Welcome the New Year North of Boston!

It’s hard to believe we’re nearing the end of 2023, what a whirlwind year full of some pretty magical moments here North of Boston. Our area's opportunities for fun are always expanding and we’re already excited just thinking about what the New Year will bring!

When it comes to ringing in the New Year there’s no shortage of celebratory events and exciting happenings to usher in 2024 in style here North of Boston. We’ve rounded up some entertaining options, from family-friendly fun to late-night parties for dancing the night away. We wish you a safe and happy New Year here North of Boston, let the good times roll!

Family Friendly New Year's Fun

December 31, 10 am to 1 pm: Kids' Countdown to NYE, Wenham Museum

Ring in the New Year at the Wenham Museum! With music, movement, performance, and art you can welcome 2024 in a fun and family-friendly way, and get home early! From 10 am to 1 pm enjoy festive fun events and entertainment including a puppet show, balloon artistry, hat making, and face painting. Wenham Museum will countdown to “midnight” at 12 pm with streamers and a balloon drop! All of the museum’s galleries will be open, and only for this special program. Tickets start at $12. Get your tickets. 

December 31, 6 pm–12 am: Downtown Rockport's New Year's Eve

Rockport New Year's Eve is an annual family-friendly New Year's Eve celebration of the arts that has been held in picturesque downtown Rockport since 1997! The celebration begins at 6 pm on New Year’s Eve and entertainment is scheduled on the hour, every hour, from 6 pm to midnight. Entertainment includes a wide range of musical acts, plus clowns, jugglers, puppeteers, storytellers, face painters, dancers, psychic readers, and telescope viewing with the astronomy club. Children of all ages participate in the drum jam and parade through the downtown streets, with a large dancing dragon and costumes. At midnight, attendees gather in Dock Square to watch the ball drop from the highest ladder of the town fire truck and sing. All-access buttons are priced at $10 and up. Children 12 and under are free. View the schedule of events.

December 31, 6:30–8:30 pm: Gloucester 400+ Farewell to 2023

To usher out the quadricentennial year, which marked Gloucester’s 400th year anniversary, Gloucester 400+ will host a farewell party at the Cape Ann YMCA from 6:30 to 8:30 pm with a countdown at 8 pm. Help them say goodbye to an action-packed year full of events and activities in honor of America’s oldest fishing port. Expect dazzling lights, warm beverages, delicious sweets, exciting music, and a community countdown to 2024.

December 31, 4:30–6 pm: New Year's Eve LAUNCH!, Salem

Ring in the New Year with Salem Main Streets and the City of Salem at LAUNCH!, a family-friendly New Year’s Eve party, on Saturday, Dec. 31 from 4:30 pm to 6 pm on Artists’ Row. There will be an early countdown just before 6 pm. Programming will include art-making activities, face painting and/or temporary tattoos, a silent disco, and more! Event activities are free to all and family-friendly, with a $5 suggested donation to help support Salem Main Streets’ “Holiday Happenings” initiatives, including Santa’s Arrival at the Hawthorne, the Tree Lighting, and the wreaths and ribbons around the downtown. 

December 26–January 1, 11 am–12 am: Salem's Frozen Fire Festival

Salem’s Frozen Fire Festival, now in its second year, is a family-friendly, all-ages festival which is open to the public with no cost of admission. The event takes place at Charlotte Forten Park in Salem and is open December 26th through January 1st from 11 am to midnight. Frozen Fire Festival provides dynamic winter entertainment, artisan shopping, hospitality and craft libations. Immerse yourself in mesmerizing fire and ice installations while taking in captivating fire and cirque performances. Spend time with loved ones in one of their glowing heated igloos and stay cozy beside their firepits wrapped in fleece blankets. This vibrant destination offers a unique and exciting way to ring in 2024!

