{"id":6448,"date":"2018-11-18T05:59:09","date_gmt":"2018-11-18T04:59:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/?p=6448"},"modified":"2025-09-18T18:11:37","modified_gmt":"2025-09-18T17:11:37","slug":"new-year-traditions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/entertainment\/new-year-traditions\/","title":{"rendered":"New Year traditions"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignright\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/traditions_small.jpg\" alt=\"Sparkling wine and glasses\" class=\"wp-image-6855\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/traditions_small.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/traditions_small-100x100.jpg 100w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>Molten lead, marzipan pigs, Freddie Frinton, the Pummerin, and Johann Strauss. Not the answer to an obscure Trivial Pursuit question, but just some of the traditions celebrated at a typical New Year in Vienna.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Let us begin&#8230;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Book a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tiqets.com\/en\/concerts-opera-vienna-tickets-l206741\/?partner=visitingvienna&amp;tq_campaign=LG_NYE\" rel=\"sponsored\">concert experience<\/a>* for your Vienna trip<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>See also:\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/entertainment\/events\/silvesterpfad\/\">Silvesterpfad<\/a> (the city&#8217;s official trail for revellers)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/sightseeing\/new-year-markets\/\" data-type=\"page\" data-id=\"7465\">New Year markets<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Schlumberger sparkling wine <a href=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/eatingdrinking\/schlumberger-wine-cellars\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"71268\">cellar tour<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Before midnight<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Like just about everywhere in the world, friends and families gather together on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/entertainment\/new-years-eve\/\">New Year&#8217;s Eve in Vienna<\/a> (or <em>Silvester<\/em>, as it&#8217;s known in German) to celebrate and think of all the resolutions they can break within the next week.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Pigs and more<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>These New Year&#8217;s Eve gatherings typically involve the exchange of small symbolic gifts.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"500\" height=\"375\" src=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/luckycharms.jpg\" alt=\"Lucky New Year charms\" class=\"wp-image-49025\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/luckycharms.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/luckycharms-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center has-small-font-size\">(Chocolate coins also make a popular gift, along with symbols of good luck)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Lucky charms are a common choice, with motifs like:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Pigs. Yep, pigs. (<em>Schwein<\/em> <em>gehabt<\/em> &#8211; to &#8220;Have had pig&#8221; &#8211; is an expression used in Austria to indicate having had a stroke of luck. Which is why you find pigs everywhere at New Year)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Mushrooms\/fungi (particularly the fly agaric, <em>Amanita muscaria<\/em>: not a word I expected to have to know for an article on the Viennese New Year)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Clover (often gifted as a real plant in a small decorative pot)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Chimney sweeps, ladybird beetles, horseshoes, and others<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"500\" height=\"375\" src=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/newyeartraditionspigs.jpg\" alt=\"Marzipan pigs\" class=\"wp-image-78849\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/newyeartraditionspigs.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/newyeartraditionspigs-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center has-small-font-size\">(A selection of chocolate and marzipan pigs at the New Year&#8217;s Eve table)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In the days leading up to New Year, Vienna fills with stands selling these charms, mostly as cheap, plastic, mass-produced items or edible versions made of marzipan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The same motifs may appear at the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/sightseeing\/new-year-markets\/\">New Year markets<\/a>, albeit in more artistic guises and with better materials.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Other common &#8220;lucky&#8221; gifts include fish-shaped sponge finger biscuits and&nbsp;instant lottery tickets you can open right away to discover if you&#8217;ve won a prize.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"500\" height=\"375\" src=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/newyearluckycharms.jpg\" alt=\"Lucky charms as a New Year gift\" class=\"wp-image-55296\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/newyearluckycharms.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/newyearluckycharms-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center has-small-font-size\">(Three lucky charms in one: four-leaved clover, a mushroom, and a chimney sweep who might have had a little too much sparkling wine)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Bleigie\u00dfen (lead casting)<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>A common pastime at Silvester parties of bygone days was always to play with molten lead, but the modern versions of this fun activity are far less risky.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If this fails to strike you as an obvious year-end ritual, you&#8217;re not alone: a bit of explanation might be required.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Traditionally, you would hold a lump of lead over a candle on a specially-designed spoon, wait until the metal melts, pour the molten mass quickly into a bowl of water, then eventually fish out the cooled and hardened object.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Which doesn&#8217;t sound like a whole lot of fun.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Ah, but&#8230;the shape the lead took in the water allegedly predicted your future, which was the whole point of the exercise. So, for example, a crown shape suggested financial success.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>English even has a word for this form of divination: molybdomancy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div align=\"center\"><em>Ad:<\/em><\/div><div data-tiqets-widget=\"discovery\" data-cards-layout=\"horizontal\" data-slug-ids=\"exp206741,exp205287\" data-partner=\"visitingvienna\" data-tq-campaign=\"DA_NewYear\"><\/div><script defer src=\"https:\/\/widgets.tiqets.com\/loader.js\"><\/script>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:25px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>These days, the Bleigie\u00dfen sets you buy for New Year don&#8217;t actually contain lead at all. After all, it&#8217;s poisonous and lead-based sets are illegal. People use tin or wax instead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As you might suspect, melted metal or wax tends not to form recognisable shapes in the water; you have to use your imagination. Helpfully, this also means you can conveniently see shapes that foresee a rosy future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Don&#8217;t try this at home without using a certified set, and be sure to follow the instructions and note any warnings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Dinner for one<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Many countries have a TV programme intimately associated with a holiday. <em>Love Actually<\/em> and Christmas in the UK springs to mind. In Austria, it&#8217;s <em>Dinner for One<\/em> at New Year. And that&#8217;s not a translation of the title.