New Year's Eve: 2017!

Buckle up dears, it's going to be the coldest New Year's Eve in 40 years (as if you needed an excuse to bail on Times Square and the endless parade of open bar champagne toasts that stalk their way across the city at midnight).

Don't bother learning any/more words to Auld Lang Syne, go ahead and RSVP "nope nope nope" to that prix fixe drink-a-thon in Williamsburg, this year we have a few ideas on how to spend a cozy New Years away from the masses, taking care of you-know-who (hint hint, it's you).

GET OUT: Gather a gang of like-minded friends and rent a cabin (with a fireplace, duh) upstate. A quick trip up the Hudson line (or we can rent you a car and come pick you up) feels worlds away from the teeming Manhattan streets. We discovered this gem up in the Catskills this fall that had its own very own pizza oven! Talk about cozy.

GET CLEAN: While everyone else is out partying, go get your detox on. The giant Korean mega-spa Spa Castle in Queens is the perfect place to scrub your cares (and a truly mind boggling quantity of dead skin cells) away. Open 8am-midnight, 365 days a year, you will never feel cleaner, warmer, or more luminous than after spending a few hours in their multiple saunas and pools. deVivre lifehack; snag a pair of exfoliating gloves and head to the gender-specific, mandatory-no-clothing bath lounge zone where you can treat yourself to a head-to-toe Korean style body scrub.

GET STOMPING: Instead of faceless hordes, find an intimate, rowdy party with some killer music and crash it. We always love the scene at Jalopy in Red Hook which is known for its barn-storming, boot-stomping, good-old-timey music, or if your vibe is less Carter Family and more Sly & The Family Stone, head around the corner to Sunny's for a New Years vinyl-only soul dance party.

GET READY FOR 2018: This year has been a real doozy. Get a jump on the new year by ringing out the old with a little self-care. No judgment for canceling all plans (and perhaps a little FOMO on our part). A long solo bath, with some splurgey goodies (like that random face mask you've been hoarding for months), and no one around but Ella on the radio? Sounds like a pretty good plan to us.

GET FESTIVE: If you actually feel like venturing out into the polar vortex and celebrating with the crowds, the energy at the fireworks at Grand Army Plaza/Prospect Park always makes it a wonderful way to do it up right.

However you choose to celebrate, we hope that you find peace and light in the coming year and wish you nothing but the best for 2018. Happy New Year!

Main image: Prospect Park Alliance