A Blogger’s Guide To Surviving Hogmanay – New Year Celebrations in Edinburgh

For those of us who like to plan ahead you may already be thinking about where to see in the New Year. Maybe some of the coverage from Edinburghā€™s Hogmanay has made you consider Edinburgh for the next New Year celebrations? I certainly had the time of my life and am sure you will too. Below are a few of the insider tips I picked up whilst celebrating my first Hogmanay that you may like to bear in mind if/when you make it there.

Stay Indoors Until At Least 9pm

Before attending the Hogmanay celebrations in Edinburgh I had images of us standing on the streets getting cold for the better part of the day and night, but it turns out the Scots are not that crazy! Unlike the New Years celebrations in Sydney, where you have to camp out all day to secure your waterside seats, the celebrations in Edinburgh are more like a festival with people moving around throughout. People donā€™t turn up until the first act they want to see comes on and as the stages donā€™t open until 9pm there is little point in arriving any earlier. We stayed in a nearby warm pub until just after 9, at which point we strolled right into the event without having to queue. People continue to stream in at their own pace right up until the gates close at 11pm.

The streets of Edinburgh become one big party

(It’s business as usual on Princes Street until approx 4pm on New Years Eve)

Layer, Layer, Layer

But it does get cold out there as the night goes on so the best approach is to layer, layer, layer. My combination of 2 tops, 1 jumper, 2 scarves, tights, jeans and socks was enough to keep me toasty on the streets, and all the dancing and cheeky sips of wine didnā€™t hurt either. If taking part in something more energetic, like the Ceilidh (the UKā€™s largest New Year outdoor dance event), youā€™ll be relieved to have layers you can take off.

BYO Booze

You can bring your own booze to the event (how good is that?!) There is no glass allowed so head to the supermarket early on the 31st to snap up the pre-mixed drinks in cans and plastic bottles of wine ā€“ they sell out quickly as the day goes on.

Edinburgh's Hogmanay(Wine in a plastic cup at Rewinder Stage)

Alcohol is also sold at stands inside the event. The queues werenā€™t outrageous but the prices were higher than at Sainsburyā€™s (as you would expect).

Plan Your Night

Edinburghā€™s Hogmanay is like a festival on the streets, there are several stages with several acts on at the same time. Some sections require separate tickets i.e. for the Concert in the Gardens where Pet Shop Boys performed this year and also the Ceilidh, but if you have these tickets you also get access to the Street Party. The Street Party itself consists of 3 performance areas (the Waverley Stage, Scottish Stage and Rewinder in 2013) plus all the bars, food trucks and screens and speakers dispersed throughout so you are never far from the music.

Despite our best intentions we didnā€™t make it to all the acts we wanted to see, we were too busy dancing in the street. But if there are bands you long to see make sure you have noted in advance where you need to be at what time. Hogmanay programmes distributed throughout the city can help you with that. There are also hourly firework displays from 9pm that act as your visual clock throughout the night.

11pm Deadline

There is no entry to the event after 11pm so make sure you are inside the gates by this time. This is also the point where the street gets most crowded so you should be thinking ahead about where you want to be at the midnight moment and making your way towards it. Lots of people have different opinions about where the best view of the fireworks are, in front of the castle at the Concert in the Gardens was one of the favourites but, to be honest, the show takes over the whole sky – as long as you can look up you are in a good place. Because Iā€™m short and wanted to get photos without zillions of heads in we decided to head to a high point on The Mound where the Rewinder Stage was. This also meant I got to bounce to retro tunes whilst we waited. To find out how magical that midnight moment in Edinburgh was read my Hogmanay Diary here.

Edinburgh's Hogmanay(Princes Street filling up at 11pm)

Snacks On Site

Iā€™m going to put on my sensible head now and say ā€˜Make sure you eat a good meal before consuming alcoholā€™ (we had burgers at the Huxley but you could go local with some Haggis, Neeps and Tatties like Canadian bloggers Samuel and Audrey did for the first time here.) But you can also get a range of snacks on site including the infamous deep fried Mars Bar. I have 2 words to say about this ā€“ Do It!

Edinburgh's Hogmanay(Trying Deep Fried Mars Bar at Edinburgh’s Hogmanay)

Learn The Words

As the clock strikes twelve the city will be swaying to the sound of thousands of people singing Auld Land Syne. Make sure you are not one of the slurrers shouting nonsense to the tune by learning the words beforehand. They are helpfully printed in the Hogmanay booklet.

