2016 is just around the corner and for many—the coming of a New Year is a BIG deal!

If you’re looking for the perfect New Year’s Eve party, we’ve selected our top 4 places around the world that really know how to welcome the Gregorian calendar version of New Year, in style!

1.) Edinburgh, Scotland

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Top of the list is my home country of Scotland.

For many in the land of whisky and rain, Hogmanay, as December 31^st is called, is the grandest event of the year. The capital city of Edinburgh (Auld Reekie) comes alive with fireworks and festivals in one of the biggest New Year’s party’s in the world! Musical acts keep Princes Street Gardens rocking, whilst the majority of revelers pack Princes Street itself, to cheer on the firework display illuminating majestic Edinburgh Castle’s ramparts, and the dark, brooding sky above.

Elsewhere around Scotland, folks still first-foot (first to cross the threshold of a house) with traditional gifts of coal and money, purportedly to bring warmth and prosperity to the recipients for the next 12 months!

Of course, there’s a little bit of Scots in all of us as, when the ball drops, the bells clang, and the clock ticks past midnight—those words you’re all singing with your arms thrust around your nearest and dearest’s shoulders, were first organized and put on paper by Robert Burns, Scotland’s national poet!  Intended as a call to remember long standing friendships, Auld Lang Syne has been adopted all over the world for New Year celebrations and many other commemorative occasions! So, as you celebrate this next New Year, raise your glasses in a toast to Scotland! It’s how Rabbie Burns would have wanted it. (Cue bagpipes!)

2.) Sydney, Australia

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First in the world to welcome the New Year is Samoa, along with Kiritimati, aka Christmas Island, one of the Kiribati chain of the Pacific Ocean—but  hot on their heels comes Australia and New Zealand who start their New Year some 16 to 18 hours before East Coast America—no fair!

The area around Australia’s Sydney Opera House puts on a spectacular fireworks display which is reputedly the largest in the world! (Bigger than Jones Beach, Wantagh NY on July 4^th?)

The Opera House and Harbour Bridge provide the perfect backdrop for the 1 million+ revelers, and if that isn’t enough, along comes the Harbor of Light Parade, where illuminated boats happily cruise and twinkle towards the New Year along a 9 mile route.

OK—this party does sound quite big!

And there’s more—not far away down the road at world famous Bondi Beach, how about saying g’day to the New Year Aussie style, with a good old fashioned beach party!

3.) Times Square, New York, NY

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Globally recognized as one of THE top New Year’s parties on the planet, Times Square and surrounding avenues and streets are packed shoulder to shoulder in the lead up to the big ball drop celebrations of New York! Beamed into the eyes of an estimated 1 billion global TV viewers, and with an estimated 1 million in attendance, this once in a lifetime event polls high on many a bucket list!

4.) Las Vegas Strip, Las Vegas, Nevada

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Las Vegas does New Year in true Vegas showy style. Cars are banned from the usually busy Strip, allowing over 300,000 party-goers (half of which are Elvis impersonators) to enjoy a massive street party of music and lights. Fireworks cascade from no fewer than 7 hotel rooftops as the town buzzes with parties, laser beams, and shows!

We want to know which of these 2 dueling New Year’s Eve parties you’d choose over the other! Take our quick as a flash, head to head poll, and vote for your favorite!

Click an image to vote—are you New York or Vegas?

Honorable mentions must also go out to Rio, Paris, London, Vienna, Berlin, Hong Kong, Amsterdam, and Barcelona—cities who all clearly know how to throw a partay and who are looking forward to your visit!

So—that’s the next 12 New Year’s Eve party venues lined up for you (count them). You’re welcome.

No matter where you choose to say farewell to 2015 and hello to 2016, we wish you a happy and healthy New Year and look forward to cyber-traveling around the globe with you over the next 12 months! Let us know where’s top of your travel list for 2016 in the comments below.