31 December 2026 · Brighton and the South Coast
New Year’s Eve 2026 in Brighton and on the South Coast
Brighton sees the year out in the way it does most things: in a Victorian ballroom on the seafront, on a dance floor in the North Laine, or over a long dinner by the sea. Here is every New Year’s Eve event for Thursday 31 December 2026 that we could confirm on the venues’ own pages on 12 November 2026, from Brighton along the coast to Eastbourne and Bournemouth.
Updated October 2026
Galas on the seafront: the Metropole and The Grand
The DoubleTree by Hilton Brighton Metropole’s annual New Year’s Eve gala takes Moulin Rouge, A Night in Paris, as its theme this year. It runs from 7.30pm to 1am in the hotel’s Regency Suite, with a welcome drink, a three-course dinner, half a bottle of house wine each, entertainment through the night and fizz at midnight. Tickets are £140 per person, booked through the hotel.
Next door, The Grand Brighton holds its New Year’s Eve Ball in the Empress Suite: a Champagne reception at 6.30pm, a four-course tasting menu at 7.30pm, then dancing to the soul, funk and pop of the band RadioAction until carriages at 2am. Guests sit at shared tables of ten to twelve, and the ball is for over-18s only. Tickets are £175 per person, with a £50 non-refundable deposit.
Our advice: both galas end a few steps from the beach; walk down to the shingle at midnight, when fireworks go up all along the beach.
DoubleTree Brighton Metropole: New Year’s Eve gala The Grand Brighton: New Year’s Eve Ball
New Year’s Eve dinner in the Lanes and at the Marina
For dinner rather than a ball, Hotel du Vin on Ship Street serves its seasonal à la carte and a specials menu in Bistro du Vin on New Year’s Eve, and Malmaison, overlooking the yachts at Brighton Marina, serves à la carte and cocktail menus in Chez Mal; both also sell New Year’s Eve stays with dinner. Neither prints its times or prices: book through the hotels’ own Christmas pages.
Hotel du Vin Brighton: Christmas and New Year Malmaison Brighton: Christmas and New Year
Comedy and club nights: Komedia
Komedia, on Gardner Street in the North Laine, fills all its rooms on New Year’s Eve. The Komedia Comedy Club’s New Year’s Eve Special starts at 7pm (doors 6pm). Later, Spellbound takes over the Studio Bar from 9pm, with the DJs Simon Price and Jayney BlamBlam playing goth, post-punk, New Romantic and New Wave from 1979 to 1989, while Boogie Wonderland, a 70s disco party, fills the basement from 10pm; both are for over-18s. Earlier in the day, at 1pm, Disco Kidz holds a New Year’s Eve party for children.
Our advice: Komedia sells a combined ticket for the comedy, a meal and a club night, which is the easiest way to spend the whole night in one place.
Komedia: New Year’s Eve comedy special Komedia: Spellbound Komedia: Boogie Wonderland Komedia: Disco Kidz
Along the coast: Eastbourne, Chichester, Southampton and Bournemouth
The grandest New Year on the Sussex coast is at the Grand Hotel Eastbourne, which offers three. The Garden Room Gala is a two-night stay from 30 December with a Champagne reception, a four-course gala dinner and live music, in black tie; the Mirabelle Celebration is a vintage Champagne reception and five-course dinner, also black tie (dinner only £195); and the Gatsby Soirée is a 1920s party with three courses, the Gatsby Band and a DJ, a midnight Champagne toast and carriages at 1am, in vintage glamour (£160 per adult).
In Chichester, the Harbour Hotel, in the former Ship Hotel, serves a five-course dinner with a glass of prosecco and a jazz trio from 7.30pm, then live music and a DJ in the bar (£124). In Southampton, the Harbour Hotel’s rooftop HarBAR on 6th, above the Ocean Village marina, has a three-course sharing dinner from 7pm and a party with its resident DJ from 9pm (£140).
In Bournemouth, the Pavilion Ballroom holds a New Year’s Eve Gala Dinner Dance from 6.30pm, with a four-course dinner and the seven-piece Boogie Bumpers, then a DJ (£86, over-18s, smart casual), and Key West, on Bournemouth Pier, celebrates with a three-course dinner, an ABBA tribute and Prosecco at 11.30pm, from 6pm to midnight (£138).
Our advice: the last trains along the coast run early on New Year’s Eve; book a room where you dance, or a taxi home in advance.
Grand Hotel Eastbourne: New Year Harbour Hotel Chichester: New Year’s Eve Harbour Hotel Southampton: HarBAR on 6th Bournemouth Pavilion: New Year’s Eve Gala Bournemouth Pier: New Year’s Eve with ABBA
Fireworks and what is still to come
Brighton has no official public fireworks display on New Year’s Eve; the council notes only that fireworks may be let off until 1am that night, so the beach between the piers sees plenty of private ones. When we checked, the British Airways i360, Concorde 2, Chalk, Patterns, the Palace Pier, Brighton Dome and the Harbour Hotel Brighton had not yet announced New Year’s Eve 2026 events; we will add them as they are confirmed.
Our advice: New Year’s Day is for the sea. Walk the seafront from the Palace Pier to Hove Lawns, and finish with a long lunch in Hove.
Questions and answers
Are there fireworks in Brighton on New Year’s Eve 2026?
There is no official public display: Brighton & Hove City Council has not announced one, and notes only that fireworks may be let off until 1am on New Year’s Eve. Many people gather on the beach between the piers at midnight.
What is the Moulin Rouge gala at the Brighton Metropole?
The DoubleTree by Hilton Brighton Metropole’s New Year’s Eve gala for 2026, Moulin Rouge, A Night in Paris: 7.30pm to 1am on 31 December in the Regency Suite, with a welcome drink, three-course dinner, half a bottle of house wine, entertainment and fizz at midnight, at £140 per person.
Where can I go out on New Year’s Eve 2026 in Brighton?
The Grand Brighton’s New Year’s Eve Ball (£175, over-18s), the Metropole’s Moulin Rouge gala (£140), and Komedia’s comedy special and club nights (Spellbound in the Studio Bar, Boogie Wonderland in the basement); Hotel du Vin and Malmaison serve New Year’s Eve dinners.
Every event from the venue’s own page or its own booking page (DoubleTree by Hilton Brighton Metropole, grandbrighton.co.uk, hotelduvin.com, malmaison.com, komedia.co.uk, grandeastbourne.com, harbourhotels.co.uk, bournemouthpavilion.co.uk, Bournemouth Pier), checked 12 November 2026. Prices are as each venue prints them. Check before you book.