The Unforgettable Destinations To Celebrate New Year’s Eve 2009

New Year will coming soon, less than 60 days from now, we will enter 2009. Talk about New Year means one of the biggest celebrations in the world. All people from every country celebrate New Year in every way, a splendid and grand way, regardless of their nationality and religion. We are all waiting for this special night and carefully preparing for it. To celebrate New Year at a unique place has become a great desire. People wish to begin their New Year with a city-break. They choose to be part of some different traditions and festivities when it is New Year. For some New Year holiday destinations change every year. The most exotic New Year destinations are the snow-bound areas or a foreign country. That is a magical time when all of the cities around the world are more gloriously alive than they usually are. Here we bring to you, the best place to be for New Years Eve in order to have unforgettable New Years celebration. Only for you and your lover.
So, what are you waiting for, prepare your journey, pack your bags and take your love to a magnificent New Year excursion.

1. ALASKA
Ever thought of a trance retreat in the beginning of any year? Ever dreamt of going on to some place that refreshes your senses at the onset of New Year? If yes then going on a New Year cruises is apt for you…

The best part of spending your New Year in Alaska is the trip to the most untouched places on earth through water. Exquisite ports and places only accessible via air or water roads can be seen from a closer point. The breathtaking view of glaciers sitting right amongst the cozy surroundings of a cruise is something no one would like to skip.

New Years eve cruises in Alaska would take you through new avenues of Alaskan beauty. Here are some of the famous Alaska Cruise ports :

Ports In The Glaciers Of Alaska
The Glacier’s Bay consist of some of the most visited destination places in the city of Alaska. The Sea Princess, The Lampugh Glacier and the Margerie Glacier are all accessible from your cruise ship. Till 18th century, it is believed to have an ice wall at the entrance of the Glacier Bay. The view of some of the rare species of birds here is wonderful. Imagine you with your near and dear ones enjoying the New Years Eve at the Hubbard Glacier. Among other must to be visited sight scenes are Mountains and Lakes of Haines. The Kathleen Lake, Glacier Lake, the White Pass and others. Thus, ports in the Glaciers of Alaska can be one of the best places for New Year cruises. This place offers the rarest of rare views from New Year cruises in Alaska.

Whittier Cruise Port
The Whittier community is known by tourists from across the world as the best place for fishing and viewing the glacier line as you tread through the canal in a cruise. The exotic place will enchant you from its wild beauty. Anchorage, yet another Alaska cruise port, being near to Whittier can be visited too. Many travel agencies offer transportation from Whittier to Anchorage and vice versa at genuine price.

All the cruises in Alaska city make special arrangements to celebrate the occasion of New Year. The milky white aura of Alaska and the serenity of the surroundings make a great place to welcome the New Year. However, if you are the sort who prefers to enjoy New Years Eve celebrations to be ostentatious and pompous, then this place is not for you. But if you wish to spend your New Year away from the hustle-bustle of city life, then don’t think twice. Just go for it.

2. ZAHRA, TULUM, MEXICO
surely the sexiest resort on earth  For the pleasures of barefoot luxury, nature, and absolute relaxation, you should head to Zahra, an eco-chic resort three miles south of Tulum on Mexico’s Caribbean coast.  Zahra’s scenery imparts a magic-realism: the wild beach has sand as soft as flour. There is the ancient Mayan temples of Tulum or you could simply take an afternoon swim in the exorbitant turquoise of the Caribbean and then make love on a blanket beneath the coconut fronds. A shaman can offer a cosmic wedding ceremony to unite a couple, or you can discover new ways of living through dawn yoga, lucid dreaming courses or purify yourself with a temazcal (Mayan sweat lodge).  The lady in your life can experience the traditional Mayan therapy of having her entire body covered in locally-grown chocolate (known for its potent aphrodisiac qualities), in preparation for an unforgettable night of passion. Traditional Mayan food, lime soup and some impossibly sexy Yucatecan dishes (best eaten with the fingers) are served by candlelight at heart-shaped tables. Paths lined with candles exhaling incense lead through the moonlit jungle to isolated cabanas, raised on stilts above the beach, and furnished with huge beds of billowing sheets.  Passion, love and beauty are everywhere
For more information visit www.zahra.com.mx or www.visitmexico.com

