Guatemala sees the year out on Thursday, December 31, 2026, with the afternoon off by law and fireworks at midnight. In Antigua, the celebration gathers in the Plaza Mayor, where for the arrival of 2026 the municipality announced a free party from 11:00 PM; elsewhere, as Prensa Libre puts it, the new year is awaited from the night of the 31st at home or at an event, and hotels and restaurants sell dinner-and-countdown tickets.
Quick summary: Dec 31, 2026 (Thursday): paid holiday from 12:00. Jan 1, 2027 (Friday): full holiday (Labor Code Art. 127). Antigua: free municipal party in the Plaza Mayor from 11 PM with a DJ and fireworks at midnight for the arrival of 2026; INGUAT expected more than 374,000 people to pass through the city between late December and January. After the Calle del Arco fire (celebrations for 2019), the council temporarily banned sky lanterns and granadas. Banned by national law: silbadores and canchinflines. Midnight in Guatemala = midnight Central, 1 AM Eastern, 10 PM Pacific. The 2026-27 programmes had not been announced when we searched on September 25, 2026.
The holiday: what the law gives you
| 2026-27 | Article 127, Código de Trabajo | |
|---|---|---|
| December 31 | Thursday | Paid holiday from midday (mediodía, a partir de las doce horas) |
| January 1 | Friday | Full paid holiday |
With January 1 on a Friday, the break runs from Thursday noon into the weekend. Banks are a separate calendar: the Superintendency of Banks’ 2026 calendar lists December 31 as the year-end close, when banks do not open to the public, while listing it elsewhere as a half day; the two lines and the Junta Monetaria resolution behind them are on our bank holiday hours page. Every other date of the year is on Guatemala holidays.
Antigua: the Plaza Mayor
What happened for the arrival of 2026, as reported by Prensa Libre (December 27 and 29, 2025):
- Where: the Plaza Mayor, in front of the Ayuntamiento, where hundreds of families gather, as is tradition, to see the new year in with fireworks.
- Who: the Municipalidad de Antigua Guatemala announced the party; entry was free.
- When: from 11:00 PM, with a DJ playing until the countdown and fireworks at midnight.
- How many: INGUAT’s year-end tourism projection expected more than 374,000 people to pass through Antigua between the last days of December and January.
The 2026-27 programme had not been announced when we searched on September 25, 2026. If you want to be in the plaza at midnight, Antigua’s crowds and hotel rates for the season are covered on Antigua festivals.
Why sky lanterns are a sore point
During the celebrations to receive 2019, a fire destroyed several shops on 5a avenida norte and 3a calle poniente, on the Calle del Arco. Forbes Centroamérica reported on December 12, 2019 that, according to Antigua’s public-relations director Eduardo Lenhoff, it was started by a globo, a paper sky lantern, falling on a vulnerable spot, with losses in the millions. The council then temporarily banned globos and granadas as high-risk, while toritos modificados, mortar bombs and cohetillos could still be used with safety measures, and the city also banned drinking alcohol on the street during the year-end festivities. A Reglamento de Fuegos o Juegos Pirotécnicos was to be published in the Diario de Centro América. The same report quoted the Calle del Arco committee’s plan for five minutes of fireworks at the Arco de Santa Catalina to receive the new year, as in previous years.
We did not find that regulation’s published text, so whether the 2019 restrictions still apply in 2026 is not something this page can confirm. Ask your hotel before lighting anything in the historic centre.
What a 2025 ticket cost
Prensa Libre’s list of New Year’s Eve 2025 events (December 29, 2025) gives the price level for the ticketed option. These are last year’s figures, as published:
| Where (2025) | What | Published price |
|---|---|---|
| Westin Camino Real, Guatemala City | Buffet dinner with champagne, grapes, music and raffles from 7:00 PM | Q660 adults, Q460 children, plus a 10% service charge |
| La Estancia (Plazuela and Majadas branches) | Buffet with live music, 7:00-11:00 PM | Q349 adults, Q249 children, drinks not included |
| Barceló hotel | Live music, dance floor, dinner and midnight toast from 9:00 PM | not given in the article |
| Cervecería Catorce, Ciudad Vieja (Antigua) | Live music and a light show from 5:00 PM | not given in the article |
For 2026-27, check each venue’s own announcement.
