It goes without saying that 2020 was… interesting. Between the pandemic, civic upheaval, and political climate, we all feel worn out. While we understand that ringing in the new year won’t automatically erase all these issues, we still anticipate 2021. Hopefully, 2021 will usher in better times and a return to more normality. It’s important, however, to remember that we still need to keep our celebrations safe. The United States has more Covid-19 cases than ever, so now is not the time to let down our guard. To that end, we can still enjoy ourselves with virtual New Year’s Eve celebrations.
Whether you choose Zoom or Google Meet as your platform of choice, you can find lots of ways to have a virtual New Year’s Eve. Here are some fun ideas for seniors or friends of any age.
Virtual New Year’s Eve Ideas
Attend a Virtual Event Together
First of all, you may not have time to put together an entire party on your own. You can gather your friends and attend an event that has already been planned. Some of them are even free (my favorite price)! Eventbrite has a list of events you can attend from the comfort of your own home. If you have been quarantining with a group of friends, this is a great way to have fun together and leave the planning to someone else.
Watch a Movie and Have a Pajama Party
With the ability to share screens and sound, you can watch a movie with a group of friends, no matter how far apart you are. Zoom has made it really easy to do this.
Deliver Virtual New Year’s Eve Goodie Bags
If your virtual New Year’s Eve party attendees live close enough, consider delivering a goodie bag to each guest ahead of time. These could include noisemakers, hats, or other small trinkets. You can drop them off on people’s porches with instructions not to open until the party, if desired. Alternatively, you could put a box of goodie bags on your own porch or central location for people to come pick up before the party starts.
Create a Song Playlist
Before your party, ask your guests for a few of their favorite songs. Create a playlist with all those songs to have playing in the background while everyone is chatting at the party. You may even be able to have a virtual dance party!
Play a Virtual Party Game
While you may not be able to play all your favorite party games with a virtual New Year’s Eve party, you can still find some to play. Here are some suggestions:
- Charades – Generate a list of ideas ahead of time and use the private message feature in Zoom to send them only to the person about to have a turn.
- Trivial Pursuit (or online trivia) – While everyone can’t touch the board and ask the questions, one person could have the board and move tokens on other players’ behalf. You’ll still have fun answering the questions!
- 20 Questions
- Bingo – You can find a bunch of online Bingo games. Some sites allow you to make your own cards and give a link to friends where everyone has a different card for the game.
Watch the Ball Drop
While Times Square will be closed this year, the ball will still drop. You can experience this online with friends and family so you still have that memory at midnight. There will still be performances and celebrities, but we’ll have to do without the crowd this year.
While we’re all glad to see 2020 end, we hope you can find some blessings or silver linings from this year. For us, those we serve continue to enrich our lives every single day. Enjoy your virtual New Year’s Eve celebrations!