3. REYKJAVIK
What is special about New Year’s Eve in Reykjavik? Bonfires, northern lights, steaming drinks, fireworks and little folk: there’s an additional magic in the air on New Year’s Eve (Gamlarskrold) in Iceland. Trolls, fairies and elves are said to join revelers in their celebrations around chains of communal bonfires. Folk songs are sung, candles are waved and at midnight the skies explode in firework displays (the best being in Reykjavík), making the night one of the biggest firework – shows on earth. The Reykjavik-city estimates that more than 500.000 fireworks used, weighting more than 1.000 tons!. The subsequent dancing and partying lasts until sunrise – which in Iceland’s midwinter is about midday! With luck, fireworks won’t be the only aerial illuminations: Iceland’s upper latitudes are ideal for viewing the aurora borealis (northern lights) from October to March.

4. WALTZ IN VIENNA
Can there be a more elegant way to see in the New Year than this? When Austria’s clocks reach 12, the Blue Danube Waltz strikes up, and a nation swishes and glides its way into New Year’s Day.

At the heart of the celebrations is Vienna’s centuries-old New Year’s Imperial Ball, which sees rustling white ball gowns and sleek black jackets whirl amid the imperial majesty of the Hapsburg Empire of old accompanied by the finest musicians in the country.

But if you can’t secure tickets to the ball, Vienna is awash with other concerts and events. On 31 December, street celebrations start in the early afternoon with music, sparkling wine, food and fireworks along a New Year trail.
For more information visit : www.wien.info

5. COPACABANA BEACH, RIO DE JENAIRO
New Year’s Eve (Véspera de Ano Novo) is one of the most exuberant holidays in Brazil. . The most famous celebration is at the Copacabana Beach in Rio De Jenairo, which has an average attendance of 2,500,000 people every year to celebrate the arrival of the New Year in unforgettable style and surroundings: the scenic panorama of the beach illuminated by the fireworks display is a spectacular background for one of the biggest and most glamorous street parties in the world with numerous music and dance performances and concerts. The fireworks display last from 15 to 25 minutes and is followed by music shows set on several stages throughout the beach. The Brazilian people, well-known for their hospitality, friendliness and exuberant way of partying mix with tourists who come to Rio from all over the world to share this unique experience. Travelers from the Northern Hemisphere especially are fascinated to escape the cold and rainy season for a New Year’s Party in tropical climate, ideal to be combined with a few days of holidays at the beach or discovering other spectacular natural or cultural attractions in Brazil.

6. COLLIOURE, FRANCE
a fantastic splash of color for the New Year  It was Henry Matisse, the artist, who said, “In the whole of France there is no sky as blue as the one above Collioure.”  The French town, lying almost in Spain but resolutely Catalan, is best seen out of season, when the weather is still spring-like and you can have the place to yourself.  Artists Matisse, Picasso and others developed their fauvist (meaning ‘wild beasts’) style of painting in the town, utilizing intensely vivid, contrasting colors and simplified shapes. This little town tumbles down the hillside in a splash of colors, wedged into the Cote Vermeille – or Vermillion Coast, named after the purplish-red rocks. The outdoor markets sell all manner of local produce – fat, freshly-landed oysters from Cap Leucate, huge bulbs of garlic, paper cones of sardines.  The town is framed by the extraordinary church of Notre Dame des Anges, built in Mediterranean Gothic style.  A wander around the quayside at dusk reveals anchors, fishing nets and a thriving fishing industry. The feeling here is one of stepping back to yesteryear in the cobbled streets and artist’s shops.  You can in fact walk much of the spectacular Cote Vermeille from here, the footpath plunging to isolated coves and fishing towns all the way to Spain.  This is the perfect place to discover the French joie du vivre – or joy of living.

6. MADEIRA, WORLD’S BIGGEST FIREWORK BLITZ
Size matters – especially when it comes to firework displays. Nations compete to claim the largest, the longest and the most spectacular light shows in the world at New Year. And on 1 January 2007 it became official: Funchal’s annual fireworks show was confirmed as the world’s biggest.

