12 Alluring Destinations Perfect For Ringing In The New Year

From the Florida Keys and Cape Cod to Cancun and the Caribbean, the New Year's Eve party is about to get started. And if you still haven't pushed purchase on a last great escape for (and from) 2021, there's still time. Read on for some fun ideas for where to party, relax and welcome 2022.

With 37 different beaches for kicking back (not to mention kitesurfing, sailing and snorkeling), kicking off a new year in the Dutch Caribbean island of St. Maarten pretty much guarantees fun in the sun. 

If you like an active vacation in addition to the requisite beach bumming the Caribbean inspires, you'll find it here. Try ziplining 2,800 feet down a mountainside at the world's steepest zipline, The Flying Dutchman at Rockland Estate. And hanging out Maho Beach brings another kind of adrenalin rush, as jetliners swoop down low as they come in for a landing at St. Maarten's international airport. 

And if you're looking for an elegant way to spend New Year's Eve at sea in St. Maarten, PyratZ Gourmet Sailing makes it easy with an evening aboard a catamaran that comes complete with a four-course lobster meal and cocktails to enjoy while you sail the Caribbean Sea and manifest all good things only for 2022. 

Cast off from the mainland United States to the closest Bahamian island with a visit to Bimini. Resorts World Bimini is offering packages to ring in the new year in style from $598 per person that include roundtrip transportation to the island from Fort Lauderdale (by ferry or plane), a New Year's Eve buffet, rooftop party with Champagne toast and two to four night stays at the Hilton at Resorts World Bimini. When you wake on the first day of 2022, spend it at the resort's new 4.5-acre private beach and lounge that channels a Tulum vibe, complete with live DJ music and, natch, boat drinks o'plenty. 

The W Punta de Mita on Mexico's Riviera Nayarit is bringing the out-with-the-old-and-in-with-the-new fun with its New Spirit 2022 fiesta for New Year's Eve. On tap throughout the evening are live performances, DJ sets, international food stations and traditional Mexican rituals, all with a goal of celebrating while promoting a prosperous year to come (retox and detox, if you will). 

You can save money on a stay here now, too. The hotel's Celebrate in the Sand offer is good for up to 25 percent off stays though Jan. 31, 2022 when you use the promo code D3Q to book. 

No doubt Cancun knows how to let its hair down, and if you're thinking about ringing in 2022 in one of Mexico's major party capitals with a margarita, mezcal or más, you're not the only one. Both the JW Marriott Cancun and Marriott Cancun Resort will be getting celebratory to welcome the new year. 

For a real party atmosphere, the latter resort's 2022 New Year's Eve Moon Party costs $290 per person and includes a fire dance show, fireworks and food and drinks at SacBé Beach Shack. Wherever you end up in Cancun, you're sure to find the fiesta. 

It may not be Cancun, but Cape Cod knows how to have fun in wintertime, too. And you can put a sophisticated spin on your New Year's Eve celebrations at Ocean Edge Resort & Golf Club by booking the special four-course New Year's Eve dinner in an igloo at The Frost Bar. 

The resort has a balloon drop and live music on tap for 2021's last party (and 2022's first). And the next day, you can revive with a New Year's Day brunch of Maine lobster benedicts, cinnamon bun pancakes and the like while tipping back a pear mimosa or something stronger from the Bloody Mary bar. Dinner reservations at The Frost Bar start from $105 per person and overnight accommodations start from $205 per night. 

As you might imagine, Duval Street is hardly shy when it comes to throwing a New Year's Eve party where everyone is welcome to come exactly as they are. And if you're considering bringing in 2022 in Key West, set your sights on the newly renovated Southernmost Beach Resort for a stay close to all the action (yet far enough to have time to recover in peaceful surrounds the next day). 

The property has three pools, a pier, rooms with ocean views and a private beach and is located right in the island's historic district. When it comes to partying on Duval Street, you never know what to expect—except that it won't be boring, of course. 

