Going out, out or staying in, in?

That's the dilemma many people are facing this evening as Covid cases continue to rise.

Scroll down to take our poll

But with no restrictions on the events and everyone looking forward to the end of 2021, people will be keen to go out and celebrate.

In Kent and Medway in the seven days leading up to December 24, 24,737 people tested positive. This is up by more than 7,000 week-on-week.

Boris Johnson has said people can go out but should test before they do so, despite major issues for people getting hold of PCRs and lateral flows.

And it seems that many people are choosing to be cautious this year.

A survey by a food and drinks promoter found a staggering 82% were planning to stay indoors this New Year's Eve in Medway and Gravesend.

The poll - carried out by @newopeningsrochester over 24 hours from Sunday - canvassed 6,716 Instagram followers of which 1,106 voted.

The majority (36.4%) live in Rochester, renowned for its vibrant night life with numerous bars, pubs and restaurants set in a square mile of the tourist town.

Alex Watson, boss of New Openings Medway which looks after the social media account, said: "While this is only a reflection of the followers of that Instagram account, it's the single largest Instagram account for Rochester and is heavily food and drink focused, so likely to give a fair representation."

Mr Watson said he expected the outcome to be a "lot higher" towards going out.

He carried out the research after promoting a number of New Year's Eve parties planned for the town. Of those who responded, 73.8% were women and 26.1% were men.

The results come in the wake of hospitality bosses recording a drastic drop in takings in the run-up to what should be the busiest time of the year.

Statistics show nationally that licensed premises lost an average of £10,357 in the week before Christmas and Christmas takings were down 60% compared to 2019.

The Chancellor, Rishi Sunak, announced a £1 billion fund to support businesss affected, but most say this is not enough after a challenging two years.

Alan Brett - who runs Oliver's Bar and Restaurant, Brettington Steak and Oyster House and the Rochester Coffee Shop all in Rochester - said: "This doesn't scratch the surface."

Mr Brett, who is about to open Fish at 55 and Sakana at 55 at the former Simply Italian diner near the Cathedral, said: "It has decimated us. Since the beginning of December, we have lost about 300 covers and that's about £40 a head. The coffee shop is 25% down in the same period and at Brettingtons we have lost 340 covers.

"We are keeping deposits and honouring them a reservation later in the year.

"We are expecting to be 50% down tonight."

Mr Brett, who runs his portfolio with Steve Pennington, said they had also been hit by staff shortages, with fewer employees returning to the industry after being furloughed, and delivery hold-ups.

Sanjay Raval, who runs the City Wall Wine Bar in the High Street, said the survey was "not a fair reflection ".

He said: "There will be those staying in because of mixed messages from the government, but not 80%. It's challenging enough for us and so hard to predict.

"We will this year just have to staff up and stock up, even if it means sending staff home early and not selling on the night."

Lester Banks, manager of the Three Daws in Gravesend, said he had experienced 40% cancellations over the festive period and was not expecting a big turnout tonight.

The boss of the historic hostelry, next to Town Pier, said England's Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty's warning about going out and socialising had prompted many customers to pull out of bookings.

He said: "Quite a few don't go out on New Year's Eve these days. We are not expecting it to be busy. It is unpredictable."

New Openings Medway helped to organise the inaugural Medway Food and Drink Awards this year in conjunction with Medway Council.

In Thanet business owners are facing the same issues.

Dave and Michelle Greig took over The Hussar in Garlinge near Margate three months ago and said while it's going well, they have been impacted by Covid.

"This Christmas we've had a lot of cancellations, it's not been as it should be," said Mr Greig.

"We had Christmas parties cancelled and a 40-person party called off. On Christmas Day some cancelled, although we did still have people coming in, but not as many as we should. We have a hotel too, but people just aren't booking because they don't know what's going to happen.

"We're still running a New Year's Eve event, which is ticketed. It means we can monitor numbers, which should be about 120.

"We've had a few that have dropped out and we've also got family members who have Covid who can't come now.

"It will be a good one to finish the year off, but perhaps not quite what we had hoped.

"Covid has definitely had a big impact on us. This time of year is meant to be lucrative to see you through January and February.

"Instead it's been a difficult time waiting on what might happen, whether there were going to be restrictions, and making decisions on things like stock and whether to order it all in."