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2016 comes to and end this weekend…and you’re ready to celebrate. Well good, because we’ve ideas for you. From the best places to spend your New Year’s to the weekend’s best movies and cutting edge TV – we’ve got your back big-time. Plus we’ve a special New Year’s beer pick for you too, because it has been a hell of a year and you’ll need something serious.
Where To Celebrate New Year’s
Obviously, Time’s Square is the most iconic American destination to celebrate this weekend but there are thousands of cool places all around the world where people will be gathering to see in the New Year like…
Reykjadalur – Iceland is renowned for their geo-thermal springs and taking a dip in any of these pools would be great places to welcome in the New Year. But Reykjadalur is special for a number of reasons. First, it’s close to Reykjavík (the city you’d be flying into) and amazingly this is one of the world’s very few spring warmed rivers. That’s right, in the peak of an arctic winter, you can float downstream through an enormous Icelandic gorge and enjoy the Northern Lights overhead as they welcome in 2017…
The Bahamas – We forget how closely accessible this archipelago of 700 islands is (especially for those of us on the east coast) and that it’s a warm and spectacular place to see in the New Year!
Napa and the Sonoma Valley – Northern California wine-country slows down to a crawl around this time of year and makes for a less-crowded and more Zen New Year’s Eve experience. And you know there will be plenty to drink!
Edinburgh, Scotland – No city in the world is more committed to New Year’s than Edinburgh, after all Auld Lang Syne was written by Scotsman Robert Burns. The celebrations, which go on for four days, include a torchlight parade through the old city, concerts everywhere, and a massive open-air party on Princes Street. Plus the craft beer scene up that way doesn’t suck either.
Maui, Hawaii – New Year’s Eve in Maui offers something for every taste. From lively hotel parties to singular walks on the beach, it’s a wonderful place anytime but especially this weekend. Yet the real celebration happens the next morning for those who head to the summit of Haleakala to start the New Year with one of the most remarkable sunrises in the world.
On The Big Screen – When we think New Year’s we think gangster movies and there’s a promising new one opening this weekend. Directed by and also starring Ben Affleck, Live by Night is a prohibition era epic that comes from a best-selling novel written by ACB fav, Dennis Lehane. It also features Elle Fanning and Brendan Gleason, so there’s that.
TV Time – It’s all about watching the ball drop this weekend – so pick your poison. Ryan Seacrest now helms Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve on ABC and it’s always pretty dependable. New Year’s Eve Live with Anderson Cooper and Kathy Griffin on CNN has started to garner a cult-like following – and there’s always MTV.
The ACB NEW YEAR’S BEER PICK
You don’t celebrate the New Year coming with bullshit. This is when you pull out all those valuables you’ve got stashed in the basement and we’ll be greeting midnight with something special from Firestone Walker. Marking the brewery’s 20th year in the biz, Firestone Walker XX Anniversary is a harmonious ensemble of diverse beer creations from their family of oak- aged bourbon and spirit barrels that are then blended together by artisans from the local Paso Robles winemaking community. We’ve not had this one yet, but we assure you it’s gonna be AWESOME!
New Year’s banner photo credit: P. Csi for XFINITY Live!
