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New Year’s Eve in New Jersey does not have to mean a long drive into the city and a longer wait for a train home. Some of the best celebrations in the state happen right here in Morris County and across North Jersey, and they run the full range: a walkable arts festival in the middle of downtown Morristown, quiet prix fixe dinners, countdowns timed for kids who will never make it to midnight, and open skate sessions on New Year’s Day.
Here is where to spend it, and how to plan it before the good tables and the good tickets are gone.
First Night Morris County, Morristown
This is the one to know about. First Night Morris County turns downtown Morristown into a walkable festival on December 31, running from late afternoon to midnight across a long list of indoor venues.
What makes it work for almost anybody: it is an alcohol free and substance free celebration of arts and culture, run by a nonprofit, and the lineup regularly covers jazz, classical, reggae, Broadway, dance, theater, comedy, historical presentations, a film festival and a full slate of children’s programming. Families, couples and groups all use the same button to move between venues and build their own night.
Admission works on a button system rather than per show tickets, and proceeds go back into year round community programming. Mayo Performing Arts Center is one of the anchor venues, so several of the bigger First Night performances land on the MPAC stage.
Buttons, pricing and the full venue map go up each fall at firstnightmorris.org.
If you have kids who will not make it to midnight
The trick every parent in Morris County eventually learns is that the countdown does not have to happen at midnight. Noon Year’s Eve events, where the ball drops at 12 in the afternoon, run at museums, libraries and children’s centers across North Jersey, and they are usually free or close to it.
First Night’s children’s programming also starts in the late afternoon, which makes it one of the few options where the whole family gets a real night out and everyone is still home before midnight.
Dinner in Morris County
Morristown, Denville, Madison, Chatham and Chester all put out prix fixe menus for the night, and the good rooms book out early. Two rules that hold every year: reserve by mid December, and check whether the restaurant is running one seating or two, because an early seating at a Morristown spot pairs perfectly with First Night afterward.
For where to start, see our guide to where to eat in Morris County, which breaks the whole county down town by town and craving by craving.
Skating, bowling and getting outside
Mennen Arena in Morristown, run by the Morris County Park Commission, holds public skate sessions through the holiday week, and the New Year’s Day session is a long standing local tradition for anyone who wants to start the year moving instead of recovering. Check the current public skating schedule at morrisparks.net before you go, since holiday week hours differ from the normal schedule.
Bowling alleys and family entertainment centers across the county run their own countdown packages, usually with a set time block, food and an early ball drop for younger kids.
Live music and shows
Mayo Performing Arts Center in Morristown programs through the holiday season and into New Year’s Eve, and is one of the First Night anchor venues. Smaller rooms and breweries around the county book local bands for the night, and those tend to be the last tickets still available in the final week of December.
Making the night actually work
- Book the table before you book anything else. Restaurants fill faster than events.
- Park once. Downtown Morristown is walkable, and First Night is built around moving between venues on foot, so pick a garage and leave the car there.
- Check the weather, then check it again. Most of the Morris County options are indoors, which is the reason they hold up in a bad year.
- Plan the ride home first. Decide who is driving or which ride service you are using before the night starts, not at 12:15.
Keep planning the season
If you are still working through the holidays, our other guides cover the rest of it: Christmas lights in NJ, Christmas markets in NJ, the Polar Express train ride in NJ and where to cut your own Christmas tree in NJ.
New Year’s Eve in NJ: common questions
What is there to do on New Year’s Eve in New Jersey?
The largest option in North Jersey is First Night Morris County in downtown Morristown, an alcohol free arts festival spread across a long list of venues. Beyond that, Morris County towns run prix fixe dinners, Noon Year’s Eve countdowns for families, public ice skating at Mennen Arena and live music at venues across the county.
Is First Night Morris County family friendly?
Yes. It is alcohol free and substance free, and it runs children’s programming alongside the adult performances, starting in the late afternoon.
Where can you go for New Year’s Eve in NJ with kids?
Noon Year’s Eve events at museums and libraries drop the ball at midday instead of midnight, and First Night’s children’s programming starts in the late afternoon. Bowling alleys and family entertainment centers also run early countdown packages.
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