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New Year Aruba holidays
It's not just Christmas that is embraced by Arubans, New Year is also celebrated with equal zest. Come and holiday in Aruba at this time of year for the festivities will be rewarded by spectacular fireworks, firecracker displays, music and locals enthused with joy. Enjoying good food surrounded by family and friends is the main ingredient in an Aruban New Year. Start the evening with a sit-down, special dinner before joining the street celebrations and maybe even setting off your own Pagara (a string of firecrackers). End the night by retiring to the comfort of your hotel to see the night sky illuminated in a blaze of light and sound.
New Year holidays to Aruba
New Year traditions in Aruba
Dande is Aruba’s most celebrated and different New year’s tradition. Dande means ‘to revel’ in Papiamento and involves the island’s locals travelling in groups of five or six to visit neighbours’ houses to wish them success and joy for the upcoming year through the use of song.
Each group contains a main singer who customises their lyrics for every household member and musicians that use an array of instruments. One member also carries a hat to collect donations which are equally distributed between them at the end of the night. This tradition occurs every year and lasts until the sixth of January.
Aruban’s kick off the start to the new year in a truly fun fashion. The tradition of Nieuwjaarsduik, which translates to ‘New year’s plunge’ entails people of all ages meeting on the first day of January at Moomba beach. They first participate in a Zumba session and then run into the tranquil sea below at 12 pm. Arubans quickly follow this with a well-deserved portion of pea soup with sausage.
Best places to celebrate New Year in Aruba
As New Year in Aruba approaches, the celebrations move away from the birth of Christ, to the expulsion of evil spirits through the use of lights and fireworks. To truly experience this cacophony of light and sound we recommend a stay in Oranjestad, where you will become totally immersed in the joyous celebrations.
Many hotels put on their own displays, and sipping a drink on your balcony overlooking beaches exploding in colour, noise and smoke is not to be missed.
If you still have some untapped energy, then why not join the traditional New Year's Day swim at Moomba Beach. At precisely twelve noon, hordes of locals, donning orange bathing caps observe an old Dutch tradition by diving into the warm Caribbean waters.
Best hotels to celebrate New Year in Aruba
If you’re wanting to celebrate the New Year in style and money is no object, then the Ritz Carlton is the perfect choice for you. Set along the beachfront, for a fee this luxury hotel provides a very tasty New Year's Eve buffet with an array of different foods that are suitable for both adults and kids.
The New Year's Eve beach party at the Ritz Carlton is also not one to miss. Listening to live entertainment and watching the fireworks, whilst sipping champagne on the beach is what New Year's Eve is all about here in Aruba. For an even more lavish experience, you can rent a private cabana on the beach.