Think you know how to party this New Year’s Eve? Think again

Throw confetti! Drop balloons! Give someone a snog! What better way to welcome the new year than with a party, some good food or a burning boat?

And of course, few parties are as lavish, ridiculous or exhilarating as a New Year's Eve party.

Whether it's the champagne, the fancy dress, the delicious food, the spectacular location, amazing decorations, or the elusive promise of a kiss at the end of the night, New Year's Eve is the pinnacle of the year's social events calendar.

That's why this year we asked you to share your most memorable NYE party shots from around the world. Think you've partied harder?

27-year-old Jeffrey Liu attended a New Year's reunion of bloggers for the online journal "Xanga" in 2011. "We all came from all parts of the country - California, Texas, New York, Canada, Massachusetts and Maryland," she said.

Freelance photographer James Tworow enjoys taking photographs of public events, and took this photo of friends getting ready for a group shot -- and a cheeky kiss -- in the Olympic Plaza in Calgary, Canada

The Chabot Space and Science Center in Oakland, California, hosts an annual New Year's Eve Balloon Drop. "It's an exciting atmosphere as all of the children are eager to pop the balloons and the parents elbow for camera positions," Chris Hovey, who attended the event last year, says. "When the balloons come down it's bedlam."

Sarah Akinaka saw in 2013 with a big seafood fest consisting of fresh lobster and prawns. She was celebrating in her home in Honululu, Hawaii. "It was the kind of weather that many people in Hawaii say, 'Lucky we live in Hawaii', especially when so many of our friends and family on the mainland are bundled up in parkas and watching the snow fall."

In iReporter Flood Gondekowa'sfamily, New Year's Eve means the announcement of the parent of the year. She says her 11-year-old son Joey came up with the parenting contest in 2008. Every month, he and his younger sister determine who got the most points. Gondekowa thinks she wins every year because the kids are worried about hurting her feelings, "even though Daddy does all the driving."

Photographer Celine Kim was having a great time with her friends on New Year's Eve in 2009, when she took this photo. "Most of my friends just graduated school, we felt young and free," she said. This year, she says, will be a little bit different. "It will be relatively quiet, our baby will be tucked in bed and I will be very happy if I can spend some quality time with my husband."

iReporter Niena welcomed 2013 with her family in Cebu City, Philippines. "What was special about it was it was my last night with them because my flight back to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia was on the next day."