Featuring events going down at The Night Cat, The Retreat, Moon Dog World and more.
This year – more so than any other – we all deserve a big night of celebration for New Year’s Eve. If you’re finding yourself stunned at what you’ve survived this year and pondering how on earth we got here, you’re not alone.
We’re probably all feeling a strange sense of cognitive dissonance, dealing with grief and trepidation as well as relief and an urge to exercise our newfound freedom.
Never before have we been as cognisant of our position on the knife-edge of comfort and catastrophe as we are at the close of 2020. No one knows what 2021 will bring, we may as well party.
And with our list of Melbourne’s best NYE events, a top-notch party is exactly what you’ll be in for.
New Year’s Eve feat. Cookin’ on 3 Burners
If there’s one venue you can trust to make all our funky dreams come true, it’s The Night Cat and this year they’re bringing us a mix of sweet soul and dirty funk to help you ring in the New Year with style. You’ll hear Australian trio Cookin’ on 3 Burners play live while DJ Logan Gibson will be spinning tunes behind the decks.
Tix are $40 via Eventbrite.
NYE at The Retreat
The venue that’s always got your back, The Retreat is proving itself to be just as reliable as ever with its own New Year’s Eve celebration. Kicking off at 2pm, you can expect tunes in the beer garden from MzRizk (Boogie Beat Suite), Jordan Oakley (Underground Love), and DJ Jeff Leppard among others.
She’s free entry. Find out more here.
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New Year’s Eve at The Mill House
Welcome 2021 at The Mill House by getting in on all the CBD action and partying like it’s 2019 on their open dancefloor. This ticketed event will have you enjoying bottomless booze until midnight and Melbourne’s best DJs until 4am.
With a glass of sparkling on arrival included in the ticket price, you’ll be well-primed for the countdown.
Tix from $99 via Eventbrite.
NYE Lei Down Party
Get lei’d this New Year’s Eve at Welcome to Thornbury’s Hawaiian-inspired party boasting four hours of bottomless booze, dinner from one of their fabulous food trucks, party favours, DJs and more.
Whether you’re channelling Scomo by ignoring the firestorm of a year 2020 was, or commemorating the many holidays lost to 2020, pop on a Hawaiian shirt and get to it on the venue’s COVID-safe dancefloor.
Tix from $99 via Eventbrite.
Moon Dog World NYE Party
Featuring KLP, MzRizk, Melburnerz, and a DJ set from both Close Counters and Total Giovanni, Moon Dog World is set to go off this New Year’s Eve.
Open for lunch from 11:45am with Fizzer slushies all day, $15 Fizzer jugs between 5pm and 7pm, and the aforementioned DJs providing you with bangers from 5pm to 2am, Moon Dog World is the place to be for a fun-filled New Year’s.
Find out more here.
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New Year Street Feasts
For a hassle-free New Year’s Eve, get involved in the outdoor dining program presented by the City of Melbourne, Victorian government, and Melbourne Food & Wine Festival.
Enjoy your street feast from a range of time-honoured favourites and cutting edge kitchens thanks to 11 new outdoor dining precincts. And keep your ear out for special playlists from Melbourne artists, Client Liaison, Kaiit, Cut Copy DJs and Alice Ivy.
Book your table via the Melbourne Food and Wine website.
Make Emo Great Again
This emo and pop-punk party at Stay Gold is giving you the space to indulge your guilty pleasures and enjoy the nostalgia of your favourite 2000s emo and pop-punk bangers. Doors open at 9pm and you can expect DJ Saantana Lee Rose to be throwing out hits from My Chemical Romance, Fall Out Boy, and so many more.
Tickets from $23 via Eventbrite.
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