Atlanta ranks No. 3 on Best Places for New Year’s Eve Celebrations List

If you’re planning to celebrate New Year’s Eve in Atlanta, you’re starting the New Year in one of the best cities for New Year’s Eve celebrations in the country! And this year, you’ll be able to ring in the New Year at the city’s most iconic celebrations as the Peach Drop returns to Underground Atlanta.

Atlanta ranked as the third best city in the nation to celebrate New Year’s in this year’s Best Places for New Year’s Eve Celebrations list from WalletHub, behind only New York and Los Angeles. The City of Atlanta ranked highest for its many entertainment and food options, coming in fourth overall in this category, which takes into account factors such as duration of fireworks shows, restaurants per capita, nightlife options per capita, and New Year’s Eve events per capita.

To compile the list, WalletHub’s analysts compared the country’s 100 most populated cities across three key dimensions – safety and accessibility, entertainment and food, and cost – using 28 relevant metrics, such as legality of fireworks, most nightlife options per capita and average event ticket price.

In Atlanta, there are endless options for New Year’s Eve celebrations, with options for everything from kid-friendly midday celebrations to extravagant, upscale parties. One of Atlanta’s most well-known traditions, the Peach Drop, returns this year to Underground Atlanta after temporarily moving to Woodruff Park last year. While official details about this year’s even haven’t been released yet, past events at Underground Atlanta featured musical guests, food vendors and of course, the lowering of the giant peach at midnight.

For other celebrations around metro Atlanta, check out our categories below to find the ideal event for you and your family or friends.

Concerts and Shows

• See Atlanta-favorite Yacht Rock Review, as well as a DJ, at Park Tavern’s all-inclusive celebration. Enjoy food, drinks, a champagne toast and much more with your ticket, priced from $99-$200. The party starts at 9 p.m. and lasts till well after midnight!
• Bump into the New Year at Atlanta NYElectric 2019 at Westin Peachtree Plaza! This event features house and Top 40s music from multiple DJs and an open bar, as well as VIP package options including food and hotel rooms.
• Laugh away the troubles from 2018 and start 2019 with a small at Dad’s Garage’s New Year’s Eve Shizzazzle! This hilarious event features raucous games and the best improvisors in Atlanta. Two shows are available, at 7 or 10 p.m., with ticket prices starting at $35.50.
• The Strand Theatre at the Marietta is hosting a New Year’s Eve Royalty Show that features a tribute to Prince and Queen performed by the Georgia Player’s Guild. Tickets are $35 until Christmas day, when they go up to $40. VIP ticket options are also available.
• Legendary band The Roots will play at the Coca-Cola Roxy on New Year’s Eve, with the show beginning at 9 p.m. General admission and reserved balcony seating tickets are available now with prices from $65. Be sure to check out the many other parties happening at The Battery Atlanta post-show!
• Georgia’s own Widespread Panic will jam right into 2019 with a show at The Fox Theatre. A 30-year tradition featuring three shows, tickets include single show tickets or three-day passes with tickets as low as $45.

Kid-Friendly Fun

• Your kids will absolutely love celebrating at the Children’s Museum of Atlanta’s New Year’s Bubble Bash! The event includes a dance party, special guests, bubble-wrap fireworks, and several new surprises. There are two event times on December 31 – 10 a.m. or 1:30 p.m. Ticket prices range from free to $20 depending on age.
• Little ones that can’t hang till midnight will enjoy Fernbank Museum of Natural History’s Noon Year’s Eve bash. Beginning at 9 a.m., the party includes a kids’ DJ, an appearance by the Georgia Bubbleman, giveaways, a noon balloon drop and more. Tickets are $8 for museum members and $22 for non-members.
• Head to Stone Mountain Park for the Kids’ Early New Year’s Eve Celebration featuring a snowfall, an early countdown ending at 9 p.m., fireworks, music and more. Festivities are included with a Snow Mountain pass, with prices from $32.
• The Battery Atlanta is hosting a free family-friendly event, the New Year’s Eve Bash presented by Xfinity, with an early countdown and a midnight event for those who enjoy the late-night party. The early fun starts at 5:30 p.m. with a ball drop at 8 p.m., with more festivities starting at 9 p.m. on the Georgia Power Pavilion stage. The midnight countdown includes booming pyrotechnics, confetti and fireworks.
• LEGOLAND Discovery Center at Phipps Plaza is hosting its own Noon Year’s Eve bash featuring its annual balloon drop at noon. The balloon drop includes more than 600 balloons, and kids in attendance can help the LEGO FUNginneers build a large “2019” group build, which will be on display all year long. Kids can even take photos with their favorite LEGO characters during the meet and greets happening throughout the event. The celebration fun is included with a general ticket purchase.

Glam Soirees and Nightclub Bashes

• If you’re searching for an upscale way to ring in 2019, attend the 15^th annual Peachtree Gala Downtown Countdown at Southern Exchange! Featuring a 6-hour open bar, DJ performance, gourmet food and midnight champagne toast, tickets range from $99 to $399 depending on the options you select.
• Atlanta’s famous Opera nightclub is hosting its own celebration on New Year’s Eve, with tickets including access to a 6-hour premium open bar, a gourmet buffet, multiple rooms featuring different entertainment, balloon blasts, confetti cannons and more. Tickets to Opera’s party start at $30.
• Celebrate like a celebrity at OMNI Atlanta Hotel at CNN Center. New Year’s Eve packages feature luxurious hotel accommodations, a bottle of Veuve Clicquot’s Yellow Label Brut champagne, New Year’s Day breakfast at Prime Meridian and more. Whether you plan to stay in for a romantic evening or head out on the town for a lively party, the OMNI is the place to end the night.
• Give back while attending a black and white ball at the Georgia Aquarium! The Black and White New Year’s Celebration includes African penguins as hosts and raises money for the aquarium’s vital research and conservation programs. The party includes complimentary beer and wine, live music and a DJ, party favors, a full dinner buffet, champagne toast and midnight bites with general and member admission. VIP tickets are already sold out, so if you plan to attend, reserve your tickets now!
• Want to celebrate but need something to do while you wait on the clock to strike midnight? Spend the evening at one of Atlanta’s two TopGolf locations for the Big NYE Bash. Tickets include unlimited game play between 9 p.m. and 1 a.m. for up to six guests, front row seats to a midnight fireworks show and party favors, as well as live entertainment and chef-inspired food. VIP packages are also available that include access to a NYE feast with carving stations and a bottle of bubbly. Reserve your bay now at the Alpharetta or Midtown location before they’re sold out!