NEW Year is one of the most exciting holidays in the world, as people across the globe reflect on and celebrate the year that just passed.
However, not every country celebrates New Year at the same time as the UK. So which countries are the first and last to ring in the New Year?
Which country celebrates New Year first?
The UK sits on Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) which is used as the internationally standardised time format.
In other words, GMT is the baseline time zone and other time zones are measured by how much they deviate from GMT.
As a result, even though every country marks the start of the new year at midnight, it may appear that they are celebrating either before or after the UK.
Generally, Brits look to Australia as the first country to see in the New Year but there are several other countries which beat it to the punch.
Kiritimati Island – referred to as Christmas Island as well – and a series of 10 other primarily uninhabited islands located in the central Pacific Ocean will have been the initial ones to welcome 2024.
Tonga, New Zealand and Samoa all celebrate the New Year, before Eastern Australia and then Central Australia.
Where will the New Year arrive last?
Generally, countries furthest to the west on a UK map will be the last to ring in the New Year.
Two uninhabited islands named Baker Island and Howland Island, southwest of Hawaii, will be the last to see 2025 in.
The United States is among the final nations to observe the onset of the New Year, with New York and Washington D.C. needing to hold off until 5am GMT to usher in 2025.
What time does New Year arrive around the world?
New Year traditions vary from country to country.
In London, the arrival of 2025 will be marked by an incredible firework show as people sing a rendition of Robert Burns’ poem Auld Lang Syne.
No matter what time 2025 arrives, countries all over the world will usher in the New Year with various traditions and celebrations.
Using GMT, this is when various places across the world will welcome 2025:
December 31
- 10am Christmas Island
- 10:15am Chatham Islands/New Zealand
- 11:00am Mainland New Zealand
- 12:00pm Fiji
- 1pm Much of Australia
- 2pm Queenland, Australia
- 2:30pm Northern Territory Australia
- 3pm Japan, South Korea, North Korea
- 4pm China, Phillipines, Singapore
- 5pm Indonesia, Thailand
- 5:30pm Myanmar and Cocos Islands
- 6pm Bangladesh
- 6:15pm Nepal
- 6:30pm Most of India
- 7pm Pakistan
- 7:30pm Afghanistan
- 8pm Azerbaijan
- 8:30pm Iran
- 9pm Russia, Ukraine, Suadi Arabia, Iraq, Turkey
- 10pm Greece, Israel
- 11pm Germany, France, Spain, Switzerland, Italy
- Midnight UK, Iceland, Portugal
January 1
- 2am Greenland
- 3am Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay
- 4am Parts of Canada, Venezuela, Puerto Rico
- 5am Much of East Coast USA (including New York and Washington DC)
- 6am Mexico
- 8am West Coast USA
- 10am Honolulu
- 12pm Baker Island and Howland Island
