South Florida Sun-Sentinel (Sunday)
New Year’s Eve events abound
All the best holiday parties for any budget and every interest.
We know how to do New Year’s Eve around here, with South Florida’s 2018 headliners including Pitbull and Migos, Lil Wayne and Nicki Minaj, Sister Sledge and DJ Ariel Assault, new rooftop lounges and $12,000 VIP bungalows.
But you know what’s already sold out? The Delray Beach Half Marathon, which begins at 7 a.m. Dec. 31. Seriously. I mean who are these people — showing off their glistening sweat, spandex and holier-than-thou attitudes before they’ve even gotten to the club? The nerve.
Here are some of the things we’ll be doing while they are asleep after the first Michelob Ultra. Prices do not include taxes, fees and gratuities, unless noted.
$20 or less
The midnight drop of a 20-foot anchor bedazzled with thousands of LED lights highlights Fort Lauderdale’s free Downtown Countdown on Southwest Second Street in the Himmarshee District, with family-friendly NYE events beginning at
4:30 p.m. and entertainment by Pocket Change and other acts 8 p.m.-1 a.m. Visit FortLauderdale.gov.
Delray Beach will be in a family way with a free kid-oriented celebration 5-9 p.m. on the grounds of Old School Square. There will be food trucks, a vintage game room and live entertainment, along with the carousel, mini golf and ice skating for
$3. Fireworks are at 9 p.m. Visit OldSchool Square.org.
Xtreme Action Park in Fort Lauderdale hosts Neon New Year’s Eve, a 9
p.m.-1 a.m. roller-skating party with the Times Square countdown shown on two projection screens and free champagne toast for $10 (skate rental included). VIP admission, including two beer/wine tickets, costs $20.19. Visit XtremeActionPark.com. Albert Castiglia plays a concert at LauderAle on New Year’s Eve (free).
As always, Rhythm & Vine Beer Garden in downtown Fort Lauderdale is selling a chill vibe, with no cover and, if you’re in the mood, 11 p.m.-1 a.m. open-bar access for $50. Lokal Moko (righteous Hawaiian) will be in the food truck space. VisitFacebook.com/RhythmAndVineFTL.
Admission is free and women drink free
10 p.m.-midnight at Township in downtown Fort Lauderdale, where the party will be complete with the traditional balloon drop and beer pong. Guys pay $35 for a wrist band for open-bar access 10 p.m.midnight. Visit TownshipFTL.com.
The Albert Castiglia Band plays a free
9 p.m. show at LauderAle Brewery, with specialty beer and food available a la carte. All You Can Drink tickets purchased in advance for $70 include endless beer and appetizers 9 p.m.-1 a.m., a champagne toast and all gratuities. Those tickets will be $85 at the door. Visit LauderAle.co.
The oceanfront Beach House Pompano will throw a James Bond-inspired Casino Night soiree, with free admission to first-floor festivities. Tickets for the rooftop celebration will be sold at the door for $99 per person and include unlimited open-bar
access. Booths on the rooftop can be purchased for $500 and come with three appetizers with a bottle of Moet (to reserve, call 954-607-6530). Visit Facebook.com/ PompanoBeachHouse.
West Palm Beach rockers Girlfriend Material play the free waterfront party at the Banana Boat in Boynton Beach 8:30
p.m.-12:30 a.m. Visit Facebook.com/Banana BoatBoyntonBeach.
JM & the Sweets crank out infectious Florida soul beginning at 8 p.m. at Crazy Uncle Mike’s in Boca Raton, where the free party includes a free champagne or beer toast. Visit Facebook.com/Crazy UncleMikes.
Flying the #KeepWynwoodWeird flag, Wynwood Marketplace in Miami’s inexorably gentrifying neighborhood will host what may be its last New Year’s Eve party in its current form 7 p.m.-3 a.m. Hosted by Swarm Inc., admission is free and you can RSVP for a free drink at WynwoodNew YearsEve.com (good for the first 500 to check in). Party packs with a free drink and party favors cost $16. Entertainment includes fire eaters, dancers, live music and DJ Ariel Assault.
