Thanksgiving is fast approaching and most of us are heading home to celebrate the holiday (with the exception of me, of course; I always seem to book the last possible flight home). The most exciting part of Thanksgiving break, as we all know, is hardly the feast we have Thanksgiving Day. (Personally, that’s the part I dread most, as I have two crazed aunts and an overly-inquisitive grandpa with short-term memory loss. There’s only so many times I can hear, “So Lindsey, are ya goin’ steady yet?” in a five-minute span.) Rather, it is Thanksgiving Eve, the night we all rendezvous with our home friends for a night of old-time fun and ridiculously overpriced drinks.
Though not as hyped up as New Year’s Eve, Thanksgiving Eve is a big deal and gives clubs everywhere carte blanche to jack up their prices to the millionth degree. Like a naïve idiot, I typically cave and pay these absurd prices, convinced that A) I’m getting some sort of deal and B) I’ll be absolutely miserable if I don’t go to THIS SPECIFIC CLUB. And, as usual, I’m left wondering: is it worth it? Here’s my take:
For the under-21 crowd: If you’re looking to go somewhere in a big city, probably not. Even if you have documentation stating you are, in fact, of legal drinking age, bars and clubs can afford to be really hard and douche-y tonight, since most places will have a slew of people waiting to get in, anyway. Last year, my friends and I went to a club in NYC Thanksgiving Eve to celebrate my friend’s 21st birthday. We strategically placed all the 21-year olds at different points in between the underagers, myself included. The bouncer immediately turned down my first friend in line, WHO WAS ACTUALLY 21. Clearly, this was not going to be easy. Eventually all my friends got in, except me. Instead, I was forced to try to sneak in a minimum of seven times, six of which failed. And, after each botched entrance, I was forced to face the wrath of a bouncer-cop who REALLY did not like me. By the time I actually got in I was on the verge of tears and both freezing and sweating profusely due to the anxiety the ordeal had caused me. Tres attractive.
Solution: Hit up a low-key bar instead. If I could go back in time and waltz into a random bar instead of wait in an excruciatingly long line sans friends, I would.
For the over 21 crowd: Go for it! Sure, you will probably have to wait in some sort of line and sure, you will probably need to shell out waaay more money than necessary. But if you’re set on a night on the town for Thanksgiving Eve, this is pretty much standard procedure. To eliminate extra waiting time, I suggest buying a ticket online before the big night, and going to the hotspot a tad earlier than you normally would. You’ll definitely have a good time, but at a higher price tag than normal.
Final call: It’s Thanksgiving Eve. You’ll be home and restless, so give yourself a night out. Just be sure to save up beforehand.