13 Best New Year’s Party Ideas for Unique, Memorable, Themed Events

For many people, New Year’s Eve isn’t New Year’s Eve without Auld Lang Syne and a shed load of fireworks. 

But for many others, that just won’t cut it, and they’re looking for something a little bit more unique and memorable to celebrate the biggest party night of the year. But finding something that ticks all the boxes can be an event in itself, which is where you come in!

To really stand out in a crowded market, coming up with a unique theme is a great way to create a truly memorable experience, and we’re here to give you some fresh New Year’s party ideas that you can scale to any event size.

Super creators from across the Eventbrite community are always coming up with weird and wonderful themed parties, and they know how to put on a NYE spectacle your guests won’t forget. Pulling from their experience, we’ve created this guide to help you navigate the very best New Year’s party ideas. 

Why should you theme your next New Year’s Eve event?

The countdown to midnight on NYE is one of the UK’s favourite nights:

• 60% of Britons say they love to celebrate New Year’s Eve
• 61% say they enjoy fireworks (44% say they’re an important part of British culture)
• One in five say they make annual New Year’s resolutions

That’s why hosting a New Year’s Eve party is a great way to engage with your customers.

But if you really want to create a unique experience for them at your next NYE party, try homing in on a fun theme. Theming a party creates an immersive experience that takes your party-goers on a journey. It also helps simplify your creation process by guiding your decor, catering menu, drinks, and entertainment.

Finally, New Year’s party themes are great because they’re so inclusive. You can adapt NYE themes to fit family events, formal events, community gatherings, charity events, and everything in between.

Need some extra inspiration? Explore our online community to see what sort of themed parties our event creators have in the works and find out what people want to see when they go to a New Year’s party.

What are the best New Year’s Eve party ideas for fancy events?

New Year’s Eve is the perfect time for a fancy party, which is why we’ve rounded up five of our favourite party theme ideas for formal events. And to help you figure out which party theme is the best for your fancy New Year’s Eve party, we’ve rated each idea on a scale of one to three based on difficulty, cost, and family-friendliness.

1. New Year’s fireworks blowout

Difficulty: 🎆🎆
Cost: 💸💸💸
Family Friendly: 👧👧👧

With a majority of Britons saying they enjoy fireworks, it’s an obvious choice to bring extra excitement to your fancy New Year’s Eve bash. This party idea is ideal if you’re working with an outdoor venue or a space with a large gazebo or pavilion. 

To add a unique twist to a classic concept, go explosive on the glitter and streamers, and choose a colour scheme of bright neons so your whole venue is a great big firecracker. Your entertainment, of course, should centre on the fireworks display, but you can also hire a live DJ, spice things up with a dance contest, or set up an arts and crafts corner if it’s a family event.

To see how this theme is done on-brief, check out the upcoming New Year’s Eve 2023 @ The Tattershall Castle event. The iconic floating pub is offering a champagne bar, rolling canapés, live entertainment, and a front-row seat to London’s biggest fireworks show. It doesn’t get much fancier than that.

2. Peaky Blinders

Difficulty: 🎆🎆
Cost: 💸💸💸
Family Friendly: 👧

If you’re looking for a creative party theme with tons of appeal, Peaky Blinders is a perfect option. Around nine out of 10 people in the UK are already familiar with Peaky Blinders, and 46% of people love the show. 

Translation: This theme has a built-in audience.

For inspiration, think “Roaring Twenties.” A listed building, ballroom, or industrial space would be the ideal spot, and a swing or jazz band will fit in perfectly. You could also hire professional dancers, set up a contest for best dressed, and finish the night with some fireworks.

For best practice, take a look at Tailors – The Perfect Measure and their Bottomless Prohibition Party: Roaring Twenties New Year’s Eve event. With a vintage costume rail for guests to dress up, moonshine cocktails, and confetti cannons, this is definitely how NYE is done in Art Deco style.

3. Black-tie ball

Difficulty: 🎆🎆🎆
Cost: 💸💸💸
Family Friendly: 👧

There’s nothing quite like a black-tie event on New Year’s Eve. It’s a timeless theme that’s perfect for couples, singles, and mature party-goers. But that doesn’t mean it has to be stuck up and boring.

For a unique take on the black-tie theme, check out event creator Across the Room and their Pre-New Year’s Eve Strictly Singles Black Tie Ball. The singles-only event is designed for those aged 30 or above and features a strict guest dress code of black-tie for gentlemen and long dresses for ladies.

