New Year Bucket List Ideas

Five things to do in the year ahead, from New Year's Eve to next December, each with a first step.

New Year Bucket List Ideas

Show all 100
  1. Start a jar of good moments to empty next New Year's EveFree. A jar, a pad and a pen by the door; add one slip of paper a week.
  2. Clear your inbox to zero once, at the start of the yearFree. Archive everything older than December and unsubscribe from ten senders.
  3. Learn one recipe by heart every monthSmall cost. Cook it three times in its month, the third time without the page.
  4. Pick a word of the week, 52 times, and use it at dinnerFree. Write it on the fridge on Monday; whoever uses it first wins.
  5. Pick one word for the year and put it where you see itFree. Write three candidates, sleep on them and tape the winner inside a cupboard door.

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How it works

These New Year bucket list ideas are 100 things to do in the year ahead: watch the old year's last sunset, finish a book every month, walk every street near home.

Read the full guide

Five groups, in the order of the year

On New Year's Eve, In the first week, One a month, All year long and Done by December hold 20 ideas each. One a month is built on twelves: twelve museums in twelve months, twelve letters by hand, twelve countries cooked through one at a time.

Things to do, not resolutions

These yearly bucket list ideas are each one thing to do by a date, so every card can be ticked. A line opens with the cost in words: Free, Small cost or Save up. Then comes the first step, often something to do in January.

Questions and answers

What are good New Year's bucket list ideas?

Ones with a date built in: seal a time capsule to open next New Year's Eve, mark everyone's height on a door frame on January 1, or make next year's calendar from this year's photos, one picture chosen at the end of each month.

What are New Year's Eve bucket list ideas for a night at home?

The On New Year's Eve group has 20. Play a board game that spans midnight, cook breakfast at five past midnight, bang pots on the doorstep, or serve toshikoshi soba, the noodle dish Japan eats on New Year's Eve.

What are bucket list ideas for this year that cost nothing?

68 cards are marked Free, such as be awake for sunrise on New Year's Day, photograph one tree twelve times on the first of each month and know everyone on your street by name by December. Another 25 carry a small cost.

Which bucket list ideas for the year can a family do together?

56 cards are tagged With kids: let a child stay up to see midnight for the first time, take the kids to a new playground each month, or write down every funny thing they say and print it for them in December.

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All 100 ideas

On New Year's Eve 20

  • Bang pots on the doorstep at midnight Free. Hand out saucepans and wooden spoons at two minutes to twelve.
  • Call someone whose new year starts before yours Free. Work out their midnight in your time and ring five minutes after it.
  • Cook breakfast at five past midnight Small cost. Pancakes or eggs; lay everything out before eleven.
  • Count down with a city where midnight comes early Free. Find a city whose midnight falls in your evening and watch its fireworks live.
  • Dance to one song from each month of your year Free. Build the twelve-song playlist in the afternoon.
  • Go first-footing at a friend's door after midnight Small cost. In Scottish custom the first guest of the year brings good luck. Take a small gift.
  • Host a potluck of each guest's best dish of the year Small cost. Send the invitation by mid-December with that one rule.
  • Learn the full Auld Lang Syne, not only the chorus Free. Print every verse and hand the sheets out at five to midnight.
  • Let a child stay up to see midnight for the first time Free. Plan a nap in the afternoon and a game for the last hour.
  • Open an hourly envelope all through December 31 Free. Put a small game or treat in each of twelve envelopes, numbered from noon on.
  • Play a board game that spans midnight on December 31 Free. Deal the first turn at eleven and stop the clock for the countdown.
  • Put on your best clothes for a night in on December 31 Free. Lay the table as if for guests and light it the same way.
  • Seal a letter to your future self to open next December 31 Free. Say what you hope for and what worries you, then date the envelope.
  • Seal a time capsule to open next New Year's Eve Free. A shoebox, a note from each person, and tape across the lid.
  • Serve toshikoshi soba, Japan's year-end noodle dish Small cost. Japan eats it on New Year's Eve. Buy dried soba and make a simple broth.
  • Stand outside at midnight and listen to the town Free. Step out at one minute to twelve and say nothing until the noise dies down.
  • Take the same group photo at five to midnight each year Free. Same pose every time; prop the phone on a shelf and set the timer.
  • Watch the last sunset of the year Free. Look up the time, choose a spot that faces west and get there early.
  • Watch the midnight fireworks from a hill Free. Scout the hill in daylight and bring a blanket and a hot drink.
  • Write down twelve good things from the year, one a month Free. Scroll your photos month by month to jog your memory.