Tin Roof in Delray Beach showcases music from Evan Grushka (5 p.m.), the excellent Erath Old Band (9 p.m.) and DJ Samosa (1-4 a.m.) during its Bash on the Ave party, which includes confetti cannons, balloon drops, photo booths and champagne toast. A limited number of advance “skip the line” passes are on sale for $20 at Facebook.com/TinRoofDelray Beach. Reserved tables for four start at
$500.
Less than $100
Masks are required for entry to the 7 p.m.-2 a.m. New Year’s Eve Masquerade Party at the funky Sugar Plum & Grumbling Growler, the conjoined art-andcraft-beer space (with a garden out back) in downtown Lake Worth. Admission: $35 advance, $50 at the door, including light bites, two drinks, live music and champagne toast. Visit Facebook.com/ SPAndGG.
Comedian and actor Tiffany Haddish brings her #She Ready Tour to the James L. Knight Center in Miami for a 9 p.m. show, with tickets starting at $47.50 at Ticketmaster.com. VIP packages ($247) include seats in the first six rows, party Spred the Dub brings ska-flavored funkiness to the Westin Fort Lauderdale Beach Resort on New Year’s Eve.
favors and a glass of champagne.
Prosperity Brewers in Boca Raton hosts the 6 p.m.-1 a.m. NYE ’80s Throwback Party, featuring a limited-edition crowler release of its Pina Colada beer. Early-bird tickets are $50 and include 9 p.m.-midnight open bar, open buffet, party favors and champagne toast. Tickets cost
$60 at the door. For $500 you can get the VIP Lounge for your friends 9 p.m.-midnight, with all of the above and a dedicated bartender. Visit ProsperityBrewers.com.
The Sky Terrace at the Westin Fort Lauderdale Beach Resort will have an 8 p.m. event featuring local party-starters Spred the Dub, tapas, party favors and champagne toast for $60. With a bottle of Tattinger Champagne, the ticket is $150. Visit Facebook.com/WestinFort LauderdaleBeachResort.
Victor Wainwright and the Train (led by last year’s BMA Pinetop Perkins Piano Player of the Year) energizes the 9 p.m. party at Boston’s on the Beach in Delray Beach. Admission starts at $75 (seating with obstructed view) and includes 9-11 p.m. dinner buffet, champagne toast, party favors and gratuities, and an end-of-night buffet. Visit: Facebook.com/Bostons DelrayBeach.
It doesn’t get more South Beach than Nikki Beach Miami, celebrating with a space-age New Year's Eve celebration 8
p.m.-5 a.m. featuring live musicians, an avant-garde acrobatic show and fireworks on the shore. General-admission entry costs $75. VIP tables and daybeds for two, with one bottle of your choice (valued at
$350), cost $550. Visit Facebook.com/ NikkiBeachMiami.
While Fort Lauderdale’s Downtown Countdown goes on down the street, radio station Y-100 takes over America’s Backyard in the Himmarshee party zone at 9 p.m. Tickets for 9 p.m.-midnight open bar cost $50, premium open bar $75. Visit MyAmericasBackyard.com. Next door at sister club Stache Drinking Den & Coffee Bar, the party features the funk sounds of Fusik and open-bar tickets for $75. Access to the VIP Lounge upstairs in the Stache Whiskey Den costs $125 and includes open bar and champagne toast with a variety of light bites. Visit StacheFTL.com.
Another of South Florida’s new rooftop lounges, the Muse, can be found at the Circ Hotel on Young Circle in downtown Hollywood, where the 7 p.m.-1 a.m. party features live music, bar bites and mixologists serving a different themed cocktail each hour representing a nation ringing in the New Year at that moment. Admission starts at $75, with premium open bar $175, and VIP table seating $500. Visit Facebook .com/CircHotel.
