As in much of the world, New Year’s Eve in Europe is synonymous with clinking champagne glasses, displays of fireworks and midnight embraces. As dawn breaks on the first day of the New Year, cities, regions and nations break out a number of fun traditions uniquely their own, and travelers passing through are more than welcome to get in on the acts too.

Scheveningen, Netherlands: This North Sea resort city just outside The Hague is the site of the country’s largest gathering of swimmers eager to embrace the New Year with an invigorating dip in sea water that’s usually barely above the freezing mark at the start of January. In a tradition known as Nieuwjaarsduik, thousands will gather to take to the icy waters, as spectators and supporters applaud their bravery. This particular gathering has a corporate sponsor, the Unox food brand. This year’s dive takes place at the Beelden aan Zee stretch of coast. Mandatory registration and payment of the four-euro entry fee kicks off at 10:30 a.m., and the collective warm-up set to music starts at 11:45 a.m. before the plunge at noon. It’s traditional to warm up with the cup of hot pea soup provided thereafter. Locker rental is available at the APCOA parking Nieuwe Parklaan. All participants will receive a Unox hat to remind them of their day. Other popular North Sea beaches for partaking in this ritual include Zandvoort, Bloemendaal, Wijk aan Zee, Egmond aan Zee and Bergen aan Zee. Online: tinyurl.com/2aukp9tx

Rome, Italy: For many devout Catholics, the traditional way to start the New Year is by participating in the Holy Mass led by the Pope at 10 a.m.; this is followed by the Angelus, a devotion commemorating the Incarnation of Christ, in St. Peter’s Square at noon. The year 2025 has been designated as a Jubilee Year for the Catholic Church, with “Pilgrims of Hope” as its theme. Jubilee Years, which occur just once every 25 years, feature the opening of a Holy Door in St. Peter’s Basilica, which will remain open throughout the year. Authorities are projecting as many as 35 million visitors could make a pilgrimage to Rome during this special year.

By mid-afternoon on New Year’s Day, the mood takes on a lighter tone in the form of a parade. Folk groups, marching bands and cheerleaders, including many U.S. youth and high school groups, make their way between the Piazza del Popolo and Piazza di Spagna. The parade gets underway at 3:30 p.m. Entry is free. Online: romeparade.com

London: The city’s annual New Year’s Day Parade is a grandiose affair packed with upbeat music and fabulous costumes. Among this year’s headlining celebrities are the BBC Radio 1 presenter pair Rickie and Melvin and pop icon Peter Andre. Other confirmed acts include choral groups, cheerleading ensembles, marching bands, a samba school and a pipe band. Each of London’s 31 boroughs, along with the city of Westminster, are invited to take part in the parade with entries characteristic to their identities, making the event a showcase of the city’s diversity. The winning borough receives a sizable pot of funding for some of its charities. The parade gets underway at noon from Piccadilly and passes through Regents Street, St James, Pall Mall, Trafalgar Square and Whitehall before finishing at Westminster at about 3:30 p.m. Entry to the parade is free; a few VIP tickets were left at the time of this writing; these were going for 65 UK pounds, or about $81.75. Online: lnydp.com

Edinburgh, Scotland: Hogmanay, the Scottish expression for the last day of the year or New Year’s Eve, was long been regarded as the country’s most important winter holiday. Edinburgh’s present-day Hogmanay Festival dates back to 1993 and has evolved to become one of the world’s most iconic outdoor celebrations of the shift to a New Year, and here, the partying carries on for three days or longer. Following fireworks, a torchlight procession, headliner concert and culture trail across the city, many locals and tourists awake to the New Year with the unofficial but still wildly popular Loony Dook, in which people plunge into the icy waters of the Firth of Forth. The event’s usual venue is at the Boathouse Steps, High Street, South Queensferry. To accommodate this year’s tide conditions, the first entrants will be entering the waters at around 1:30 p.m. The event is free to enter, and participants are encouraged to show up in costume and, if desired, raise funds for their charity of choice.

Other things to do on New Year’s Day include attending concerts such as the one given by Bella McNab’s Dance Band, featuring a caller and some of Scotland’s top fiddlers, at the Portobello Town Hall from 12:30 p.m., or taking in any one of a number of singer-songwriters, jazz or classical performers; tickets are required for these events. Those with children as their co-travelers can check out Sprogmanay, an afternoon featuring music, street theater, arts and crafts and a Unicorn Dance Party. These all-ages friendly festivities take place 2 p.m.-7 p.m. at the National Museum of Scotland on Chambers Street; entry is free and no tickets are required. A traditional Family Ceilidh takes place at the nearby Assembly Roxy; entry to this is also free. Online: edwinterfest.com/hogmanay