bos

Ok, I admit that I was nursing a hangover on the first, and I did partake in some festivities. But it seems like everything is just such a HUGE hassle on New Year's Eve. I live in Boston, and in NYC, Boston, Philly, and many other cities (as reported from friends), every restaurant has a line and inflated prices, bars have outrageous cover charges, hotels gouge, and so on. Am I just getting old, or is New Year's Eve one big bubble that has burst - is anybody really willing to pay $70 to get into a crappy bar in Boston just to wait in line to try to get a drink? Will this buildup ever end? Will New Year's Eve start to become fun and carefree again, or is it forever to be the night of the overinflated prices, huge crowds, long lines, and cheap booze.

Or am I just missing something?

What is New Year's Eve like in your neck of the woods? Is the cover charge, long lines thing just a product of living in a big city?

Mike

Were you forced to go out at gunpoint?

Yeah, it's overrate. But why complain and waste emotional enegry. Stay home.

Blenroth

It serves you right, bos. See what happens when you log off of Fodors and actually venture out into the real world? It's nasty out there.

I hope you learned your lesson. And, I'll catch you right here at fodors dot com next December 31.

Not

I've long thought that New Year's Eve was the night out for people who never go out. They go out once a year, they don't know how to act, and they ruin the fun for everyone else.

I've never been to a good New Year's Eve party at a bar. Ok, I've been to one and that's only because a really drunk girl came over and started kissing my neck. But I digress.

Sue

I think with the heavy law enforcement that is out on New Years Eve, once you get past your twenties most people just stay home or go to a neighbors house to avoid drinking and driving.

Was that a run on sentence?

xxx

More people get arrested for drunken driving over the 4th of July holiday than on New Year's. IMO, the media over-hype New Year's to death.

As for overpriced etc. don't go to bars, nightclubs, hotels. Stay home, invite friends over, do a progressive dinner with your neighbors (go to one house for cocktails, another for dinner, another for dessert etc.) Or go out to dinner early and then go home. Lots of alternatives.

jesse

Hey Mike, get off of your "wasting emotional enegry" sermon. I saw it in another post earlier. Practice what you preach.

New years is definately over rated. I quit going out on new years all together. Its the worst time to be at bars or on the road. Total Hype.

xyz

Yes it is a total overhyped thing. Maybe years ago back in the 30's or 40's it was a fun time. (I don't know I wasn't alive then.) We go to dinner, have a wonderful bottle of wine or bubbly stuff, come home, and go to bed. Exactly in that order.

xxx

It is all about what you make it. We usually stay home with friends or go out to dinner and get home early. You have the choice to do that or go out and spend your money. I live in Chicago and yes everything is overpriced but YES people are willing to spend the money or there wouldn't be the long lines. Tickets to the Goo Goo Dolls at the House of Blues were very expensive and yet they were sold out.

aaa

I heard that New Year's Eve is Domino's Pizza's biggest night of the year. They deliver over a million pizzas that night. What people do on New Years: Twenty-somethings go out to party, thirty somethings might make it out to dinner or a friend's home. Forty-somethings make a date with Dick Clark. I heard all this on the radio...

Ignoring

Yeah. and the 50-somethings might open a bottle of bubbly. While the 60-somethings ignore the whole thing.