Duffel revives New Year’s Eve singing with posters

Duffel (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – Duffel municipality encourages New Year’s Eve singing on December 31. Posters will guide residents to welcome singers. Alderman Dirk Broes and Mayor Joosen aim to revive the fading tradition.

As VRT News reported, the municipality of Duffel, in the province of Antwerp, Belgium, is encouraging residents to revive the tradition of New Year’s Eve singing. Posters have been put up around the town to ask people to welcome singers at their doors on December 31st, 2025. 

In several neighbourhoods, groups of local singers will go from house to house. They will perform festive songs and also earn some extra pocket money. Dirk Broes, Alderman for Youth (N-VA), says the initiative is meant to connect young people with the long-standing custom and bring the community together.

What is being done to save Duffel’s New Year’s Eve singing tradition?

Officials mentioned that in other parts of Duffel, the tradition is fading. Fewer households take part in door-to-door singing each year. Authorities hope the campaign will spark renewed interest and keep the practice alive. 

“We’re now giving everyone posters to hang in their windows. This way, the singers know they’re definitely welcome in that house. With this campaign, we also want to draw extra attention to this long-standing tradition,”

says Mayor Joosen.

“This tradition is part of Duffel, and we’re happy to keep it alive. It’s wonderful to see how our children make the start of the new year extra cheerful. We hope to see many posters in the streets,”

the Mayor of Duffel said. 

To support the initiative, all households in Duffel will receive new posters in their mailboxes next week. The posters will tell residents about the door-to-door singing and invite them to welcome the singers at their homes. 

New Year’s Eve singing has been a long-standing tradition in Duffel for many years. Every December 31st, children and young people go from house to house singing festive songs to mark the end of the year and welcome the new one. The custom comes from Flemish folklore and was very popular during the 20th century. 

In recent years, fewer neighborhoods take part, and the tradition has started to fade. Since the early 2000s, local authorities and community groups have worked to keep the practice alive by organising campaigns and giving guidance to ensure it remains an important part of Duffel’s year-end celebrations.