Whether New Year’s Eve is spent watching fireworks, celebrating at a pub, club or party, or eating grapes for good luck, more and more people across the UK are dining out for the occasion as trends shift from club nights to experiences.

Eating in restaurants on New Year’s Eve is on the rise. It increased in 2023 by 17% year on year, according to the online booking platform OpenTable, making it one of the most popular days to eat out after Mother’s Day.

Kate Nicholls, the chief executive of UKHospitality, said New Year’s Eve was one of the “biggest nights in the hospitality calendar”, and though the ways in which people celebrated had changed over the years, the same could be expected as the industry prepared to welcome in 2025.

“New Year’s Eve is always one of the biggest nights in the hospitality calendar, and this year will be no different,” she said. “The traditional night out in bars and clubs or a meal out with family and friends remain popular, but as hospitality has evolved, so have the options available for consumers.”

Changing trends had brought a rise in “experiential leisure” at some venues, she said. Activities including darts, golf and cricket “have grown in popularity and will likely be more popular this year, and in years to come”.

However, this shift can not be solely put down to a demand for experiences. Over the last few years, the night-time industry has been in crisis: nightclubs across the country have had to shut their doors due to the cost of living, high running costs and dwindling footfall. Many were also severely affected by the lockdowns during the Covid-19 pandemic, with clubs often the last venues to reopen, but the industry has been in decline for more than a decade.

A report by the Night Time Industries Association (NTIA), a trade body representing businesses in the night-time economy, revealed there were only 851 remaining nightclubs in the UK in 2023, compared with over 3,000 in 2005. As of June 2024, this has shrunk further to 786, according to figures from the analysts CGA by NIQ and AlixPartners.

The “culmination of pandemic debt, growing energy bills, workforce challenges, supply chain issues, insurance premiums and landlord pressures” had contributed to slowing ticket sales and visitor frequency at these venues, the NTIA said. There had also been a shift towards experience-led socialising, the body added, showing the inherent resilience and dynamism of the sector.

According to DesignMyNight, there is still an appetite for club nights, with a 415% increase in tickets available in 2024 compared with the previous year. However, this had shifted from the more “traditional” club night out, said Leighanne Bent, the booking platform’s marketing manager.

“Since the pandemic there’s been quite a decline in searches for ‘clubbing’ events on New Year’s Eve, with other venues becoming more popular,” she said. “This year rooftop events are having a real moment, with venues creating one-of-a-kind New Year’s Eve events with unusual themes, live music or special performers.”

People sometimes opted for more than one venue, such as having a dinner out and a trip to the pub, Bent added, and plans were often made last-minute. “Celebrating the last day of the calendar year has always had a last-minute nature to it – last year, just under half (46%) of tickets to New Year’s Eve events on DesignMyNight were bought between Christmas Day and 31 December.”

This year, demand for novel nights out appears to be on-trend. “It seems to be the quirkier the better, but this year there’s been a huge increase in ‘bottomless’ New Year’s Eve events, so those offering limitless drinks as part of the ticket price,” Bent said, which she said was great for those trying to control their spending, particularly in large groups.

However you choose to celebrate, there was plenty of choice, Bent said. “Whether it’s a low-key restaurant booking or something more immersive like a secret pink party in a London mansion or even an Abba-themed night with live performers – there really is something for everyone on New Year’s Eve.”