1. Cut your hangover short.
Prepare in advance for the morning after by stocking up on rejuvenating teas that will jolt you out of your Champagne-induced stupor. Third-generation tea company Harney & Sons (433 Broome St., nr. Broadway; 212-933-4853) sells more than 200 varieties to help you detox. For a proven remedy, go to online retailer l’Âge de Thé, where coupon code NYCHomeDelivery gets you home delivery on January 1 of their Herbal Detox tea, an antioxidant-rich blend designed to purify your skin and liver.
2. Relax with a restorative massage.
Get ready to sweat at the 118-year-old Russian & Turkish Baths (268 E. 10th St., nr. First Ave.; 212-674-9250), where you can rid yourself of toxins from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. on New Year’s Day. A fee of $30 buys you a full day of admission and access to a variety of saunas and steam rooms, an ice-cold pool, and your own robe and slippers. Special treatments like Swedish massages and sea-salt scrubs cost extra, but they’re worthy indulgences.
3. Head to the movies.
Catch two new buzzy indie flicks at Angelika Film Center. Starring Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams, Blue Valentine portrays the complexities of a troubled marriage, but it’s mostly garnering attention for the battle over its NC-17 rating (which has since been reduced to R). Another Year, directed by Mike Leigh (Happy-Go-Lucky, Topsy-Turvy), was a critical favorite at Cannes and looks at a year in the life of a happily married couple visited by a series of unhappy friends.
4. See a Broadway musical before it closes.
Buy an 8 p.m. ticket for one of the handful of shows closing January 2 so you can see them before they take their final bows. Elf is family-friendly holiday entertainment, while Tony-winning West Side Story is a bold revival of the beloved musical. Audiences love Sean Hayes, Kristin Chenoweth, and Molly Shannon in Promises, Promises, and Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson was one of the season’s few critical hits.
5. Take an icy plunge.
Dive into the frigid Atlantic along with members of the Coney Island Polar Bear Club for their annual New Year’s Day swim starting at 1 p.m. There’s no fee to participate or observe, but donations to Camp Sunshine are encouraged. Bring warm clothes, towels, and friends who can photograph your freezing adventure.
6. Skate until you drop.
Work on your axels and toe loops at one of the city’s many ice-skating rinks. The Pond at Bryant Park (42nd St. at Sixth Ave.; 212-661-6640) has no admission fee (skate rentals are $13), and it’s less chaotic than Trump Wollman Rink in Central Park. If you prefer an indoor setting, you can get into the Sky Rink at Chelsea Piers (Pier 61, 23rd St. at the Hudson River; 212-336-6100) and rent skates for less than $20.
7. Get a dose of high culture.
Take in the grand entertainment of opera, operetta, and dance. Head to the Metropolitan Opera for the final performance of Pelléas et Mélisande at noon or the popular abridged, English-language version of The Magic Flute, directed by Julie Taymor, at 8 p.m. Get a taste of Gilbert and Sullivan at Symphony Space, where The Mikado performs at 3 p.m. Alternatively, check out a European tradition at Avery Fisher Hall’s annual Salute to Vienna concert (2:30 p.m.), featuring a cast of European singers and dancers.
8. Rock out at a concert.
Relive the raucousness of New Year’s Eve all over again at gypsy punk outfit Gogol Bordello’s 8 p.m. concert at Terminal 5, where experimental band Man Man will open. For a different sound, head to the HighLine Ballroom for the Mighty Sparrow, a.k.a. the Calypso King of the World, also at 8 p.m.
9. Admire great art.
Stop into the Guggenheim Museum to see post–World War I works by Matisse and Picasso in “Chaos and Classicism: Art in France, Italy, and Germany, 1918–1936” before it closes on January 9. To see the biggest show of the season, go to the Museum of Modern Art to scope out the bold works on display in “Abstract Expressionist New York.”
10. Hear poetry all day long.
Listen to 150 of the city’s best poets read their work from 2 p.m to midnight at Bowery Poetry Club. It’s free to attend and see all performers, but donations of books and canned goods are suggested.
11. Get drunk again.
Tipple two nights in a row, but do so in style by heading to Summit Bar, where the 60-person limit keeps things civilized. The bar will be open from 8 p.m. to 4 a.m., and mixologist maestro Greg Seider, who’s worked on the cocktail programs at Minetta Tavern and the Standard Hotel, will be serving his “The Cure Is in the Cup” concoction: a blend of bourbon, spiced apple cider, and walnut liqueur.