In the first week 20

  • Be awake for sunrise on New Year's Day Free. Look up the time the night before and set the alarm for half an hour ahead.
  • Clear your inbox to zero once, at the start of the year Free. Archive everything older than December and unsubscribe from ten senders.
  • Cook a recipe you have never tried on the first Sunday Small cost. Choose it on New Year's Day and shop for it that week.
  • Finish the first book of the year in the first week Free from the library. Choose a short one and reserve it before the holidays.
  • Go for a walk on New Year's morning Free. Decide the route the day before and go whatever the weather.
  • Mark everyone's height on a door frame on January 1 Free. A pencil, a ruler laid flat on the head and the date beside each mark.
  • Phone three people in the first week, not text Free. Choose them on New Year's Day and call one every other evening.
  • Pick one word for the year and put it where you see it Free. Write three candidates, sleep on them and tape the winner inside a cupboard door.
  • Plan the whole year's days off in one sitting Free. Open the calendar, mark the public holidays and book the first break now.
  • Print the best twenty photos of last year Small cost for prints. Choose them on the first weekend, while the year is fresh.
  • See the Quadrantids, the meteor shower of early January Free. The peak is short. Look up this year's night and hour, and go somewhere dark.
  • Send a thank-you note for every present in the first week Small cost for stamps. Work from the list of who gave what, three notes a night.
  • Sign up for a class that starts in January Save up for the fee. Choose one evening class and pay before you can change your mind.
  • Start a jar of good moments to empty next New Year's Eve Free. A jar, a pad and a pen by the door; add one slip of paper a week.
  • Start a one-line-a-day diary on January 1 Small cost. Keep the notebook on your pillow so you cannot get into bed without it.
  • Take a January 1 portrait to compare in December Free. Same wall, same time of day; save it in an album named for the year.
  • Take down the decorations and label every box Free. Photograph the tree first and tape the photo to the box of ornaments.
  • Write a list of twelve small things, one for each month Free. Each must be doable in a day. Pin the list to the fridge.
  • Write the year's birthdays into a fresh calendar Free. Do it on New Year's Day and add a reminder one week before each.
  • Write twelve things to look forward to on a new calendar Small cost. Put one date in each month before January is out.

One a month 20

  • Add a new song to what you can play, each month Free on an instrument you own. Choose January's song and play it for someone on the 31st.
  • Cook your way through twelve countries, one a month Small cost. Write the countries on slips of paper and draw January's tonight.
  • Do one thing each month you have never done before Free if you choose it so. Write down the first three today.
  • Finish a book in every month of the year Free from the library. Choose January's now and let each book suggest the next.
  • Finish one small house repair a month Small cost. Walk the house with a notepad and rank twelve jobs by how much they annoy you.
  • Give away one bag of things at the end of each month Free. Hang an empty bag on a door handle on the first of the month.
  • Go to twelve museums in twelve months Small cost. List the twelve nearest and start with the smallest.
  • Have people over for dinner once a month Small cost. Fix the second Saturday and invite January's guests today.
  • Learn one recipe by heart every month Small cost. Cook it three times in its month, the third time without the page.
  • Meet one friend a month you rarely see Free. Write twelve names now and message January's person today.
  • Photograph one tree twelve times, on the first of each month Free. Choose a tree you pass often and stand on the same spot each time.
  • Play a new board game each month with the same group Free if you borrow. Each person hosts once and brings a game the rest have not played.
  • See one live event a month Save up for the tickets. A play, a game, a concert, a talk; book January's first.
  • Take a monthly day trip to a town you have never stopped in Small cost. Circle twelve places on a map and go to the nearest one first.
  • Take the kids to a new playground each month Free. Mark twelve on a map and let the children vote on the order.
  • Try a new place to eat each month and rank them in December Save up for twelve meals. Ask a different friend to choose each one.
  • Walk a different trail each month Free. List twelve within reach and save the muddy ones for the dry months.
  • Watch every full moon of the year rise Free. Write the dates on the calendar in January and look up moonrise for your town.
  • Watch one classic film a month you always meant to see Free from the library. Write all twelve titles down in January.
  • Write to twelve people by hand, one letter a month Small cost for stamps. List the twelve names and mail the first by January 31.

