How to Celebrate New Year's Without a Hangover

There is tons of fun to be had on New Year's Eve! While the majority of New Year's Eve celebrations include alcohol, there are plenty of people (including and other than recovering alcoholics) who would rather enjoy the evening sans alcohol. It’s better for your body, and it’s a much better start to wake up on New Year’s Day feeling great!



Here are a few creative New Year's Eve ideas that will ensure you stay sober and have a good time.



1. Host a movie marathon. Invite some friends over who also want to celebrate in an alcohol-free environment, and watch a marathon of your favorite movie series, or movies from a particular theme or genre. For example, you could take on the Lord of the Rings trilogy, the Indiana Jones series, or the original Star Wars trilogy. Want to have a New Year's-based theme? Try watching 200 Cigarettes, The Apartment, When Harry Met Sally, and other movies that take place on New Year's.



2. Go all out and throw a non-alcoholic party. Just because there's no booze doesn't mean you can't party. Go all out with New Year's Eve decorations including streamers, balloons, noisemakers, and hats, and invite friends and family over for a non-alcoholic New Year's Eve party. Have kids? Get them involved and ask them to invite a few of their friends over to enjoy a safe New Year's Eve celebration.



3. Take on the role of designated driver. Are you one of the few non-drinkers in your group of friends? Offer your services as the designated driver. Instead of ordering alcoholic drinks at the bar, slip under the radar with a soda water with lime. Or get a virgin strawberry daiquiri or other fun drink. And want to get a discount? Just tell the bartender that you're the DD. A lot of the time, the bartender will give you water or other non-alcoholic drinks on the house.



4. Host a board game tournament. Have a group of friends that are word junkies and crazy about their Scrabble? Do you work with real estate agents that swear they rock at Monopoly? Get together a group of friends and have a late-night board game tournament. Get together some finger foods and munchies, and offer non-alcoholic drinks. You could even award the winner with a fun prize!



Here are just four ways that you can have a blast on New Year's Eve—by being gentler on your body. If you want to go alcohol-free this December 31st, know that you can still have fun while you do it!





Katrina Robinson is a writer who blogs about a wide variety of topics, from colon cleansing to personal health.