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New Year's Eve Weekend in Los Angeles: Countdown to 2026

Welcome the new year with a 12pm slime party at the SlooMoo Institute. Photo by Elaina Bellis courtesy of BFA.com
Welcome the new year with a 12pm slime party at the SlooMoo Institute. Photo by Elaina Bellis courtesy of BFA.com
12/30/25 - By Toby B

Looking for the best things to do in Los Angeles on New Year's Eve weekend to ring in 2026? Here are some events and activities to add to your list for this holiday weekend.

Get out your party hats, folks; it's time to celebrate making it through another year. When celebrating New Year's Eve with little ones, a daytime countdown like Noon Year's Eve at the Discovery Cube LA is the way to go. The New Year's Eve fireworks of Marina del Rey's New Year's Eve Fireworks + Glow Party are timed to both 9pm and midnight. 

For me personally, nothing beats New Year's Eve at Disneyland for greeting the New Year with joy. And to start 2026 in the most Southern California way possible, grab a spot on Colorado Blvd to watch the Rose Parade usher in the new year with a cavalcade of flower-strewn floats: this year's Grand Marshall is LA's own Magic Johnson!  

Want even more fun things to do this weekend? Our Los Angeles Events Calendar is packed with great family activities every day of the week— and you can filter by age, location, or even free events!

Not on our newsletter list yet? Subscribe for free and get the best local family fun sent straight to your inbox. Already subscribed? Share it with a friend and start planning your weekend together!

 

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Count down the Noon Year with confetti, games, and a sparkling cider toast. Photo courtesy of the Southern California Children's Museum
Count down the Noon Year with confetti, games, and a sparkling cider toast. Photo courtesy of the Southern California Children's Museum

Best Things To Do New Year's Eve Weekend in Los Angeles

Bandfest

Pasadena
Monday & Tuesday, December 29 & 30, 2025
Bandfest features the prize-winning bands of the 2026 Rose Parade performing the field shows that make them famous. Three shows over two days give everyone a chance to see these talented musicians, dancers, and auxiliary performers in action. READ MORE

Noon Year’s Eve Party - Southern California Children's Museum

Pasadena
Wednesday, December 31, 2025
Kids can ring in 2026 long before bedtime at the Southern California Children's Museum. Get in the spirit of NYE prep by decorating a festive hat at the hat decorating station to wear for the big moment. Then gather for the countdown to Noon, which comes with a confetti release! Guests toast to the new year with sparkling cider and celebrate all the adventures to come. READ MORE

Noon Year's Eve (Monrovia)

Monrovia - FREE
Wednesday, December 31, 2025
Monrovia gets the party started early on New Year's Eve day. All ages are welcome to the free celebration in Library Park, where guests can enjoy family fun activities. The special Noon Year's Eve ceremony is at 12 noon sharp! READ MORE

Noon Year's Eve at the Discovery Cube LA

Sylmar
Wednesday, December 31, 2025
The Discovery Cube Los Angeles celebrates "midnight" at noon and 3pm, with a Noon Year's Eve apple cider/ ginger ale toast and a mega balloon drop. Guests can also get funky on the dance floor with a live music DJ and explore Discovery Cube's exhibits. Make it a family affair! READ MORE

New Year's Eve Slime Drop at Sloomoo Institute

Fairfax
Wednesday, December 31, 2025
Who wants to stay up until midnight, when the most epic countdown of the day happens at Sloomoo Institute? Gather at Lake Sloomoo at 11:59am to experience a confetti celebration with lightweight, iridescent, and crunchy bingsu beads. Everyone will be handed beads to toss in the air at the end of the countdown for New Year's Eve magic. Sloomoo Institute will also be open for plenty of slime-filled fun.  READ MORE

Pretend City New Year's Eve Around the World

Irvine
Wednesday, December 31, 2025
Pretend City rings in the New Year with its annual daytime celebration at noon. The fun includes festive activities such as a confetti countdown, photo ops, and a glow dance party.  Kids get to celebrate the new year at different times throughout the day as the sun travels across the different time zones! Space is limited; advance registration advised. READ MORE

New Year's Eve Fireworks + Glow Party (MDR)

Marina del Rey - FREE
Wednesday, December 31, 2025
Marina del Rey celebrates the new year with two fireworks displays, the first on east coast time, the second at our own midnight. READ MORE

Kids' New Year's Eve (Legoland)

Carlsbad
Wednesday, December 31, 2025
Kids can celebrate New Year's Eve without breaking curfew with a special early ball drop at Legoland. READ MORE

New Year's Eve Fireworks on the Waterfront

Long Beach - FREE
Wednesday, December 31, 2025
The skies over the Long Beach waterfront light up on New Year's Eve at midnight, with fireworks spouting off from the historic Queen Mary.  READ MORE