This theme is ideal for ballrooms, listed buildings, or large industrial spaces with plenty of room to mingle and dance. If you’re catering, a black-tie event is a great time to set up a plated dinner party with tasty food that’s a bit more upscale before a big champagne toast at midnight.

4. Glitter and glam

Difficulty: 🎆
Cost: 💸
Family Friendly: 👧

If you’re looking for a simple New Year’s party idea that’ll engage your audience, you can’t go wrong with a glitter and glam theme. 

This is the perfect party theme if you’re working with a nightclub, pub, or listed event space. All you’ve got to do is deck your venue out in lots of glitter, a disco ball, and strobe lights and encourage a guest dress code of glamour outfits that’ll sparkle in the lights.

For entertainment, think live DJs for a dance party, a champagne tower, and a glitter station so your guests can get their glam on after arriving.

Want to see it done the right way? Check out event creator Glitterfest and their Glitterfest New Year’s Eve bash. Based in the iconic Electric Ballroom in Camden, guests are being encouraged to break out their sparkliest outfits at the adults-only rave.

5. New Year’s in Las Vegas

Difficulty: 🎆🎆🎆
Cost: 💸💸💸
Family Friendly: 👧

If you’re looking for a swanky party theme for an adults-only shindig, go for New Year’s Eve in Las Vegas.

Draw on inspiration from 1960s Las Vegas: we’re talking Elvis, Tom Jones, flashing lights, neon signs, and desert-chic attire. This theme is great if you’re working with an industrial space, outdoor pavilion, or large pub.

Decorate your space with flashing lights, and a palette of reds and blacks, and hire casino tables and professional croupiers to create your own Las Vegas casino in your event venue. If you’re catering, this is a great opportunity to set up a Vegas-style buffet and bottomless cocktails.

Just look at event creator Boisdale of Canary Wharf and their upcoming NYE Party! One Night In Vegas Featuring Suspiciously Elvis event. It’s got an Elvis impersonator, chorus line, and three-course meal — all with one of the best views of the London skyline you’ll get on NYE.

What are the best New Year’s Eve party ideas for unusual events?

If you’d like to throw a New Year’s party with a bit more character, we’ve got some offbeat party ideas to satisfy your quirkiest party-goers. Here are a few of our favourites.

6. Hogmanay ceilidh

Difficulty: 🎆
Cost: 💸💸
Family Friendly: 👧👧👧

Up in Scotland, New Year’s Eve is better known as “Hogmanay” — and it’s a big deal. You’ve got ceilidh dancing, bagpipes, delicious dinners that warm up your belly, fireworks, and more.

So, why not turn your next event into a Scottish Hogmanay (whether you’re in Scotland or not). Think Brigadoon or Rob Roy, and try to dress up your event venue like a castle. 

Tartan, swords, and castle bric-a-brac should dominate your decor. Your entertainment could include a bagpipe player, a ceilidh band for dancing, and a Hogmanay feast filled with comfort food dishes like haggis and cranachan.

If in doubt, look to event creator The Haggis Chasers Ceilidh Band and their Haggis Ceilidhs Hogmanay Party 2023. With one of Scotland’s most popular ceilidh bands, it looks like it’ll be the ultimate evening with friends.

7. Party like it’s 1999

Difficulty: 🎆🎆
Cost: 💸💸💸
Family Friendly: 👧

For an adults-only bash, why not get your guests to party like it’s 1999 and capture the magic and buzz we all remember from welcoming in the new millennium?

This theme is great for a large club or pub. Just aim for decor and pop culture references from the late 90s, or go all chrome and focus your millennium disco party on the Y2K phenomenon. 

In terms of music, draw inspiration from event creator BAWA Leisure and their ULTRA 90s Vs 2000s party in 2024. With DJs spinning all the biggest tunes from the 1990s and 2000s (plus free glow gear), this is the sort of atmosphere you’re looking to recreate.

8. NYE silent disco

Difficulty: 🎆
Cost: 💸💸
Family Friendly: 👧👧👧

A silent disco is the perfect party idea if you want to create a unique club experience. Hire a DJ and silent disco gear to spin multiple tunes that’ll satisfy all of your guests, and decorate your venue with neon balloons, streamers, and lots of confetti.

