Ah yes. One of the most special nights people usually spend with their loved ones, be it their SOs, family, or friends.
It’s too bad not everyone can do that due to a variety of reasons. Lonely waiting for the new year to drop can be depressing, that’s for sure. Fortunately, there are ways to make the most out of the New Year’s Eve even if you’re flying solo and have fun while at it.
There are so many interesting things to do this night, ranging from some good old-fashioned gaming to epic movie marathons. Below you’ll find a couple of ideas on how to spend the New Year’s Eve. No, none of them involve just going to sleep (although this is one way to go about it, we have to admit).
Naturally, if you’re a loner by default and don’t mind solitude, you can simply disregard these pieces of advice altogether. Or you can check them out for some inspiration in case you need it!
1. Video games
Yeah, it’s one of the most classic ways of handling the wait for the new year. Even more fantastic is the fact that a lot of folks spend the night this way. You know what this means, right? If you’re feeling lonely and out of friends, you can meet new peeps online and have some fun together doing what you (probably) love the most.
For this trick to work, however, it’s best if you pick games which encourage teamwork and co-operating with others. MMORPGs and team-based shooters, maybe?
This might be particularly fun if you enable voice chat. As you can see, gaming doesn’t have to be solitary. Yeah, maybe it’s not the same as being together in one room. But hey, as long as you’re having a good time, who cares?
If you’re looking for some fun recommendations, we can always suggest the evergreen World of Warcraft, Counter-Strike 2, and the latest smash hit, The Finals.
| Game | Release | Genre | Trailer | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ELDEN RING Shadow of the Erdtree | 2024-06-21 | Action | |
 | HELLDIVERS 2 | 2024-02-08 | Shooter | |
 | Black Myth: Wukong | 2024-08-20 | Action | |
 | Hogwarts Legacy | 2023-02-10 | Action RPG | |
 | Metaphor: ReFantazio | 2024-10-11 | jRPG | |
 | S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl | 2024-11-20 | Horror & Action | |
 | Farming Simulator 25 | 2024-11-12 | Simulator | |
 | Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 | 2024-09-09 | Action | |
 | Project Zomboid | 2013-11-08 | Indie | |
 | Manor Lords | 2024-04-26 | Strategy | |
 | Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition | 2019-11-14 | Strategy | |
 | Mortal Kombat 1 | 2023-09-19 | Fighting |
2. Movies (coupled with books!)
That’s right: a marathon featuring a carefully curated selection of great titles is a totally legit way of spending the New Year’s Eve. The world’s your oyster, too, as you can pick from a wide variety of movies and genres. Timeless classics? Some fresher releases? B-movies? Horrors? Dramas? Crime stuff? You choose.
With a wide selection of VODs and streaming services available, you can easily create your own wish list and start watching awesome flicks straight away. Most of the 2023 premieres are already available for renting or purchase, too.
Why not go beyond that and complement the movies with some great novels? You might want to either mix ‘n’ match the themes you’re interested in or pick something to read that goes along with the films you pick really well.
3. Creative expression through your favorite (or an entirely new) hobby
These couple of hours until midnight are perfect for some creative projects. Drawing, painting, writing, stuff like pottery, woodworking (and woodburning, too!), chandlery, model building, whittling, leatherworking, cooking, heck, even knitting (special thanks to The Art of Manliness for these ideas) – as you can see, there are numerous options available.
Who knows, maybe your baby steps at a particular hobby will become a lifelong passion? So, pick the idea you like the most, get all the materials and resources needed, fire up some tutorials on YouTube and let’s get started!
4. Well-ness and self-care
“Go to the gym or spa? How? Everything’s going to be closed on the New Year’s Eve!”, you might say. True, but…that shouldn’t stop you from trying to create a spa-like experience for yourself at home! And if you feel like working out, you don’t need a gym for that. Try calisthenics or use whatever you have at your disposal as improvised weights or workout machines, for example.
Just be careful; don’t injure yourself or damage your property in the process. After that, treat yourself to a nice stretching session and a warm bath. You totally deserve it.
5. Virtual gatherings
Sometimes it might be that you’re just hundreds of miles away from your family and friends and have no way of meeting them face-to-face. Well, that shouldn’t be a problem with today’s technologies. Video call someone and spend some quality time with them online! Yeah, it’s not the same as hanging out IRL, but this doesn’t mean such virtual gatherings can’t be fun!
6. Self-reflection and goal setting
The New Year has always been associated with resolutions and goals set for the next 12 months. Well, we all know how these usually go. Maybe it’s time to change that and commit to something this time around?
Anyway, the New Year’s Eve is a perfect opportunity for you to sit down, relax, review the previous year and plan for the new one. Maybe there are some things you would like to change about yourself? Maybe you have some big goals in your mind that you would like to reach in 2024? Write them all down and pick the ones you want to take on throughout the new year. Remember: be consistent and don’t give up even if you keep on failing miserably. Just get up and keep doing your thing!
You might be thinking that a lonely New Year’s Eve is something that should be dreaded. Maybe so, but we’re pretty sure that if you keep the above ideas in mind and have a positive attitude towards the whole thing, this might be a night you’ll be actually looking forward to. Make it legendary!
Happy New Year, folks!