All year long 20

  • Add one song a week to a playlist of your year Free. Every Sunday night add the song you played most that week.
  • Bring home one leaf, shell or stone from every outing Free. A shoebox with the year on the lid; write the place on each find.
  • Cook every recipe in one cookbook by December Free if you own the book. Pencil the date beside each recipe as you make it.
  • Eat Sunday dinner at the table, screens off, all year Free. Start this Sunday; whoever cooks does not wash up.
  • Film one second a day and join the clips in December Free. Save each clip to one album as you go.
  • Go car-free one weekday every week of the year Free. Choose the day with the simplest plans and work out the bus or the walk.
  • Keep a diary of firsts: first frost, first blossom Free. A notebook by the back door; write the date and what you saw.
  • Keep a done list beside your to-do list all year Free. Each Friday write what you finished; read all 52 entries in December.
  • Keep a list of every book you finish this year Free. Start a note on January 1 with the title and one line about each.
  • Keep each month's ticket stubs in its own envelope Free. Twelve labeled envelopes in a drawer by the door.
  • Mail a postcard every week of the year Save up for 52 stamps. Buy the cards in one go and keep them by the coffee.
  • Mail every birthday card on time for a whole year Small cost for cards and stamps. Buy a box in January and address them by month.
  • Pick a word of the week, 52 times, and use it at dinner Free. Write it on the fridge on Monday; whoever uses it first wins.
  • Practice a language for ten minutes every day of the year Free with a library course. Tie it to breakfast so it has a fixed slot.
  • Rate every film you see this year out of ten Free. Keep one running list and read it back on New Year's Eve.
  • Read a chapter aloud to someone each week, all year Free. Fix Sunday evening for it and let the listener choose the book.
  • Say yes each week to one invitation you would turn down Free. Start with the next one that arrives, whatever it is.
  • Shoot a photo a day, January 1 to December 31 Free. Set a daily alarm for a time when you are usually awake and idle.
  • Sketch one small object a day, January to December Small cost. A pocket sketchbook and a pen; five minutes before you look at your phone.
  • Write down every funny thing the kids say this year Free. A dated note on your phone; print it for them in December.

Done by December 20

  • Book the trip you keep putting off, and go this year Save up. Put the dates on the calendar in January; a date is what makes it a trip.
  • Complete a project you abandoned, by December Free. Find it this weekend and stick a note on it with the next small step.
  • Cover every street of your neighborhood on foot this year Free. Print a map and color in each street as you finish it.
  • Finish one organized walk, run or ride this year Save up for the entry fee. Pick an event in the fall so you have the year to get ready.
  • Get one photo of the whole family, printed and framed Small cost. Name the date at the first gathering of the year.
  • Get through the thickest book you own by December Free. Divide its pages by 52 and read one week's share each Sunday.
  • Have everyone you love over for a meal by December Save up for the food. Write the names in January and tick them off through the year.
  • Know everyone on your street by name by December Free. Start with the door you know least; a wave and your own name is enough.
  • Learn four poems by heart, one each season Free. Choose winter's poem now and say it aloud on a walk.
  • Learn one piece of music to play on New Year's Eve Free on an instrument you own. Choose a piece a little past your reach.
  • Learn one skill your grandparents had Small cost. Ask what they made, mended or grew, and start with that.
  • Learn to name ten birds you can see from your window Free. Borrow a field guide and start with the ones at the nearest feeder.
  • Make next year's calendar from this year's photos Small cost. Choose one photo at the end of each month and order the print in November.
  • Make one gift by hand to give at the end of the year Small cost. A scarf, a shelf, a photo album; start by March.
  • Raise a crop from seed to plate before the year is out Small cost. Tomatoes or beans in a pot; sow when the packet says.
  • See the sight near home that visitors come for Small cost. Ask what a tourist does first in your region and book a weekend before June.
  • Set foot in a county or state that is new to you this year Small cost. Find the nearest one on a map and plan a day there.
  • Teach someone one thing you know before the year ends Free. Offer it to a child, a neighbor or a colleague and set the first lesson.
  • Visit every park in your town before the year ends Free. Find the list on the town's website and tick them off on the fridge.
  • Visit one place in all four seasons Free. Choose a wood, a beach or a hill and go once each season.