10 Fun New Year’s Eve Traditions for a Lucky & Abundant 2026
As the new year approaches, people around the world are getting ready to channel positivity in their lives for 2026.
If you’re hoping to bring yourself some luck but don’t know where to start, these ten New Year’s Eve traditions from around the world are the perfect place to start.
Kissing at Midnight
Perhaps the most well-known New Year’s Eve tradition is sharing a kiss with someone as the clock strikes midnight. The tradition seems to span across cultures around the world, with some saying it originated from the pagan celebrations of Saturnalia in ancient Rome, others claiming it was really English and German folklore that solidified the tradition. Regardless of its origin, the idea behind it seems to be the same: sharing a kiss at midnight is meant to symbolize that you are bringing love into the new year.
Making Noise at Midnight
While the source of the noise may differ from culture to culture, making noise at midnight is another popular tradition. From fireworks, to noisemakers, to banging pots and pans, many people like to “ring in the new year” literally, by letting noise ring out into the night. This comes from the belief that loud noises will drive away evil spirits, ushering in only good energy for the year ahead.
Eating 12 Grapes at Midnight
This tradition originated in Spain and spread to become common practice in many Latin American countries. When the clock strikes midnight in Madrid, it will chime 12 times, leaving party goers to scramble to eat one grape per chime that rings out. Each of the 12 grapes is meant to symbolize one month of the upcoming new year. With each grape you consume, you supposedly lock in another month of good fortune for yourself for the year ahead.
Carrying a Suitcase
In many Latin American countries like Colombia and Mexico, New Year’s Eve means it’s time to get your suitcase out, and not because you’re going on a trip that day. Instead, tradition dictates that right around midnight, you should walk or run around the house or the block carrying your suitcase along with you. This is meant to usher in a year filled with travel opportunities. Some people even pack their suitcase with items they would need in their dream destination for extra specific manifestation.
Wearing Polka Dots
In the Philippines, circles are believed to be a lucky shape, signifying prosperity. Because of this, it is extremely popular to don polka dot outfits on New Year’s Eve. They also often fill their pockets with coins and scatter them around their house to have as many circular objects around as possible.
Eating Black Eyed Peas
This tradition, usually done on New Year’s Day, comes from the southern United States. Black eyed peas are said to represent coins, often being served with collard greens, which are meant to represent paper money. Together, they are meant to usher in a financially abundant New Year for those who eat them. As far as origins go, black eyes peas originated in West Africa and were transported to the southern U.S. alongside slaves. In West Africa, black eyed peas had always been considered a lucky food for celebrations and were thought to ward off the evil eye. Though they were not consumed for New Year’s there, the idea of black eyed peas being a lucky and celebratory meal lived on through the traditions of enslaved people in the Southern U.S. and eventually became attached to New Year’s Day.
Putting Money in Your Shoe
Another popular tradition, particularly in many Latin American cultures, is to make sure you have money on your person at midnight. This can often mean filling your pockets with money or holding some in your hand as the clock strikes midnight. One easy way and common to do this for party goers of all ages is by keeping money in your shoe all night long.
Sweeping Out Bad Luck
Another tradition that is fairly universal but seems to stem from the southern U.S. is cleaning your home on New Year’s Eve. Sweeping out dirt and dust is often seen and sweeping out any bad luck from the previous year before the new one begins. However, beware that this does not extend into New Year’s Day! Cleaning or removing anything from your home on January 1 is said to run the risk of losing things (or people!) that are important to you in the year ahead.
Banging Bread Against the Wall
This is an old Celtic tradition out of Ireland. Many Irish families will bang bread against their walls as a way of supposedly warding off evil spirits and bad luck, while inviting in good ones. This is consistent with general traditions of making loud noises to ward off evil, but using bread specifically is also said to secure enough food for the family for the upcoming year.
Drinking Champagne
Having a champagne toast is also synonymous with New Year’s in most parts of the world. The tradition naturally originates in France, where champagne comes from. Some time around the 17th century, champagne became the drink of choice for the French aristocracy. This made people associate it with wealth and luxury, making it a popular choice for celebrations of any type, which included New Year’s Eve parties. Like most other New Year’s Eve traditions, it is meant to symbolize a year of abundance ahead.