Live Entertainment and Exciting Events

December 31, 1:30 pm–12 am: New Year's Eve, Davio's Lynnfield

Davio’s at Markestreet Lynnfield is offering you the chance to usher in the New Year lavishly and deliciously! From 1:30 pm to midnight they are offering a three-course tasting menu to satisfy all of your senses! The menu includes Nantucket Bay Scallops, Butternut Squash Tortelloni, Center Cut Filet Mignon, Butter Poached Lobster Tail, and more! $95 per person. 

December 31, 9 pm: Club Castle at Hammond Castle Museum

Bid farewell to 2023 and ring in the brand-new year, 2024, in grand style in Hammond Castle’s Great Hall. Dance the night away with the fantastic beats of Scape Audio New England and be entertained by Hammond’s master of ceremonies, Bruce Jacques! Savor the evening with an array of mouthwatering hors d’oeuvres by Creative Catering and, of course, raise your glass for a complimentary sparkling champagne toast as you count down to the stroke of midnight with their New Year’s illumination. Explore the many rooms of the Castle, gather your friends, dress in your finest attire, and make memories that will last a lifetime in the enchanting setting of Club Castle. Doors open at 9 pm, 21 and over, $125 per individual.

December 31, 8:30 pm–12:30 am: New Year's Eve Cruise with Beauport Cruiselines

Cruise into 2024 amidst the waves and beneath the stars aboard Beauport Cruiselines! Their can’t-miss New Year’s Eve Cruise will feature a sparkling champagne toast, lively DJ entertainment, delectable passed hors d’oevres, a delicious mac & cheese martini bar a Chinese food feast, and more! What better way to sail into the New Year? Cash bar available. Tickets are $96 per person. Guests 21+ only. 

December 31, 8–11 pm: New Year's Eve with Club d'Elf, The Cabot

Nothing says New Year’s Eve like a rocking good time enjoying live music! This New Year’s Eve Club d’Elf comes to The Cabot, joined by John Medeski (MMW), Jennifer Hartswick (Tab) and Natalie Cressman (Tab), with special guest opener Kat Wright. Club d’Elf has been helping audiences lose track of time for twenty-five years with its mesmerizing synthesis of Moroccan traditional music and electronic, dubbed-out funk. Circling about bassist/composer Mike Rivard and drummer Dean Johnston, each Club d’Elf performance features a different line-up, drawn from a constellation of some of the most creative improvisers from the jazz, DJ, rock & world music scenes of Boston, NYC and beyond. Doors open at 7 pm, show starts at 8 pm and ends at 11 pm. Tickets start at $25.25.

December 31, 6 & 9 pm: New Year's Eve with Mike Donovan, Off Cabot Comedy Club

The Off Cabot Comedy Club is hosting two shows on New Year's Eve featuring some of the funniest comedians in all of New England including Mike Donovan, Dan Boulger, Dan Crohn, and Brienna Woodward! Ring in the new year with raucous, nonstop laughter. Shows start at 6 pm and 9 pm.

December 31, 7 pm: New Year's Eve Bash, Featuring The Fools, Blue Ocean Music Hall

Ring in the New Year with unforgettable fun at Blue Ocean featuring New England’s best party band, The Fools, along with Psychedelic Relics. The party features an optional dinner buffet, expansive dance floor, midnight champagne toast, party favors and a midnight balloon drop. Tickets start at $35. Dinner at 7 pm, show at 9 pm. 

December 31, 7:30 pm: New Year's Eve Special with Paul D'Angelo, The Larcom Theatre

Comedian Paul D'Angelo is a former Essex County (MA) assistant district attorney and criminal-defense trial attorney who simultaneously became one of the country's top stand-up comics. Besides headlining A-List comedy clubs for over thirty years, Paul has also opened for over sixty internationally known recording acts including Ray Charles, Aretha Franklin, Tom Jones, Tony Bennett, The Beach Boys, Chicago, and more. He has performed in many famed entertainment venues ranging from the legendary Friar's Club and the main ballroom of New York City's Waldorf Astoria, to the main showroom at Harrah's Casino and Caesar's Palace, and this New Year’s Eve you can find him at the Larcom. Tickets are $36 and the show begins at 7:30 pm.