Yearly, Icelanders buy greater than 500 tonnes of fireworks that pay for Search and Rescue.
How do you ring within the new 12 months? With a toast of champagne at midnight? By singing ‘Auld Lang Syne’ when you’re within the UK? In Reykjavík, locals will greet 2025 by gathering round a bonfire – after which gathering across the TV to observe a comedy present rounding up the 12 months.
Iceland’s capital isn’t any stranger to distinctive winter traditions. However a few of the most distinct are reserved for the final day of the 12 months, when Icelanders collect with household and associates for bonfires and fireworks shows that final lengthy into the brand new 12 months.
If you’re seeking to have fun New Yr’s Eve otherwise, right here is why you must contemplate a visit to Iceland’s largest metropolis.
Reykjavík: Be part of a group bonfire for songs and dances
Contemplating it’s often known as the ‘land of fireside and ice,’ it’s becoming that these parts issue into Iceland’s New Yr’s Eve rituals.
After household dinners, Reykjavík locals depart the freezing streets to unite round roaring group bonfires often known as ‘brenna’.
Neighbours, households and associates each new and outdated sing songs, dance, mirror on the previous 12 months and make needs for the brand new one.
There are dozens of ‘brenna’ within the capital alone, and they’re welcoming to guests, supplying you with loads of alternatives to make new associates.
Watch comedians skewer the nationwide information reside on TV
Icelanders have a famously wry sense of humour, they usually aren’t afraid to share it. Particularly on New Yr’s Eve.
Beginning at 10.30pm, Reykjavík goes quiet as residents retreat to their properties to observe Áramótaskaup – the annual ‘New Yr’s Eve Lampoon’.
Aired by the state broadcaster RÚV, the laugh-out-loud comedy present satirises memorable occasions from the previous 12 months.
“It’s greater than a comedy present – it’s a cherished Icelandic custom that displays the highs, lows and quirks of the previous 12 months, making a shared second of laughter and reflection because the nation steps into the brand new 12 months,” explains Kristján Bjarki Jónasson, from Go to Reykjavík.
It’s one in every of Iceland’s highest-rated annual broadcasts, too, with as a lot as 90 per cent of the inhabitants tuning in till the present ends shortly earlier than midnight.
Purchase fireworks that fund year-round Search and Rescue
Fireworks will not be unique to Iceland and even Reykjavík. However Icelanders have discovered a method to make New Yr’s Eve fireworks fully their very own all the identical.
“What’s so enjoyable about New Yr’s Eve is all of the households setting off fireworks,” says Jónasson. “There aren’t any official firework shows within the metropolis. This legendary night time could be very a lot created by the folks of Reykjavík, who collectively do a tremendous job of constructing it unforgettable.”
From December 28 till January 6, you should buy fireworks from ICE-SAR, the Icelandic Affiliation for Search and Rescue, a nonprofit, volunteer organisation that specialises in search and rescue providers on land and at sea.
The sale is ICE-SAR’s largest fundraiser annually. In 2017, the organisation earned greater than €6 million, or about 60 per cent of its annual funds, from the greater than 500 tonnes of fireworks Icelanders bought earlier than New Yr’s Eve.
After getting your fireworks in hand, be a part of the crowds within the streets and parks setting them off till the early hours, lighting up the night time sky with vibrant blooms.
Then, keep up late to have fun. Lots of the bars and pubs keep open till 5am, “guaranteeing the brand new 12 months begins with vitality and pleasure,” says Jónasson.
Reykjavík: see the northern lights
After watching bonfires and fireworks gentle up the night time sky, stick round to see the northern lights placed on their very own vibrant show.
Iceland is likely one of the greatest locations in Europe to see the northern lights. Between September and April, the northern lights are steadily seen on clear darkish nights, particularly exterior of Reykjavík the place there’s much less gentle air pollution.
It is perhaps the right method to cap a brand new 12 months vacation in contrast to some other.