Instead of a ball drop for a countdown to midnight, this town is known for dropping things like a pirate's conch shell, a pirate wench or even a drag queen perched inside a super-sized stiletto. In brief, get ready to party. 

A paradise for people who love to fish, scuba dive, snorkel and otherwise just bask in the beauty of some very, very blue waters, South Andros in the Bahamas makes for an epic final destination for 2021 you. And that's especially true if you stay at Caerula Mar Club and get the 2022 party started with the Roaring 20s Soirée on New Year's Eve complete with live musicians, a fire dancer and a decadent meal of flopping fresh hogfish and other island specialties. 

Wondering what to wear? The resort has you covered with stations full of 20s costume accessories to make sure nobody's stressed about being underdressed. Linger on after New Year's to enjoy the resort's pretty pool and powdery beach. 

Make welcoming 2022 all about all-out beauty when you check in at Jade Mountain Resort in St. Lucia, where the guest rooms (called "guest sanctuaries" here)—accessed by private bridges—have private en-suite infinity pools and are missing a wall so you can be completely open to the jaw-dropping views. 

Your 24/7 butler is on call here to make sure 2022 arrives in nothing less than utter style. You can ring in the new year with an extravagant multi-course St. Lucia Lobster Tasting meal with views of the Pitons. Then, at the stroke of midnight, a fireworks show and party keep the fun going. It's not likely to come cheap, of course, but some years (2021, we're looking at you!) are worth shooing off with a bang. Are we wrong? 

The diminutive Dutch Caribbean island of Curaçao is a dizzyingly diverse place, home to iconic colorful architecture and with over 55 nationalities represented among its population. Make the recently updated Renaissance Wind Creek Curaçao Resort your base and get ready to party with a fun crowd in Willemstad (home to a great fireworks show on New Year's Eve).

The best place for fireworks viewing is from the famous Floating Bridge in downtown Willemstad. In the surrounding neighborhoods, you might see locals preparing a small pan of charcoal with incense called sénsia to put in front of their houses (they jump over it to usher in some good luck). You can see this curious custom in practice on Brionsquare in the heart of Willemstad, too. 

Between its unique culture and beautiful beaches for snorkeling and diving, you're sure to line up a memorable New Year's trip when you make Curaçao your destination. 

You hardly need to book it all the way to Key West from Miami for some New Year's Eve relaxation and fun. Key Largo, the gateway to the Florida Keys, is just a 90-minute drive from Miami, but when you check in at Playa Largo Resort & Spa you'll be whisked pretty much an entire universe away. 

The property is putting on a Playa Luau for New Year's Eve with live music and a gourmet dinner buffet overlooking the ocean. The after party starts at 9 p.m., with live music and alfresco dancing. To recover the next day, considering booking a poolside cabana to eat, chill and dip on repeat. 

If you're wondering what we say to enjoying a private fireworks show from a private hotel balcony overlooking the ocean someplace in Mexico for New Year's Eve, the answer is a resounding siiiiiiii. And that's what awaits when you stay at the Westin Resort & Spa Puerto Vallarta this New Year's Eve. The resort can arrange an elegant private dinner for you and your travel companion(s), and you might also consider heading to town to celebrate with locals at Puerto Vallarta's festive Town Square. 

Rates at the Westin start at $189 per night—a great value that leaves some spending to spare for an ocean-side spa treatment, tennis classes and other fun offerings available on property. 

We love Zihua for its chill vibe and surf-centric attitude. And whether or not you're a boardrider or not, you'll want to kick off your shoes and channel your coolest self to celebrate a barefoot but chic New Year's Eve at Thomspon Zihuatanejo. 

A special dinner featuring a "sensorial menu" on the sand is planned for the evening, followed by midnight fireworks and DJ music to keep the party going till late. Extend your vacation into the New Year to enjoy the beachfront boutique hotel's unique offerings that include an adults-only pool, a hidden island you can kayak to and indulgent aromatherapy treatments at the spa.