Not able to visualise it? Take a look at event creator Silent Sounds and their upcoming The NYE Silent Disco London event at Banking Hall. With a choice of three different DJs, this party allows guests to ring in the New Year partying to whatever they want to hear.

You can even give your silent disco a family-friendly twist if you’re using a more kid-friendly community space. Set up a DJ channel with kids’ music, a craft corner, and a quiet sensory space — and suddenly, you’ve got an inclusive and unique family party.

9. Après ski party

Difficulty: 🎆🎆🎆
Cost: 💸💸
Family Friendly: 👧

For many people, skiing is one of winter’s biggest highlights, but the chalet after parties are even better. Theme your New Year’s party as an après ski bash by dressing up a large pub or club as a French ski lodge.

You’re going for a mountain vibe, but you could also bring in the Winter Olympics with some sporty decor and message your guest list beforehand, asking them to show up in their best ski resort outfits.

For entertainment, you could get a snow machine (or foam machine), bring in live DJs, or even hire an ice bar. The New Year’s Eve: Aprés-Ski Swiss Chalet party Hockwold Hall Events staged last year can be your inspiration (although if you’re looking for something equally quirky, this year they’re planning a Willy Wonka-inspired New Year’s Eve party).

What are the best New Year’s Eve party ideas for family events?

Want to extend a party invitation to the whole family? There are loads of great family-friendly party ideas for New Year’s Eve events. To help get you started, here are four of our favourites.

10. New Year’s Eve movie marathon

Difficulty: 🎆🎆
Cost: 💸💸
Family Friendly: 👧👧👧

Kids love any excuse to stay up late, so why not host an all-night movie party? Dress up your restaurant, industrial space, or outdoor space as a living room cinema. Go for cinema signs, movie posters, and lots of fluffy pillows and blankets.

Your entertainment should focus on NYE-themed movies that are family-friendly. Start with classics like About Time or New Year’s — and make sure to set up a movie theatre snack bar with lots of popcorn and sweets to keep everybody awake until the midnight countdown.

If you’re planning an outdoor all-night movie party, take a look at event creator Hounslow Council and partners and their upcoming Films On The Green event series.

11. Pyjama party

Difficulty: 🎆
Cost: 💸
Family Friendly: 👧👧👧

As hard as they may try, lots of little ones won’t stay up until midnight — and so a pyjama party is a fun theme to embrace the inevitable.

In terms of decor, aim to transform it into a cozy cottage with lots of pillows and blankets. For your entertainment, you could set up a chocolate fondue bar, a cocktail bar for the adults, kids’ party games, or even a best PJs contest.

You could even turn your New Year’s pyjama party into a family club night. For best practice, look at Big Fish Little Fish and their family rave series.

12. NYE fun fair

Difficulty: 🎆🎆🎆
Cost: 💸💸💸
Family Friendly: 👧👧👧

Everybody loves a day at the fair — so what better way to end the year? Set up your own New Year’s circus in a community space, village hall, or outdoor space. Dress it up as a village fete with bunting, fair stalls, games, and lots of glitter.

You can even hire circus performers, a petting zoo, a photo booth, and set up face painting to keep kids occupied until the ball drops. 

For inspiration, just look at what event creator Mercure Chester Abbots Well has planned for their Christmas Stall Party in December. With food and drinks stalls, festive drinks specials and a disco dance floor, this is the sort of vibe you’re after.

13. New Year’s scavenger hunt

Difficulty: 🎆🎆🎆
Cost: 💸
Family Friendly: 👧👧👧

Want to start the new year off on a competitive foot? Create your own geo-caching adventure or channel The Great Race to create a scavenger hunt competition with teams.

This theme is perfect if you’re working with a large community space or an outdoor venue. The scavenger hunt will be your main attraction, and you’ll need to make sure it’s well sign-posted or that you’ve got extra event staff to direct the competition with teams and give families hints.

Afterwards, throw a midnight feast for your teams with a big snack bar, live music, and kids’ craft table. In terms of atmosphere, aim for something like this BucketRace (Scavenger Hunt) Halloween Hunt from event creator BucketRace Public Events. 

Ready to start the countdown?

Once you’ve figured out the best New Year’s party idea for your event, it’s time to start thinking about getting things up and running — and that’s where Eventbrite comes in.

With Eventbrite, you can create a searchable event page, create ticket types and VIP experiences, promote your party on social media and through email, check your guests in on the event day, and a whole lot more.