{"id":210579,"date":"2025-12-31T21:25:11","date_gmt":"2025-12-31T21:25:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/210579\/"},"modified":"2025-12-31T21:25:11","modified_gmt":"2025-12-31T21:25:11","slug":"revellers-ring-in-2026-new-year-with-celebrations-across-the-country","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/210579\/","title":{"rendered":"Revellers ring in 2026 New Year with celebrations across the country"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"A<\/p>\n

\nA New Year’s reveller.
\nPhoto: RNZ \/ Kim Baker Wilson\n<\/p>\n

The new year has started with a bang<\/a> across the country.<\/p>\n

In Auckland, more than half a tonne of fireworks launched high up the Sky Tower.<\/p>\n

Thousands poured into the central city after streets were closed to get a prime viewing spot for the five minute display that had taken half a year of planning.<\/p>\n

\"2026<\/p>\n

\n2026 started with a bang in Auckland.
\nPhoto: RNZ \/ Robert Smith\n<\/p>\n

Bipin Bhattarai and his family from Whang\u0101rei came prepared with camping chairs.<\/p>\n

“We do a lot of camping, so why not?!” he said.<\/p>\n

“We just take this all the time in our car so we’re just making use of it.”<\/p>\n

He had only seen Auckland’s New Year fireworks on YouTube and said before they were let off that they looked “amazing”.<\/p>\n

“So hopefully it will be nice this time as well.”<\/p>\n

\"Bipin<\/p>\n

\nBipin Bhattarai (C) and his family.
\nPhoto: RNZ \/ Kim Baker Wilson\n<\/p>\n

For others, it was a temporary homecoming.<\/p>\n

Chris, who lives in Australia caring for her grand-daughter, also got a perfect spot near the base of the Sky Tower and had never come to see the fireworks before.<\/p>\n

“No, never, I think it will be fabulous.”<\/p>\n

But she was expecting more people, she said.<\/p>\n

As it got closer to midnight, more people flooded in leaving standing room only on Victoria Street from Albert Park up to the tower.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

\nThe crowd on Victoria Street.
\nPhoto: RNZ \/ Kim Baker Wilson\n<\/p>\n

Tourists were among them, a pair in the country from the UK had come from New Plymouth to see the fireworks.<\/p>\n

There was also a group from Las Vegas armed with celebratory horns who took to dancing in the street.<\/p>\n

“We travelled here for Christmas and family time,” one of the group said.<\/p>\n

“We’ve never been and it was a long trip but it was worth it.”<\/p>\n

Another in the group said they heard the excitement would be in the central city.<\/p>\n

“So we came out, we wanted to bring some energy and this is a fun place to be to celebrate New Year’s Eve.”<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

\nThe group from Las Vegas with their horns in the street.
\nPhoto: RNZ \/ Kim Baker Wilson\n<\/p>\n

Carnival on capital’s Courtenay Place<\/p>\n

Wellington’s entertainment strip, Courtenay Place, was also partly closed to traffic and turned into a carnival zone for the night.<\/p>\n

\"Courtenay<\/p>\n

\nCourtenay Carnival on New Year’s Eve, 2025.
\nPhoto: RNZ \/ Barry Guy\n<\/p>\n

Kushla Pullman (aka Little Red Riding Hood) and husband Keith (the Big Bad Wolf) came from Wairarapa with their friends Chloe and Lee Dancey to see in the New Year.<\/p>\n

“We actually dressed up because it’s meant to be a dress up party – it said that online – but nobody else is!”<\/p>\n

\"From<\/p>\n

\nFrom left: Keith Pullman, Kushla Pullman, Chloe Dancey and Lee Dancey came from Wairarapa for Courtenay Carnival.
\nPhoto: RNZ \/ Ruth Hill\n<\/p>\n

Amid the hedonism of party central, Derryn and Chris Hunt from Palmerston North were enjoying a cold one of the cone variety.<\/p>\n

“My New Year’s resolution is to eat healthier,” Chris said. “Hopes and dreams for 2026? For the war in Ukraine and Russia to end soon, that’s one of my bigger ones.”<\/p>\n

\"Derryn<\/p>\n

\nDerryn (L) and Chris Hunt from Palmerston North in Wellington for New Year.
\nPhoto: RNZ \/ Ruth Hill\n<\/p>\n

Seven-year-old Naiya, who was at Whairepo Lagoon for the Kids’ Countdown, also had high hopes for 2026: “I hope there’s lots of fruit in my garden.”<\/p>\n

\"Seven-year-old<\/p>\n

\nSeven-year-old Naiya (L), Claudio Escutia, and Carrie Gardyne at the lagoon in Wellington.
\nPhoto: RNZ \/ Ruth Hill\n<\/p>\n

Sign up for Ng\u0101 Pitopito K\u014drero<\/a>, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A New Year’s reveller. Photo: RNZ \/ Kim Baker Wilson The new year has started with a bang…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":210580,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[48,47,42,43,49,46,44,45,40,38,41,39],"class_list":{"0":"post-210579","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-headlines","8":"tag-audio","9":"tag-current-affairs","10":"tag-headlines","11":"tag-news","12":"tag-podcasts","13":"tag-public-radio","14":"tag-radio-new-zealand","15":"tag-rnz","16":"tag-top-news","17":"tag-top-stories","18":"tag-topnews","19":"tag-topstories"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/210579","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=210579"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/210579\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/210580"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=210579"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=210579"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=210579"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}