Each year the capital’s bay transforms into a fiery crucible with white lights sugaring the hillsides, 250,000 electric lights coloring the waterside and over 600,000 fireworks fizzing through the air when the clock strikes 12. The semicircular bay is naturally shaped like an amphitheater, so everybody is guaranteed a superb view. For information visit : www.madeiraislands.travel

8. HAMPI, KARNAKTA PROVINCE,INDIA

history and “to die for” sunsets  You won’t believe what you’re seeing when visiting Hampi. Hampi was the former capital of a great Hindu empire in the Deccan plateau. In its heydey, it was a fairytale city with many temples, palaces and the most beautiful of mansions. The city was robbed of all its strength and splendour in 1565 AD when the ruler Rama Raya was defeated and killed by a confederation of Mughal kings. Today, it consists of numerous shrines and temples that are still an active place of worship. Pilgrims gather outside the Virupaksha temple, built to honour Shiva, in the very heart of Hampi Bazaar  From there you can explore the whole area. The countryside surrounding the small Indian holy town of Hampi, in the southern region of Karnataka, is like Martian terrain. Huge boulders litter the eerie landscape, and ancient temples nestle into every hill and valley. If you and your lover love the different, silent and ancient place to celebrate your new year, this is the perfect place for you. This place is known as The City of Ruins.  Make your way to the hill behind the town and take a seat for a spectacular sunset in one of the most peculiar places on Earth. Or watch it with the monkeys and sacred cows painted pink, at the nearby monkey temple – a great vantage point but only if you have the energy for the steep climb. Either way, head into town when it’s finished and refuel with a 30p curry. for more information visit www.incredibleindia.org

9. NORDIC LIGHT HOTEL, STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN
the ‘coolest’ place to spend New Year   Stockholm, nicknamed Venice of the North, asserts its charm most of all during the winter, when it’s cold but bright and many of the waterways freeze and can be skated or walked upon, affording a totally different perspective of one of Europe’s arguably most beautiful cities. Jump aboard an old steam boat which sails around Stockholm’s impressive 24,000 islands.  The cruise shows off the raw, frozen beauty of the archipelago and at mid-day, they serve a hearty smorgasboard washed down with aquavit. Sweden’s most unusual hotel is the Nordic Light Hotel, promising an exceptional visual experience. Through its minimalist elegance and simplicity, it offers a calm, relaxing environment. Interiors are stunningly lit by the talents of ‘lighting architect’ Kai Piippo who decides each month where the subtle, spiky illumination goes according to season and amount of light outside – remember there’s only three or four hours a day in winter.   Just over the road is Ice Bar, a vodka bar where everything from the counter and walls to the glasses are made of ice. At minus six degrees, they supply you with fur anoraks and mittens to prevent frostbite. For more information visit www.nordiclighthotel.se

10. LAKE OF PREGNANT MAIDEN, LANGKAWI, MALAYSIA
the ultimate escape from reality  You can imagine mermaids swimming at this remote speck of limestone off the coast of Malaysia.  It’s called the Lake of the Pregnant Maiden.  Do like I did and float on your back in the dead-centre of the lake with moustachioed catfish nibbling your toes. That sounds alarming but catfish are as friendly as your everyday goldfish and it’s a strangely soothing experience.

This lake is a freshwater body suspended above sea level between sheer rock.  To get here, you board a 30-minute speedboat ride from Langkawi’s main island. Legend says that a white crocodile lives in the lake and that any female bathing in the magic waters will bear children.  The lake is named after a fairy princess who buried her stillborn baby under its waters and then gave the island a blessing of enduring fertility. If you look carefully, you may see the outline of hills and rocky outcrops on one side of the lake resembles the shape of a pregnant maiden lying on her back.

A swim in the eerie waters is balm to any winter-weary Northern European’s soul, especially when it’s 31°c here, but minus 2 back in London. Back on Langkawi’s main island, you can celebrate the New Year in style by staying at the Bon Ton village, consisting of seven wooden, individually-painted antique houses on stilts.  They serve Nyonya cuisine, a fusion food blending together Chinese, Indonesian and Thai cooking.   Dishes include laksa, noodles in a spicy coconut soup with seafood, lemongrass, pineapple, chilli and beansprouts. Or there is otak-otak, fish mashed with coconut milk and chilli, served on a banana leaf.  And when you’re ready to party, there are some great moonlit beach-shack parties just a short taxi ride away.  Fly with Malaysia Airlines and stay at Bon Ton Resort.

Source : from various site.