Where To Celebrate New Year’s Eve 2024 In Bowie, Across PGC

PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY, MD — Ring in the New Year at one of several events being held across Prince George's County.

Coined the largest New Year's Eve gala in America, Big Night DC will take place at Gaylord National Hotel. Hosted by Mario Lopez, star of Access Hollywood and Saved by the Bell, there will be live entertainment from more than 20 acts on nine stages, open bars, a midnight champagne toast and complimentary party favors.

Here is a look at some additional events happening in and around Prince George's County:

• Festival of Lights runs through Jan. 1 from 5-9:30 p.m. at Watkins Regional Park.
• Diablo's Cantina's New Year’s Eve Party starts at 7 p.m. La Última Noche includes a live DJ, signature cocktails, a midnight champagne toast, late night bites and hookah.
• FELT will host an evening with an all-blue formal dress code, live entertainment by The Kim Michelle Experience, music by DJ Jo Icye and a complimentary champagne toast.

In the United States, one of the most popular New Year’s Eve traditions is the dropping of the giant ball in New York City’s Times Square. Other U.S. cities have their own versions of this celebration, such as the Peeps Chick Drop in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, and the giant Potato Drop in Boise, Idaho.

The transition from one year to the next is often marked by the singing of “Auld Lang Syne,” a Scottish folk song whose title roughly translates to “days gone by,” according to Encyclopedia Britannica and History.com.

The tradition of New Year’s resolutions dates back 8,000 years to ancient Babylonians, who made promises to return borrowed items and repay debts at the beginning of the new year, which was in mid-March when they planted their crops.

• Related: What New Year’s Resolution Did You Keep? How Did You Do It? [Patch Survey]

According to legend, if people kept their word, the pagan gods would grant them favor in the coming year. However, if they broke their promises, they would lose favor with the gods.

Many secular New Year’s resolutions focus on imagining new, improved versions of ourselves.

The failure rate of New Year’s resolutions is about 80 percent, according to U.S. News & World Report. There are many reasons, but a big one is they’re made out of remorse — for gaining weight, for example — and aren’t accompanied by a shift in attitude or a plan for coping with the stress and discomfort that comes with changing a habit or condition.