New Year’s Eve Countdown Bags: Plan One Bag for Every Hour

Questions

How do New Year’s Eve countdown bags work?

You fill one bag for every hour between the party start and the countdown and label each with the time it opens and one activity. When the clock reaches that hour, someone opens the bag and the group does the activity. The last bag opens at the countdown itself. This planner works out how many bags you need, the time on each tag and which activity goes in which bag.

How many bags do I need?

One for each whole hour after the party starts, up to and including the countdown time. A party that starts at 8:00 PM and counts down to midnight needs 4 bags, opening at 9, 10, 11 and 12. A party that starts at 8:30 PM also needs 4, because the hours after 8:30 are still 9, 10, 11 and 12, so the first bag just opens 30 minutes after guests arrive.

What if my party starts after midnight?

There is nothing to count down to, so the planner stops and says so instead of making a list. For a midnight countdown that means any start from 12:00 AM to 5:59 AM. If you are planning a morning party for kids, switch the countdown to noon and the planner works toward 12:00 PM.

How does the noon countdown work?

Choose Noon and the last bag opens at 12:00 PM. A party that starts at 7:30 AM gets 5 bags, opening at 8, 9, 10, 11 and 12. The party has to start before noon for a noon countdown to make sense, and the planner tells you if it does not.

What if I type fewer activities than bags, or more?

Each line you type goes to the next bag in order. Any bag left over gets one of our built-in suggestions, and the last bag defaults to the countdown unless you typed an activity for it. If you type more activities than there are bags, the extra ones are listed under the plan so you can swap them in.

Does anything I type leave my device?

What you type stays in your browser. The list is made on this page.

How countdown bags work · All free tools