Frugal New Year's Eve Celebration Ideas

New Year’s Eve is a time to celebrate! Another year down and the start of a new one. While a fancy celebration in a 5-star hotel might sound exciting, it’s not always affordable. Let’s be honest, it’s hardly ever affordable! That doesn’t mean you can’t kick off the New Year having a blast all while giving your pocket book a much-needed break, especially since we probably spent too much at Christmas. There are so many fun ways to celebrate and I’m going to share several Frugal New Year’s Eve Celebration Ideas with you!

Frugal New Year’s Eve Celebration Ideas

There are a variety of ways to enjoy New Year’s Eve without breaking the bank.

Host a New Year’s Eve Party at Home

Just because you can’t or don’t want to go to a fancy New Year’s Eve party, doesn’t mean you can’t have one at home. In fact, you can probably host a better party! Your party will be unique to your personality and your friends and family will have a blast ringing in the New Year with you.

Start off by planning your guest list well in advance, this will give people time to respond. Once you have a pretty accurate guest list start planning the menu. The more time you have to do this the better! Start looking for sales on any food and drinks you plan on serving. If you want to make your dollar go a little further host a potluck New Year’s Eve party.

Once you have your guest list and menu planned start working on entertainment. Start creating your favorite Pandora station or maybe putting together the perfect playlist. This will allow you to have great music without the expensive cost of a DJ. You might want to think of other entertainment like board games or maybe some type of outdoor activity.

Lastly, you will want to make sure you have decorations. You simply can not have a New Year’s Eve party without festive decorations. Try to pick these items up at your local Dollar Store for maximum savings.

Attend a Friend’s New Year’s Eve Party

If you’re not in the party planning mood simply attend a friend’s New Year’s party. Start asking your friends and family what their New Year’s plans are and decide where you will ring in the new year. This is a great frugal New Year’s celebration idea because you really don’t have to spend any money at all. However, it might be nice to bring an appetizer or a bottle of champagne.

Look Into Free Events on New Year’s Eve

Most communities are trying to encourage families to ring in the New Year sober. In turn, the city will usually put on a wonderful and alcohol- free New Year’s Eve event. These events are a lot of fun for the entire family. Call your local Chamber of Commerce or look in your local paper for a list of events. This is another great way to save a lot of money on your New Year’s Eve festivities.

Skip New Year’s Eve this Year

I’m really not trying to sound like a party pooper but for some people, New Year’s Eve is over-rated. Don’t feel like you have to follow the status quo and go out on New Year’s Eve. There is absolutely nothing wrong with staying home in your pajama’s while watching the ball drop on TV. In fact, there is nothing wrong with falling asleep before the ball drops. Not only are you safer in the comfort of your own home but it’s a frugal way to ring in the New Year.

Celebrate the New Year Early

One popular way to kick off the New Year is by going out to a nice dinner. This is great and a lot of fun but a lot of restaurants tend to jack up their prices on New Year’s Eve. Instead of going out for a late evening dinner opt for an early dinner before the crowds hit the restaurants. This will save you money and time!

Plan a Group Event on New Year’s Eve

Maybe you’re determined to ring in the New Year in style, which is perfectly fine. But maybe you still need to find a way to stretch your dollar. You might want to consider putting together a group event with friends and family. Creating a group event will allow you to save money on transportation, lodging, and other costs associated with the New Year’s Eve. Renting a party bus might run you $1000, but splitting this between several other people could end up lowering your costs to a $100. Get creative with your party planning and make sure to include a lot of friends!