Countries around the world have delighted millions of people with spectacular fireworks displays and light shows as they celebrated bringing in the New Year.
New Zealand was one of the first to welcome 2025, with a spectacular fireworks display off Auckland's Sky Tower and other events held throughout the country.
Christchurch, the largest city in the South Island, cancelled its celebrations due to bad weather, but it was fine conditions for events in tourist hot spots Queenstown and Wānaka.
This was closely followed by celebrations in Australia, where skies exploded with colour across the nation and revelry continued into the early hours.
More than a million people swarmed the main vantage points around Sydney Harbour for the city's biggest-ever new year extravaganza as millions of dollars of fireworks went up in smoke.
In Melbourne, hundreds of thousands of partygoers were also treated to a fireworks and laser spectacular.
There was a spectacular display also in London, where fireworks exploded around the London Eye and Big Ben.
Edinburgh's New Year "Hogmanay" celebrations, where tens of thousands of revellers gather in the Scottish capital for street parties and fireworks, were cancelled due to bad weather.
Much of the United Kingdom is subject to severe weather warnings for the coming week, with heavy rain and strong winds due to affect parts of Scotland, Northern Ireland and northern England, the Met Office said.
The Hogmanay Festival, a draw for tourists and locals alike, usually includes a torchlight procession, massive street parties, live concerts and a fireworks display over the castle. Indoor events were still held.
- AAP, Reuters and APL