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Every New Year&#8217;s Eve, the national state broadcaster (ORF) plays the 1963 black and white English-language sketch, usually in the hour before midnight.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"500\" height=\"371\" src=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/newyeardinnerforone2023.jpg\" alt=\"Scene from Dinner for One with butler and his employer at the table\" class=\"wp-image-66377\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/newyeardinnerforone2023.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/newyeardinnerforone2023-300x223.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center has-small-font-size\">(A scene from the piece; Press photo: ORF\/NDR\/Annemarie Aldag)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Freddie Frinton is butler <em>James<\/em> to May Warden&#8217;s <em>Miss Sophie<\/em>, who is celebrating her 90th birthday with a dinner.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Since the traditional birthday guests have long since departed this world, James impersonates each so as not to disappoint his short-sighted employer. This involves consuming considerable amounts of alcohol, with the inevitable consequences.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>All the dialogue is in English, though the sketch has a German introduction. A phrase from the show (&#8220;Same procedure as every year&#8221;) has even entered the German vernacular.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Austria&#8217;s not alone in this tradition, but one country where the sketch rarely appears on TV is&#8230;the UK. I grew up in England and had never heard of it until I moved to Vienna.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Interestingly, the reverse situation sometimes occurs. Most people here have no knowledge of (or interest in) <em>The Sound of Music<\/em>, for example.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Midnight<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>So, after a few drinks and fun, midnight approaches, and all eyes (and mostly ears) turn to&#8230;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The Pummerin<\/h3>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"500\" height=\"375\" src=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/northtower.jpg\" alt=\"North Tower of Stephansdom\" class=\"wp-image-43500\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/northtower.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/northtower-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center has-small-font-size\">(The domed tower on the left of the photo houses the Pummerin bell)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The curiously-named Pummerin conducts the countdown to the New Year in Austria. That&#8217;s not some strange position held by a wizened old timekeeper, but the huge 20-tonne bell located in the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/sights\/north-tower-stephansdom\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"5428\">north tower<\/a> of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/sights\/stefansdom\/\">Stephansdom cathedral<\/a> in the very centre of Vienna.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>During the year, you can <a href=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/sights\/north-tower-stephansdom\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"5428\">take a lift<\/a> up the tower, get close to the bell, and enjoy the views of central Vienna and the cathedral&#8217;s mosaic roof.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Towards midnight, the crowds gather in the square outside to hear the Pummerin ring, and TV and radio stations broadcast the sound across the country. Then the sky explodes&#8230;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Fireworks<\/h3>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"500\" height=\"375\" src=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/fireworks.jpg\" alt=\"Fireworks\" class=\"wp-image-45915\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/fireworks.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/fireworks-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center has-small-font-size\">(Expect a lot of this)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>At midnight, fireworks or laser light displays begin in earnest. (Most home\/personal fireworks are forbidden it should be noted). <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Vienna lights up in a raucous and colourful celebration that may continue for a good half an hour or more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We like to sit on our balcony and watch the displays across to the hills in the west. On a clear night, it&#8217;s quite fabulous. Many shows also begin well before midnight.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>At the same time, it can get remarkably loud. And not everyone is considerate about where they let off their bangers and rockets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The Blue Danube Waltz<\/h3>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"500\" height=\"375\" src=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/DanubeAtNussdorf.jpg\" alt=\"The Danube at Nussdorf\" class=\"wp-image-41412\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/DanubeAtNussdorf.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/DanubeAtNussdorf-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center has-small-font-size\">(The not-so-blue Danube)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Once the echoes of the Pummerin die away, TV and radio stations switch to Johann Strauss I&#8217;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/culture\/is-the-danube-blue\/\">Blue Danube<\/a> waltz. Those not fiddling with a firework fuse then grab a partner and dance in the New Year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>After the waltz, all that remains to do is drink a glass of sparkling wine, nibble at your marzipan pig, and try not to think about all the clearing up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>And if that glass piques your interest&#8230;Vienna has its own sparkling wine producer (Schlumberger) who offer rather nice <a href=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/eatingdrinking\/schlumberger-wine-cellars\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"71268\">tours of their wine cellars<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">P.S.<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>The next day (January 1st) has its own tradition, too, as it happens. The new year begins, as you might expect from a city possessing such a musical pedigree, with a classical concert.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The world-famous <a href=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/entertainment\/events\/new-years-concert\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"6308\">Neujahrskonzert<\/a> (New Year&#8217;s Concert) starts around 11.15am with a live broadcast on TV and often open-air screenings at one or two locations in the centre of town.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Molten lead, marzipan pigs, Freddie Frinton, the Pummerin, and Johann Strauss. Not the answer to an obscure Trivial Pursuit question, but just some of the traditions celebrated at a typical New Year in Vienna. Let us begin&#8230; Before midnight Like just about everywhere in the world, friends and families gather together on New Year&#8217;s Eve [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":6855,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-6448","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-entertainment","8":"entry"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6448","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6448"}],"version-history":[{"count":15,"href":"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6448\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":85814,"href":"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6448\/revisions\/85814"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6855"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6448"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6448"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6448"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}