It will be the beginning of a new year and people celebrate January 1st in the most beautiful ways all over the world. Have you ever wondered how New Year’s Eve is celebrated in other countries? In Peru, New Year’s Eve is one of the most festive occasions in the country. Many travelers love to celebrate there and join in the fun. Let’s take a look at Peru’s lively way of celebrating each new year.
Fiestas and celebrations everywhere in Peru
If you like big parties and counting down to New Year’s Eve, Cusco is the perfect place for you; the streets of the city come alive to party! Before midnight the streets and bars are filled with people ready to have fun. At midnight the fireworks go off, great music and dancing fill the entire city.
Lima hotels and restaurants offer various packages and buffets to satisfy all your cravings if you are a foodie and want to experience sumptuous celebrations during New Year’s Eve. Also, you can visit and enjoy a home-made feast by meeting locals who would invite you to their get-together celebrations at home. Homemade Peruvian feasts on New Year’s Eve represent a different level of gastronomic experience. Make sure you don’t come empty-handed and bring some wine or pisco.
Since New Year’s Eve falls in Peru’s summer season, people head to the beach on New Year’s Eve to celebrate and enjoy the fantastic weather. People party on the beach all day and night, full of activities, food and drinks. Places like Paracas, San Bartolo and Punta Hermosa are full of celebrations.
New Year’s customs and traditions in Peru
As in many countries, New Year’s customs are intended to bring good luck, success and happiness for the coming year. To immerse yourself in the Peruvian New Year experience, you can follow the habits and customs practiced by Peruvians. Here are some practices you can expect to see and experience in Peru:
- Filling the room with yellow flowers and decorations and scattering rice around the house brings luck and prosperity.
- Wearing new clothes, especially underwear, on New Year’s Eve brings prosperity. The color of your underwear blesses your wishes for the coming year (red for love, yellow for prosperity, white for health and green for wealth)
- If you want to travel more or have blessings on your travels, you need to run around the block with an empty backpack or suitcase.
There are still other customs to observe and enjoy in Peru. Peruvians are big on wishing each other prosperity and success; so, these traditions are certainly encouraged for everyone!
Other celebrations
New Year is a beautiful time to go to Peru as everyone comes together to celebrate and share wishes of success and growth with everyone. This type of celebration doesn’t just happen once in Peru. Andean tradition celebrates the new year on June 21st, and because of this, there is much more to look forward to in Peru. In the meantime, celebrate the start of this new year with a heart full of love and a spirit full of adventure!
