New Year’s Eve 2023 In Herndon: Jimmy's 27th Gala, Carpool Goes Disco

HERNDON, VA — While most of the holiday-focus is getting ready for Christmas Day, it may be wise to make your plans and reservations ASAP for New Year's Eve on Sunday, Dec. 31.

Looking to enjoy a night of glittering lights, funky beats, retro-inspired cocktails, and dance floor magic? Then the Carpool Herndon's 2024 New Years Eve Disco may be for your. The event takes place Sunday, Dec. 31 from 9 p.m. to Monday, Jan. 1, 2 a.m., at 208 Elden St. in Herndon.

Why not welcome 2024 in by joining a long-time Herndon tradition? Jimmy's Old Town Tavern is hosting its 27th New Year's Eve Gala on Sunday, Dec. 31, at 697 Elden St., in Herndon. Two seatings available at 6 p.m. and 9 p.m. Reservations recommended.

Those who prefer to start the year off on the right foot have a couple of options. They can run in the New Years Day 5k, which starts at 10 a.m., on Jan. 1, at 11900 Market St. in Reston Town Center. They can also participate in the Fairfax County Park Authority's First Hike Fairfax Photo Contest, by hiking a park authority trail and taking a memorable photo.

Here is a look at some additional events happening in and around Herndon:

• New Year's Eve Cabaret: Ring in the new year at Makers Union Reston, which is located at 1811 Library St. Doors open Sunday, Dec. 31, at 9:30 p.m. for a cocktail hour with passed hors d'oeuvres. Then the show starts promptly at 10:30 p.m. Enjoy A DJ will be providing tune from 12 a.m. to 2 a.m. Purchase tickets online.
• New Year's Eve at Davio's Northern Italian Steakhouse: Enjoy a three-course meal or order from the menu as you count down to midnight at Reston Station. Purchase tickets online.
• One-Night-Only 5-Course Menu: Book a table at Melting Pot located at 11730 Plaza America Drive, Suite 100, and enjoy five-course menu. Begin with a First Bite of chilled shrimp cocktail and end with a NYE Chocolate Explosion.
• New Year's Eve 2024 Grand Gala Event: Enjoy VIP tables and A-list DJs at this private event, located at Hyatt Regency Reston, 1800 Presidents St. Purchase tickets online.
• New Year's Eve at Kalypso's: What better way in Reston to welcome 2024 than celebrating with a four-course meal at Kalypso's, which is located at Lake Washington Plaza? Free party favors, pre-fixe menue, live DJ from 8 p.m. to 1:30 a.m., and a champagne toast at midnight.

If you have any New Year's celebrations you'd like to be added to this list, email all the details to herndon@patch.com.

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 adopted iterations of the ball drop — the Chick Drop in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania and the giant Potato Drop in Boise, Idaho, for example.

Northern Virginia’s twist on the ball drop is First Night in Old Town Alexandria, featuring family-friendly activities and events starting a 2 p.m. and ending with fireworks over the Potomac River at 12 a.m.

The end of one year and beginning of another is often celebrated with 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 history of New Year’s resolutions dates back 8,000 years to ancient Babylonians, who would make promises to return borrowed objects and pay outstanding debts at the beginning of the new year, in mid-March when they planted their crops.

According to legend, if they kept their word, pagan gods would grant them favor in the coming year. If they broke the promise, they would fall out of God’s favor, according to a history of New Year’s resolutions compiled by North Hampton Community College New Center in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.

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 myriad 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 and a plan to meet the stress and discomfort of changing a habit or condition.