Berlin (dpa) – Europeans will be ringing in 2021 under the shadow of the coronavirus pandemic, with countries across the continent seeing an acceleration in infections and deaths in the waning days of the year.
Here’s a look at how Europe will celebrate this New Year’s Eve to forget.
In RUSSIA’s capital Moscow, revellers won’t have to do without fireworks. With the traditional peal of the bells at the Kremlin’s Spassky Tower, rockets are to turn the night sky into a sea of colours. After that, fireworks will follow in 10 other places.
Nevertheless, New Year’s Eve will be a little different this time: bars, restaurants and discos will have to close by 11 pm at the latest.
In BELGIUM, a light show is planned in Brussels that the city says will allow residents to be “virtually connected to their friends and family through a network of laser beams that will cover the sky in different parts of the city.”
However, there is a curfew from 10 pm – so the laser show will therefore be broadcast live on the internet.
The biggest party in AUSTRIA, the New Year’s Eve Trail in Vienna, was already cancelled in mid-October. Normally, hundreds of thousands flock to the event that turned the streets around St Stephen’s Cathedral into a party mile.
In FRANCE, Paris is under a night-time curfew starting from 8 pm that will enforced by police.
However, composer Jean-Michel Jarre is to give a virtual concert at Notre Dame cathedral in Paris on New Year’s Eve.
Jarre is to play live at a studio in Paris while an avatar of the electronic pop pioneer is to perform inside a virtual recreation of the cathedral. The show features virtual lasers bouncing off the church walls as the fake Jarre spins records.
In ITALY, the government has imposed a strict nationwide curfew from 10 pm to 7 am, while a maximum of two adult guests from another household are allowed to sit at the table for New Year’s Eve dinner.
The capital Rome also issued a fireworks ban that lasts until January 6.
In BRITAIN, all fireworks displays traditionally held in capital cities have been cancelled.
London’s mayor Sadiq Khan announced in September the fireworks display was being cancelled due to social distancing restrictions implemented to prevent the spread of Covid-19.
Instead a “unique broadcasting moment” is being shown on British broadcaster the BBC at midnight. The content of the broadcast has not been revealed, only that it will “pay tribute to the defining moments of the year.”
Edinburgh’s famous Hogmanay event, which features live music and fireworks, is moving online for the first time in its history and will feature 150 drones creating “iconic images and words” in the sky.
A six week lockdown was put in place in Northern Ireland from 26 December, making all celebrations illegal, and Wales was placed into lockdown for the forseeable future on December 20.
In GREECE, where cases having been shooting up since October, everyone has been told to spend the night at home. In the greater Athens area alone 5,000 police officers will monitor compliance with the overnight curfew from 10 pm to 5 am on New Year’s Day, the government said.
“After 10 pm nobody – but really nobody – will be on the street,” the Greek minister for citizen protection, Michalis Chrisochoidis, said.
There are only exceptions if people have to go to hospital or to work.
Still, firework displays have been organized by some cities. But mayors have told residents to watch the show from their balconies.
No more than nine people from two households can gather. If a host does not comply with this, they face a fine of 3,000 euros (3,600 dollars). The guests then have to pay 300 euros.
In POLAND, the government has called on citizens to stay home and avoid setting off fireworks. A ban on going outside will be in place between 7 pm on New Year’s Eve and 6 am on New Year’s Day.
Some legal experts, however, argue that the constitutional right of free movement cannot be limited via a government resolution. With that in mind, a number of protests in defiance of the curfew have been announced for Thursday evening.
At home, the hosts can invite only up to five guests for New Year’s Eve celebrations.
In neighbouring GERMANY, which is under a partial lockdown and where all but essential shops have been shut, the traditional fireworks spectacle at Berlin’s landmark Brandenburg Gate has been cancelled.
There is a nationwide ban on large gatherings on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day, although a maximum of five people from two households are allowed to meet.
The use of private fireworks by individuals is also being heavily restricted, in part to lighten the load on hospitals.
Under the slogan “Lights on. Year out,” residents of the western city of Cologne are being asked to flick their light switches on and off for five minutes from midnight to mark the start of 2021.
TURKEY prepares to enter 2021 under a nationwide curfew, spanning from 9 pm on Thursday to 5 am on January 4. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said crowded gatherings and celebrations will not be allowed, warning authorities can intervene in case of any violation.
Entrance of locals and tourists will be restricted to main streets and squares across Turkey, including Istanbul’s iconic Istiklal Street, traditionally home to New Year celebrations every year, the Interior Ministry said.
In Istanbul alone, more than 34,000 security personnel, including 24,000 police officers, will be on duty on New Year’s Eve, Istanbul Governor Ali Yerlikaya said.
People are able to visit nearby shops. Meanwhile, Islamic prayers will be allowed on Friday as locals can visit the nearest mosque home.
In DENMARK, Copenhagen police the public would not be allowed to assemble for the traditional New Year’s celebration at the City Hall Square.
The square, in the heart of the Danish capital, is a popular venue where people usually gather to hear the City Hall clock tower chime in the New Year.
Helsinki is one of several cities in FINLAND to cancel its official New Year’s firework display.
In NORWAY, Oslo has also called off its official New Year’s fireworks show, and all indoor events have been cancelled and alcohol sales are banned until January 7.
SWEDEN’s traditional televised show from the Skansen open-air museum, which overlooks Stockholm, will go ahead as planned on New Year’s Eve – but without an audience.
After a recital of Alfred Lord Tennyson’s classic poem “Ring Out Wild Bells,” a fireworks display will begin at midnight.Stockholm has cancelled its official New Year’s celebration.
