time?
The new year begins on January 1. But there used to be up to six beginnings of the year, sometimes even several at the same time. The development of the names of the months is also exciting.
What New Year's Eve food brings luck and what is a no-go?
Which New Year's Eve foods bring good luck and what is a no-go? We have looked around the kitchens of various countries to help you plan your end-of-year meal.
The largest and most famous fireworks display worldwide
Starry rain at the turn of the year? Not only here. Because impressive pyro shows in a class of their own take place in the world's major cities.
Flowers at the turn of the year? Unexpected and beautiful.
Text message or phone call at the turn of the year? Normally OK. But what if someone really means a lot to you? Try surprising them with flowers.