Stranded on New Year's Eve? You're Not Alone

Dec. 31, 2010— -- Thousands of stranded travelers are going to have an unusual New Year's Eve thanks to winter storms in the Rockies, the Midwest and the fallout from last weekend's Northeast blizzard.

Kelly Brady and her husband were supposed to be at a party she is organizing at The Eldridge in New York. Instead, she has been stranded in a tiny bed at her in-laws' Chicago home and will be ringing in the new year with her husband's high school friends, including his first girlfriend.

"I'm sending out Facebook and Twitter messages to see who else is here and we will make the best of it," she told ABC News.

Stay Up to Date on the Latest Travel Trends from ABC News on Twitter

Further west, Meredith Klein and her family were supposed to fly home to New York Thursday morning from a ski vacation in Durango, Colo. But that mountain resort town got hit with nearly two feet of snow, delaying her 6 a.m. flight to Denver. The flight eventually took off but Klein was told she would never make her connection in Denver. Because of a backlog of people trying to get to New York, there would be no room on a later flight for her and her family.

"We're here until Saturday now," Klein said.

She was supposed to have 15 friends over for New Year's Eve at her house. Now "we're pretty much pulling ideas out of hat," she said.

Her in-laws made it out of Durango earlier in the week, only to be stranded in Denver because of troubles at their destination in England.

"The snow is pretty when you don't have to travel in it," Klein added.

Blizzard warnings are in effect today for portions of Wyoming, Nebraska, Minnesota and the Dakotas, according to the National Weather Service.

Parts of the Rockies and the Midwest are under some sort of winter storm watches and warnings this morning.

It's a similar story across the country as airlines rebooked stranded passengers on flights after the New Year. Don't expect masses sleeping on airport cots. Instead, most people have been told that they are stuck, and like Brady and Klein, have sought out alternative plans. But not after trying everything else first.