New Year’s Eve is a great opportunity for many of us to get together with our friends and loved ones to celebrate (a hopefully good) the past year, and usher in the new one. It can also be quite annoying, with higher than usual traffic, increase in drunk driving, extremely high prices and an increased security presence.

Don’t Drive, Use These Instead

Don’t drive. It’s that simple. There are plenty of cabs you can call or hail by app. Think of it this way, you won’t have to suffer the humiliation of being strip-searched at a checkpoint, and you won’t have to deal with valet parking attendants.

UPDATE: Thanks to an initiative Syndicate of Restaurants, Cafes, Nightclubs and Pastries Owners, in cooperation with the Internal Security Forces and by the General Syndicate of Taxi Drivers in Lebanon, you can also call 1514 for a free cab ride home if you’ve had too much to drink.

Just call 1514

Flugen Rides

This is a brand new awesome taxi-hailing service from the folks at Kunhadi. The app includes several cab companies you can choose from. What’s nice is that all their drivers have undergone training programs for responsible driving from Kunhadi. Also, they include wheelchair-accessible cars, so everyone can hail a cab.

For the holiday season, Flugen Rides will help discourage drunk driving by giving you a free ride to your car if you drove to your party and got too drunk to drive back. Read more about their life-saving holiday campaign here.

Download for Android here and for iOS here.

Uber

I’ve been using Uber for years, in every country I’ve visited and lived in. If you hate calling the cab and giving directions, just drop your pin and see how long your driver needs. If you still don’t have the app, download it for Android here and for iOS here.

However, beware, Uber is expecting a lot of demand between 12AM and 3AM tonight, so take into consideration a higher fare and longer wait times. If you are a new Uber user, use my promo code “cvrp5” so you get your first ride free or click this link to download and get a free ride (free up to 15$. So you get an idea, a trip from Jounieh to Downtown costs aroun 12 to 14$ usually)

Careem

Careem is another ride-hailing app I love. It’s developed in the Middle East and I love it, especially when I’m in the UAE. My favorite thing about this service is that they allow you to schedule well in advance if you already know what your schedule is gonna be (plane lands, shift ends, etc.) Download it for Android here and iOS here.

You can use promo code “EZH0YA195W” or click this link to download the app and get 10$ off your first ride. Remember, 12AM-3AM is peak time tonight, so expect longer waits and higher fares.

Know Your Rights

In Lebanon, you can get arrested for just a suspicion that you might use drugs. In other words, even if you haven’t taken any drug in your life, if a cop thinks you look like you might, they’re allowed to take you in and interrogate you. Despite the many daily horror stories, blatant disregard for human rights and legally questionable behavior, you do have rights, even if you use drugs. There are awesome folks like Skoun who do amazing work in rehab for addicts as well as campaigning for rights of drug users with their “Support, Don’t Punish” ethos.

Before going out, and whether you use drugs or don’t, make sure you check out Skoun’s amazing Know Your Rights Website. It has all the info you will ever need in case the worst happens. Be safe and careful tonight, and empower yourself with the laws and rights you have to make sure you or someone you care about aren’t a victim of wrongful arrest or entrapment.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BOrvvThBLFJ/?taken-by=ginoraidy

Be Smart

We all know we tend to drink a little more than we should tonight. So, please, try not to drive.

• If you’re heading up to the mountains, stay there. Don’t risk driving back down in bad weather and road conditions.
• If you have more than one party or place to be, take into consideration traffic and plan your schedules accordingly. No one likes to do the countdown in their car stuck in traffic…
• Be a little nice to everyone who’s working tonight. It’s their NYE too, but they’re stuck doing their job, whether it’s the 24/7 supermarket cashier, the waiter at a club or a security guard or soldier or even a police officer.
• Have fun ❤