WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — From Sydney to Vladivostok, communities around the world have begun welcoming 2025 with spectacular light shows, embraces and ice plunges.
Auckland became the first major city to celebrate, as thousands thronged downtown or climbed the city’s ring of volcanic peaks for a fireworks vantage point. A light display recognized Indigenous people.
Countries in the South Pacific Ocean are the first to ring in the New Year, with midnight in New Zealand striking 19 hours before it does in Chicago.
Fireworks blasted off the Sydney Harbor Bridge and across the bay. More than a million Australians and others gathered at iconic Sydney Harbor for the celebration. British pop star Robbie Williams led a sing-along with the crowd.
The celebration also featured Indigenous ceremonies and performances that acknowledged the land’s first people.
Asia prepares for Year of the Snake
Much of Japan shut down ahead of the nation’s biggest holiday, as temples and homes underwent a thorough cleaning.
The upcoming Year of the Snake in the Asian zodiac is heralded as one of rebirth — alluding to the reptile’s shedding skin. Stores in Japan, which observes the zodiac cycle from Jan. 1, have been selling snake-themed products. Other places in Asia will mark the Year of the Snake later with the Lunar New Year.
In South Korea, celebrations were cut back or canceled during a period of national mourning after the Sunday crash of a Jeju Air flight at Muan that killed 179 people.
In Thailand’s Bangkok, shopping malls competed for crowds with live musical acts and fireworks shows. A performance by popular rap singer Lisa, the Thai member of the South Korean girl group Blackpink, was scheduled just before midnight.
A fireworks display in Indonesia’s Jakarta featured 800 drones.
China, Russia exchange goodwill
Chinese state media covered an exchange of New Year’s greetings between leader Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin in a reminder of growing closeness between the leaders who face tensions with the West.
Xi told Putin their countries will “always move forward hand in hand,” the official Xinhua News Agency said.
China has maintained ties and robust trade with Russia since the latter invaded Ukraine in 2022, helping to offset Western sanctions and attempts to isolate Putin.
Xi also addressed Taiwan, the self-ruled island claimed by Beijing: “We Chinese on both sides of the Taiwan Strait belong to one and the same family. No one can ever sever the bond of kinship between us.”
In his address to the nation, Putin said Russia has “set big goals for ourselves and achieved them, and we overcame difficulties more than once because we were together.”
Holy Year begins
Rome’s traditional New Year’s Eve festivities have an additional draw: The start of Pope Francis’ Holy Year, the once-every-quarter-century celebration projected to bring some 32 million pilgrims to the Eternal City in 2025.
On Tuesday, Francis will celebrate a vespers at St. Peter’s Basilica, followed by Mass on Wednesday, when he is expected to again appeal for peace amid wars in Ukraine and the Middle East.
Jan. 1 is a day of obligation for Catholics, marking the Solemnity of Mary.
Other celebrations
Paris will cap a momentous 2024 with its traditional countdown and fireworks extravaganza on the Champs-Elysées.
The Summer Olympics and Paralympic Games hosted in the French capital from July to September transformed the city into a site of joy, fraternity and astonishing sporting achievements.
London is due to ring in the New Year with a pyrotechnic display along the River Thames and a parade through the city center on Wednesday featuring 10,000 performers.
With a storm bringing bitter weather to other parts of the United Kingdom, festivities in Edinburgh, Scotland — including the Hogmanay Street party and castle pyrotechnics show — were canceled.
But in Switzerland and some other places people embraced the cold, stripping and plunging into the water in freezing temperatures.
Rio de Janeiro will throw Brazil’s main New Year’s Eve bash on Copacabana Beach, with ferries offshore bearing 12 straight minutes of fireworks. Thousands of tourists in cruise ships will witness the show up close.
More than 2 million people were expected at the Copacabana, hoping to squeeze into concerts by superstar Brazilian artists such as pop singer Anitta and Grammy Award winner Caetano Veloso.
American traditions old and new
Chicago’s annual New Year’s Eve free fireworks extravaganza on the Chicago River is set to start 10 p.m with custom “Art on the Mart” projections on the facade of the Merchandise Mart building. Fireworks will follow at midnight, launched from the bridges at Orleans Street, La Salle Drive, Clark Street, Dearborn Street, State Street and Columbus Drive.
In New York City, the organization managing Times Square has tested its famous ball drop and inspected 2025 numerals, lights and thousands of crystals as part of a tradition going back to 1907. This year’s celebration will include musical performances by TLC, the Jonas Brothers, Rita Ora and Sophie Ellis-Bextor.
Meanwhile, Las Vegas’ pyrotechnic show will be on the Strip, with 340,000 people anticipated as fireworks are launched from the rooftops of casinos. Nearby, the massive Sphere venue will display for the first time countdowns to midnight in different time zones.
In Pasadena, enthusiastic Rose Parade spectators were camping out and hoping for prime spots. And some 200,000 people were flocking to a party in Nashville, Tennessee, featuring a show by some of country music’s biggest stars.
American Samoa will be among the last to welcome 2025, a full 24 hours after New Zealand.