Kiwis party in a bright New Year

Crowds enjoy the Rhythm and Vines festival in Gisborne.

Revellers packed out bars and party-hot spots the length of the country last night to welcome in 2017.

Fine weather in most of the country's main centres and popular holiday destinations - including the Bay of Plenty, Bay of Islands, Gisborne, Coromandel, Taupo and Queenstown - helped increase spirits ahead of the biggest party night of the year.

In the capital, entertainment included a family friendly event at Whairepo Lagoon and at Frank Kitts Park on the Wellington waterfront featuring a fireworks display and live bands.

Kiwis and overseas tourists mingled at the central Wellington festivities, including American Heather Seal and Australian Andrew Hertzog.

They both agreed 2016 had "ended pretty well" thanks to their holiday in New Zealand and hoped to spend 2017 travelling.

Seal's New Year resolution was simple: "Stay healthy, stay kind, stay travelly."

Three hundred and seventy km up SH1, thousands of fans packed out the Taupo Ampitheatre for UB40's New Year's Eve gig.

In the lead up to the show, the band put a message up on their Facebook page stating: "The calm before the storm in New Zealand! Bring on NYE."

At press time, music fans were also getting down to some of New Zealand's best bands during the final night of the popular Rhythm and Vines festival at Waiohika Estate vineyard, near Gisborne.

The festival attracted tens of thousands of music fans and party-goers who prepared for the countdown to 2017 to the tunes of the Jordan Luck Band.

Gisborne was also one of the best places in New Zealand to be weatherwise yesterday, with temperatures hitting 27C.

Tauranga mayor Greg Brownless at The Strand. Photo / George Novak

In Tauranga, around 200 people turned out to a harbourside family event as the year's last sunset fell over the central city.

Tauranga Mayor Greg Brownless was manning the tongs in a barbecue put on as part of the free event - which included a fireworks display at 9.30pm.

He said it was great to see so many families out enjoying the warm New Year's Eve weather and a safe, relaxed atmosphere.

Brownless hoped the rest of the New Year period went without trouble for the city, which in past years had seen rioting and booze-fuelled problems.

Although no official New Year's Eve event had been organised at the Mount, police had still set up at the hotspot a special processing centre - known to many locals in previous years as 'Alcatraz'.

Revellers enjoy New Years Eve at the Northern Bass festival in Northland. Photo / Jamie Lees

Brownless said that, despite there being enough police and emergency personnel to deal with any issues, it was up to revellers to ensure the period wasn't remembered for the wrong reasons.

"It's called self-responsibility," he said.

In Auckland, thousands of punters packed out bars at the popular Viaduct basin from late afternoon.

O'Hagans Irish Bar duty manager Callum Brydenn was expecting one of the busiest nights of the year, perhaps only second to St Patrick's Day.

"It'll probably start picking up around 9pm and we'll have in excess of 300 people at any given time," he said.

He didn't expect too much of a problem with people getting drunk and disorderly.

"Generally people are just out to have a good time so hopefully it'll be the same again. But we've got plenty of security on in case."

Leslie Lewis and his daughter Amelia Lewis, 1, enjoyed the New Years Eve GLO Party in Rotorua. Photo / Ben Fraser

Rob Dickens and his two mates were gearing up for the Wonderlands music festival at Silo Park.

He'd learned from previous New Year's Eves that it was always a good idea to lower one's expectations.

"Overall New Year's is a bit overblown. You tend to go into it with high expectations and they're usually disappointed. So we're trying to have a moderate point of view and whatever's good's good."

Down the other end of Wynyard Quarter, Andy Coles was less philosophical.

"I'm gonna get slaughtered."