Keep Partying

The party is by no means over at 12. Local bars and clubs have extended trading hours, some till 5am, and the Hogmanay street party continues until 1am. When you are ready to make your way home there are free buses to get you there.

Edinburgh's Hogmanay(One of Edinburgh’s buskers)

Not Just 1 night

The Hogmanay celebrations are part of a 3-day event that begins the day before New Years Eve. The Torchlight Procession on the 30th was one of my highlights. (Try to imagine thousands of people parading through the streets holding lit torches and being lead by growling Vikings.) Do be aware that the wax of the torches can drip and be awkward to get off your clothing ā€“ wear a coat you are happy to dispose of or, better yet, get a plastic disposable kimono from one of the tourist stalls that you can throw away at the end of the event.

Edinburgh's Hogmanay 2015/16 Torchlight Procession

(The Up Helly Aa Vikings lead the Torchlight Procession)

On the 1st January the events continue in Edinburgh with Scot:Lands, a scavenger hunt around the city that leads you to acts and installations hidden in buildings of interest around the Old Town. Itā€™s a great way to explore Edinburgh, learn about Scottish culture, and blow away the cobwebs from the night before! Or if you are feeling somewhat braver (reads: nuts) there is the tradition of Loony Dook ā€“ taking a New Years Day dunk in the freezing River Forth. Check out Kirsten Alanaā€™s post ā€˜What the #$*! Is a Loony Dook?ā€™ to find out more!

Edinburgh's Hogmanay(A Scot:Lands event at the atmospheric Roxy)

Foodwise, one of the only cafes open for brunch on the 1st Jan was Hula Juice Bar and Gallery – and thank goodness they were. Their bacon and brie bagel and all fruit smoothies put me well on the road to hangover recovery.

Hula Juice Bar(Hangover brekkie at Hula Juice Bar)

Further information:

Tickets for Edinburghā€™s Hogmanay Street Party 2014 are already on sale now and cost just for Ā£20. For more information and to book visit http://www.edinburghshogmanay.org/buy-tickets. Follow the Edinburghā€™s Hogmanay team on Facebook and Twitter for up to date news of the next event, as and when they are revealed.

Thanks:

#BlogmanayĀ is brought to you by Edinburghā€™s Hogmanay and is supported byĀ ETAG,Ā EventScotland,Ā Homecoming Scotland,Ā VisitScotland,Ā Edinburgh Festivals,Ā Marketing EdinburghĀ and co-creatorsĀ Haggis Adventures. Created and produced byĀ Unique Events. As always, all opinions expressed here are entirely my own.

How to have the best new year's eve ever at Edinburghs HogmanayYou may also like:

How to have the best NYE ever at Hogmanay in Edinburgh

Diary of my first time at Hogmanay (2014)

Stylish guide to Edinburgh

Edinburgh’s Hogmanay is underway! (2013)

About the author

Iā€™m Jayne, a travel blogger, content creator and mum to a 4-year-old son. Iā€™ve been blogging since 2010, travelled to 65 countries and share travel guides and tips to help you plan stylish, stress-free trips.

17 thoughts on “A Blogger’s Guide To Surviving Hogmanay – New Year Celebrations in Edinburgh”

  1. This sounds like so much fun. I’m fed up of NYE being a massive let down and I’ve been thinking about going away for it for a few years now. This is definitely tempting!

    Reply
  2. Great post! My parents are Scottish and I have always loved Hogmanay, but it can be a bit of a let down in London. Edinburgh sounds much better!

    Reply
  3. Excellent guide Jayne! We actually went back to the Tune and slept in past our alarm waking up around 9:30 pm. Luckily, as you suggest in your post, we didn’t miss much and it ended up being the best decision considering we felt revived and able to stay out well past midnight. Oh those deep fried Mars bars…

    Reply
  4. Ah this is so informative and I am so excited about going to Hogmanay this year! I’m going with Stoke Travel from London and even though I’m only there for 24 hours after reading this I feel I will at least be able to get a full hogmanay experience,

    Reply
  5. Love that you can BYO booze! I’m jumping on Stoke’s party train from London and you can also pre-drink on there. Oh help me. I can’t wait šŸ˜‰

    Reply

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