Why you should: It's fun. Why you shouldn't: It's nonsense.

Pigs

In the Swiss ski resort of Klosters, the first day of January is celebrated with a piglet race in which 10 tiny porkers sprint through the snow for the enviable prize of being spared from the sausage factory. The winner is usually adopted as a town mascot for the year.

Why you should: Piglets! So cute! Why you shouldn't: The losers get eaten.

Chairs

Chairs at a party aren't exactly a radical innovation, but in Denmark they are typically used as a launching pad for people who believe that by leaping into the New Year they will banish malevolent spirits.

Why you should: You can claim your new year exercise regime has started early. Why you shouldn't: You'll need the icy water again to bathe those twisted ankles.

Dead birds

Sailors love a good party, but are notoriously superstitious souls, believing that it is unlucky to begin a voyage on December 31. Maritime lore also suggests that feathers plucked from a wren slain on New Year's Day can protect seafarers from dying in a shipwreck.

Why you should: You polished off those piglets, so a wren isn't going to hurt your conscience. Why you shouldn't: Nothing kills a party like a dead bird.

Bed

Britain has a certain reputation when it comes to New Year's Eve, particularly in Scotland where Hogmanay celebrations -- climaxing in a rendition of the traditional Scottish song "Auld Lang Syne" -- can border on the bacchanalian. So it is perhaps a surprise to discover that, according to a survey conducted last year, over a third of Britons prefer to be tucked up in bed on the stroke of midnight.

Why you should: You'll avoid the most overrated party of the year. Why you shouldn't: Champagne corks, fireworks and ABBA will keep you awake anyway.