Fireworks: the two banned products
Fireworks are legal to make and sell under licence in Guatemala. Silbadores and canchinflines are banned by name: Article 15 c) of Decreto Ley 123-85, added by Decreto 73-2007, prohibits importing, producing, manufacturing, storing, depositing, distributing and selling them. Our fireworks law guide read the national pyrotechnics laws in full on August 11, 2026 and found no rule setting the hours when fireworks may be set off; noise rules are municipal, and Antigua’s 2019 restrictions above are an example of one city acting on its own. You also cannot take fireworks on a plane, which the same guide covers. For the safety advice CONRED and the firefighters give every December, see the Quema del Diablo page.
For the diaspora
- Counting down together: Guatemala does not use daylight saving time and the US is on standard time, so midnight in Guatemala is midnight Central, 1:00 AM Eastern (January 1) and 10:00 PM Pacific (December 31).
- Flying home for the holidays: December was the busiest month for non-resident arrivals in INGUAT’s 2025 count; see best time to visit by month.
Sources
- Código de Trabajo, Decreto 1441, Article 127.
- Prensa Libre, Así se vivirá el Año Nuevo del 2026 en la Antigua Guatemala, December 27, 2025.
- Prensa Libre, Dónde celebrar el 31 de diciembre en Guatemala: 6 fiestas para despedir el 2025, December 29, 2025.
- Forbes Centroamérica (Prensa Libre), Prohíben juegos pirotécnicos en Antigua Guatemala durante fiestas de fin de año, December 12, 2019.
- Decreto Ley 123-85, Article 15 c).
- Superintendencia de Bancos, 2026 bank calendar, as read on our bank holiday hours page.
Related guides
- Christmas in Guatemala — Nochebuena, December 24
- Antigua festivals — the city’s calendar and crowd levels
- Guatemala holidays — every paid holiday
- Fireworks law in Guatemala
- Guatemala events calendar
Frequently Asked Questions
Is New Year's Eve a holiday in Guatemala?
Half of it. Article 127 of the Labor Code makes December 31 a paid holiday from midday (mediodía, a partir de las doce horas) and January 1 a full paid holiday. In 2026 that is the afternoon of Thursday, December 31, and Friday, January 1, 2027. Banks follow their own calendar, and the Superintendency of Banks’ 2026 calendar is not consistent on December 31: one line lists it as an afternoon half day, another says banks do not open to the public that day for the year-end close. Our bank holiday hours page quotes both.
Where do people celebrate New Year's Eve in Antigua Guatemala?
In the Plaza Mayor (Parque Central), in front of the Ayuntamiento. For the arrival of 2026, Prensa Libre reported that the Municipalidad de Antigua Guatemala announced a free celebration there from 11:00 PM, with a DJ and fireworks at midnight. The 2026-27 programme had not been announced when we searched on September 25, 2026.
Are sky lanterns allowed in Antigua on New Year's Eve?
In December 2019 the Antigua council temporarily banned globos (sky lanterns) and granadas after a globo started a fire that destroyed several shops on 5a avenida norte and 3a calle poniente during the celebrations for 2019, according to the city’s public-relations director quoted by Forbes Centroamérica; toritos modificados, mortar bombs and cohetillos stayed allowed with safety measures. We did not find the text of the resulting municipal regulation, so we cannot confirm what is in force in 2026.
Which fireworks are illegal in Guatemala?
Two products are banned by name: Article 15 c) of Decreto Ley 123-85, added by Decreto 73-2007, prohibits importing, producing, manufacturing, storing, depositing, distributing and selling silbadores and canchinflines. Other fireworks are legal under licence. Our fireworks law guide found no national rule setting the hours when fireworks may be set off (laws read August 11, 2026).
What time is midnight in Guatemala for family in the US?
Guatemala does not use daylight saving time and the US is on standard time on December 31, so midnight in Guatemala is midnight Central, 1:00 AM Eastern on January 1 and 10:00 PM Pacific on December 31.
