The countdown reached zero. Champagne corks popped. Strangers embraced. And Charleston crossed into 2026 with celebrations spanning hotel ballrooms, packed bars, neighborhood parties, and quiet moments at home.

Downtown’s King Street corridor thrummed with revelers moving between venues. Bars that had instituted cover charges collected them from crowds that kept coming. The energy built through the evening until midnight transformed the street into one extended celebration.

The grand hotels hosted their traditional galas. Black-tie crowds toasted in ballrooms decorated for the occasion, multi-course dinners behind them, dancing ahead. These events draw the same faces year after year, reunions as much as parties.

Restaurants that stayed open served final seatings to couples who’d booked months ago. The intimacy of a New Year’s Eve dinner for two provided counterpoint to the crowds elsewhere.

At home, families gathered around televisions waiting for the ball to drop. Children who’d managed to stay awake celebrated with sparkling cider. Adults who’d opted out of the crowds enjoyed the midnight moment on their own terms.

Fireworks erupted across the harbor and over the peninsula, unofficial displays from boats and backyards supplementing whatever organized shows took place. The popping and crackling continued well past midnight as revelers extended the moment.

By 2 a.m., the streets had quieted. The die-hards remained in bars that would serve until last call. But most had headed home, the new year properly welcomed, sleep calling, and 2026 begun.

The city woke slowly on January 1, hangover remedies in demand, resolutions freshly made, another year ahead.