Focus Live: With Whangamata being voted NZ’s best beach, Mayor Sandra Goudie tells us how the small town handles and thrives with the booming visitor numbers to bring in the New Year.
Thousands of people have flocked to holiday hotspots across the country to sing in the New Year.
Party revellers at Rhythm & Vines in Gisborne are enjoying a line-up that includes Australian DJ Alison Wonderland, New Zealand band Drax Project and Kiwi legend Dave Dobbyn.
Shapeshifter is headlining the action at Joe's Farm in Whangamata, where partygoers can also see Sachi, JessB, The Upbeats, Tiki Taane and the Sunshine Sound System.
Those partying at Northern Bass in Mangawhai are seeing in New Year with Goldie on the main stage, followed by Camo & Krooked.
In Tauranga's four family-friendly community events filled up for the balmy evening expected.
Friends Even Chen, left, and Julian Chen get ready for New Year's Eve at the SkyCity street party on Federal Street. Photo / Jason Oxenham
In the CBD, picnickers have lined The Strand waterfront, nabbing the best spots for the 9.30pm and midnight fireworks displays.
Families have flocked to the Rotorua lakefront for the free Glo Festival, with entertainment through to midnight.
In Napier several thousand people had by 8.30pm already claimed their places for a night of family-friendly entertainment and celebration in and around the Marine Parade Soundshell.
Bands were playing and the night would culminate in new Mayor Kirsten Wise's first ringing of the Veronica Bell, from the HMS Veronica which provided Napier's first communication with the outside World after the Hawke's Bay Earthquake on February 3, 1931.
Several thousand people are enjoying a night of family-friendly entertainment and celebration in and around the Marine Parade Soundshell. Photo / NZME
The symbolic ringing-in of the New Year would be followed by a fireworks display.
A liquor ban was in place, a far-cry from the days of the disorder which once resulted in the scrapping of civic New Year's Eve celebration on the Parade.
It has, however, become the centre Hawke's Bay celebration since being revived on the night of December 31, 1999, to welcome the 21 century, with many on the East Coast and in Hawke's Bay surviving the night to be among the first in the World to witness the first sunrise of the third millennium.
The annual celebration attracts crowds upwards of 20,000 people stretching several hundred metres from the Soundshell, with streets having been closed to traffic for several blocks, the liquor ban in place throughout except within licensed premises.
Down south in Wanaka at Rhythm & Alps Jon Hopkins will take the stage at 12.02am.
In Christchurch a family-friendly event is being held at North Hagley Park.
A beautiful night is expected for New Year's Eve, with mild temperatures and clear skies.
Conditions are expected to be hot and dry tomorrow as a large ridge of high pressure off the West Coast and a warm front approaches the South Island to start 2020.
MetService predicts temperatures will be well above average for almost every major centre around the country for this time of year.
A police spokesperson said police work closely with local councils and other partner agencies to ensure that New Year's Eve events are safe and enjoyed by all.
Police do not comment on specific resourcing numbers for operational reasons, however additional staff will be available where and when required, the spokesperson said.
"As with previous years, our aim is to reduce alcohol-related harm and ensure our communities enjoy positive New Year's Eve celebrations."