The Virginia Key Outdoor Center in Miami hosts the New Year's Eve Fireworks Paddle & Dinner 7 p.m.-1:30 a.m., with a picnic-style dinner and refreshments leading into a paddle along the bay for views of fireworks from South Beach and Bayfront Park, Coconut Grove, Key Biscayne and Fisher Island. You can bring your own beer and wine, but be responsible. Cost: $95 per person for kayak, paddle board or canoe, $35 for kids on two-person craft. Visit Facebook.com/VKOCFL.
Bar Rita will show off its new rooftop views of downtown Fort Lauderdale fireworks with tickets $95 for open bar, passed appetizers, DJ and midnight champagne toast. Visit BarRitaFTL.com.
With all of the ’80s parties going on, is there a better way to usher in a new year than with a fist-pumping rendition of “We Are Family”? It’ll be happening when Sister Sledge performs at 10 p.m. at Seminole Casino Coconut Creek. Tickets: $95, including two drinks, party favors and a champagne toast. Visit Seminole CoconutCreekCasino.com.
The first New Year’s Eve party at the Balcony, the New Orleans-inspired restaurant on Fort Lauderdale’s Las Olas Boulevard, will be an 8 p.m. masquerade affair with several dinner stations, open bar, live band (downstairs) and DJ (upstairs), Mardi Gras entertainers, balloon drop and champagne toast. Tickets cost $99. Visit TheBalconyLasOlas.com.
More than $100
At Avant Delray tables for the second dinner seating from 9 p.m. to midnight come with six rounds of their signature plates, live music from Spider Cherry, party favors and a midnight toast. Cost:
$119. Visit Facebook.com/AvantDelray. The party at Highbar at the Dream Hotel on Miami Beach offers an appetizer buffet catered by South Florida celebrity chef Ralph Pagano (about 18 months removed from his near-fatal kitchen accident), five hours of premium open bar, DJ and other NYE staples on a dreamy rooftop from 8 p.m. to 4 a.m. Tickets start at $159. Visit Facebook.com/DreamSouthBeach.
Rooftop @ 1WLO has a singular view of downtown Fort Lauderdale fireworks, and a party that includes open premium bar 8 p.m.-2 a.m., and chef-curated small plates and snacks throughout the night. Tickets cost $199. Visit Rooftop1WLO.com.
Chart-topping rap trio Migos will be joined by DJ Irie at E11even Miami, with
$250 tickets including open bar and passed hors d'oeuvres from 9 to 11 p.m. and a champagne toast at midnight. Leading into the NYE show will be performances by Ty Dolla $ign on Friday ($50 guys/$30 women) and G-Eazy on Saturday ($40/$20). Visit 11Miami.com.
Living Room at the W Fort Lauderdale on Fort Lauderdale beach hosts a
9 p.m.-2 a.m. party with open bar, plates from Stephen Starr, balloon drop, champagne toast, free valet and spectacular ocean views. Tickets cost $275. VIP bungalow? Glad you asked. It’s $12,000. Visit Facebook.com/WFortLauderdale.
Pitbull’s annual New Year's Eve Revolution draws tens of thousands of people to Bayfront Park in Miami each year, but cloistered within the madness is the Worldwide New Year's Eve VIP Food & Wine Party. Beginning at 7 p.m., VIP patrons will find more than 15 gourmet food stations, unlimited wine and craft beer, curated cocktails and a champagne toast for a $295 ticket, $495 for two. Visit WorldwideNYE.com.
Colombian-born reggaeton star J Balvin will be joined by Swedish DJ Alesso for a 9 p.m. poolside party at the Fontainebleau Miami Beach. General admission tickets, with premium open bar until midnight, cost $300. It’s $6,000 if you want to roll VIP. Visit Fontainebleau.com/ NYE.
LIV Nightclub on Miami Beach welcomes hip-hop royalty with performances by Nicki Minaj and Lil Wayne. Tickets cost $325, $250 for entry after 12:30 a.m. New Year’s Weekend at the Fontainebleau hotel nightclub also includes Tiësto on Friday ($125) and David Guetta on Saturday (sold out). Visit LIVNightclub.com.