Gloria Molina Grand Park's New Year's Eve LA

DTLA - FREE
Wednesday, December 31, 2025
Angelenos can welcome 2026 at the West Coast’s largest free New Year’s Eve event. Highlights include live entertainment on two stages, food trucks, a snack alley, and interactive art installations. The experience is capped off with the park’s signature countdown-to-midnight light show projected onto iconic City Hall, celebrating 2026 and paying tribute to L.A.’s strength and resilience. READ MORE

New Year's Eve at Disneyland

Anaheim
Wednesday, December 31, 2025
What better place to ring in the new year than the Happiest Place on Earth? The highlight of New Year's Eve at Disneyland is the festive Fantasy in the Sky Fireworks Spectacular, which lights up the night at 9pm and 12am midnight.  READ MORE

EVE at Universal Studios Hollywood

Universal City
Wednesday, December 31, 2025
Universal Studios Hollywood celebrates New Year’s Eve with EVE. Guests can spend the day enjoying all the park has to offer (Super Nintendo World, anyone?) then continue into the night with music, dancing, photo ops, and a special countdown celebration at midnight as fireworks ring in 2026. READ MORE

2026 Rose Parade

Pasadena - FREE
Thursday, January 1, 2026
The 137th Tournament of Roses Parade blooms again, marching down Colorado Boulevard. This year's theme is “The Magic in Teamwork," and the Grand Marshall is truly magic: LA sports legend Earvin “Magic” Johnson! READ MORE

Floatfest: A Rose Parade Showcase of Floats

Pasadena
Thursday - Saturday, January 1 - 3, 2026
Floatfest offers a unique opportunity to get up close to the majestic beauty of the Rose Parade floats after they have made their appearances on Colorado Boulevard. READ MORE

Ventura Botanical Gardens: Free Admission on New Year's Day

Ventura - FREE
Thursday, January 1, 2026
This New Years families can stop and smell the roses, or perhaps an ornamental Eucalyptus. Ventura Botanical Gardens offers free admission on New Years Day. Leashed dogs are welcome. READ MORE

Marx Brothers New Year's Double Bill

Santa Monica
Thursday, January 1, 2026
The Aero always rings in the new year with Marx Bros. humor that never gets old. This year's wacky double bill is Duck Soup followed by Animal Crackers. The films are introduced by Groucho Marx's grandson, Andy Marx.  READ MORE

Disney on Ice: Let's Dance (Long Beach)

Long Beach
Thursday - Monday, January 1 - 4, 2026
It's a dance party on ice with favorite Disney characters in the latest Disney on Ice show. Moana, Anna and Elsa, Simba and Nala, Ariel, and many more move to the music in Disney on Ice: Let's Dance READ MORE

Free First Fridays at Kidspace

Pasadena - FREE
Friday, January 2, 2026
Families can enjoy a free night at Kidspace on the first Friday of the month. This museum regularly introduces new exhibits and celebrations, such as Butterfly Season in early spring.  READ MORE

Life-Sized Candyland

Burbank - FREE
Saturday January 3, 2026
Walk through a life-sized Candyland game while collecting candy along the way! After you journey to the candy castle, play some (normal sized) board games with friends and family.  READ MORE

Animal Kids Camp – Vet for a Day

Riverside
Saturday January 3, 2026
Kids who dream of becoming a veterinarian can get hands-on experience at the Mary S. Roberts Pet Adoption Center's Animal Kids Camps. These one day camps offer a hands-on STEM-based experience where kids ages 6-13 can explore the exciting world of veterinary care and animal welfare. READ MORE

Norwalk Las Posadas Celebration 2026

Norwalk - FREE
Saturday, January 3, 2026
Norwalk holds a traditional cultural celebration at the Norwalk Arts & Sports Complex. Guests are treated to tamales and hot chocolate. Other activities include live entertainment, a folkloric dance, craft stations, and the distribution of 500 candy bags, as well as night market vendors and food trucks. READ MORE

Burbank Rose Parade Float Viewing

Burbank - FREE
Saturday - Tuesday, January 3 - 6, 2026
Anyone who'd like one last peek at Burbank's entry in this year's Rose Parade can catch the community float in its final public viewing across from the Burbank Central Library, at the corner of Glenoaks and Olive. This year's float is titled "All Paws on Deck!" READ MORE

Festival of India at the Bowers Museum

Santa Ana - FREE
Sunday, January 4, 2026
January's free family festival at the Bowers is a celebration of Indian culture. The day includes complimentary face painting, art projects on Indian wood block painting and décor, Mandala color sheets, and Indian sweet sampling. READ MORE
Last chance for a sock skate at Kidspace! Photo courtesy of Kidspace Children's Museum
Last chance for a sock skate at Kidspace! Photo courtesy of Kidspace Children's Museum

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Be sure to see the last of the holiday lights before it's too late! Photo courtesy of Descanso Gardens
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Places featured in this article:

Southern California Children's Museum
Kidspace Children's Museum
Norwalk Arts & Sports Complex