Celebrating the arrival of the New Year remains the most popular holiday for Ukrainians. It is bigger than Christmas or Easter. Ukrainians give presents to each other not on Christmas day, but on the New Year’s Eve. However, even on this most important celebration of the year Ukrainians plan to spend under USD 42 in 2019.

2 out of 3 Ukrainians will spend less than $42 on food for the festive table

You can hardly find a place to book for the New Year’s Eve for less than $42 per head, but 2 out of 3 Ukrainians plan the whole feast to cost under 1000 hryvnia.

20% of Ukrainians said they would be spending up to 2,000 hryvnia (USD 85) and prepare the traditional dishes that people have on the New Year’s Eve festive table.

Only 13% of the respondents to the online poll by Segodnya plan to splash on the celebrations and get all the necessary delicacies to spoil themselves and their guests.

New Year’s Eve is considered in Ukraine a “family celebration”, just like Christmas in western countries, but usually people enjoy it in a group of friends.

Traditional dishes that people make for this holiday include salad Olivier (potato, carrot, and egg salad with meat or chicken), “herring under the fur” (layered salad with pickled herring, potato, egg, carrot, and mayonnaise), terrine, mandarins and champagne.

There is a superstition that the year is going to be as abundant as the festive table. This is why people usually prepare too much food that they have to try to finish in the next day or two.

Ask your Ukrainian girlfriend what is she planning to do on this most important date of the year! She will be able to tell you more about it.

Read also:

• How women from the former Soviet Union countries celebrate the New Year’s Eve?
• How Ukrainians celebrate Christmas and New Year’s Eve
• Public holidays for Christmas and New Year in Ukraine
• New Year and Christmas in Ukraine (Kiev region)