It might be hard to believe, but it is almost time to say goodbye to 2017!
Whether you've had a great year or have been waiting for it to end for a while now, the best way to see it off is with a party.
Now is the time to start planning if you want your New Year's Eve party to be a success. How do you execute your party, plans and what are the most important things to keep in mind when preparing a good send-off for 2017?
Early bird gets the best venues
The crucial thing to decide is where you want to hold the party. Popular venues can get booked a year in advance so you really need to pay attention to this. It is possible to find venues closer to the time, but the sooner you start looking, the better.
That's not to say you need to book a venue in order to have a great party. If you have a spacious house, or you want to opt for an intimate party with a handful of guests, you can have a fantastic New Year's Eve event at home.
As you are deciding on the venue, you also need to lock in your guest count. Draw up your guest list, which will help you with the planning later on. Invite people as soon as you know what is happening - remember some places will be selling their New Year's Eve tickets from as early as the summer, and your friends and family might be among those who buy them!
Get your party sorted quickly and get people's commitment to attend!
Figuring out the food and the entertainment
Next on your to-do-list is food and entertainment. Consider hiring a band for your party if you have the space, or alternatively find a DJ. Again, the earlier the better. At Freak Music some of our most popular acts are booked a year or two ahead for New Year, but there is usually still plenty of availability right up until Christmas week.
As for your party food, how far in advance you organise this depends on whether you'll use an external caterer or are planning to take care of it yourself. If you are hiring a venue, then you may be able to take care of party food while organising this.
If taking care of the food happens at the same time as booking the venue, then you don't need to do anything else. If you're using a third party caterer, then you should book this as far in advance as possible given the demand for New Year's Eve will be huge. A relatively stress-free option for taking care of your party food is to do it yourself, even if you're hosting a party at a venue away from your home. Simply book an online shopping slot for the Christmas period as soon as you can, and place your order!
Drinks will be easy to store, and all the supermarkets will have deals on both alcoholic and soft drinks over the festive period. All we'd say is buy early so you avoid shopping when it's too busy!
The last-minute details
Things like décor can be sorted in the last few weeks before your party. If you're organising a party with a theme, you can plan your décor ideas in advance but leave the buying of things until nearer the day. You could even invite a few of your closest friends over before Christmas and have an evening of DIY decorations and mulled wine!
If you aren't into self-made decorations, then you'll be able to find some great ideas at a reduced cost during the sales - remember that these days the sales tend to kick off a few weeks before Christmas, too. Don't go spending your money on decorations before the sales kick in. You'll save a small fortune!
Follow the above timeline and you'll be able to plan your New Year's Eve party in style and with minimal stress, allowing you to choose your outfit and take care of your Christmas shopping at the same time as being sure you're going to have a great New Year's Eve party!