Skip Navigation

New Year's Traditions in Puerto Rico


Puerto Ricans welcome the New Year surrounded by family and friends. Traditional food is served: arroz con gandules, roasted pig, pasteles, coquito, pitorro, rice pudding or tembleque.

Puerto Rico has plenty of customs and superstitions for welcoming the new year. Some are meant to leave behind the troubles of the old year, while others invite prosperity, good fortune, and positive energy into the year ahead. Traditions vary from family to family, but these are some of the customs associated with Despedida de Año in Puerto Rico.

Throwing Water Out the Window
Did you know that in Puerto Rico people throw a bucket of water out of their windows to drive away evil spirits?

Eating 12 Grapes at Midnight
Another popular tradition that originates from Spain is to eat 12 grapes close to midnight, during the last 12 seconds of the ending year. The tradition consists of eating a grape with each strike of the clock bell. It is believed that if you finish eating all grapes this will lead to a year of prosperity.

Cleaning the House
For some families, preparing for the new year includes cleaning the home, symbolically clearing away the old year's negativity and beginning January with a clean space.

Fireworks and Noise
At midnight, neighborhoods across the island can erupt with fireworks, music, horns, and celebration as people welcome the new year.

Backward Into the Waves
Celebrating near the beach? Another tradition is to enter or fall backward into the breaking waves as midnight arrives, a ritual associated with leaving bad spirits behind and welcoming good fortune in the new year.

Sprinkling Sugar Outside the House
Some families sprinkle sugar outside their homes to attract good luck and begin the new year on a sweet note. An older Puerto Rican description of the custom explains it as a way of "alejar la salazón"—driving away bad luck while welcoming sweeter fortune.

New Year's customs vary widely from family to family. Some are practiced faithfully every year, others are remembered from earlier generations, and some are simply enjoyed as fun superstitions associated with bringing good fortune into the new year.





Did You Know?

The judicial system is based on civil law with influences from Spanish legal traditions and U.S. common law.