7 Fun Family Christmas Party Ideas
Simple family Christmas parties can be made fun with the help of activities scattered throughout the night! Even if it’s just you and the kids at home, you can get creative with games, crafts, cooking, movies, and more. Here are 7 fun family Christmas party ideas that you can do in the comfort of your own home.
1. Play Christmas Themed Games Together
Games are a great way to bond as a family and they can be fun for both kids and adults! Celebrate by putting a Christmas twist on classic games like charades, or take the creativity up a notch by making up your own Christmas game. You can even start a brand new tradition with one of these games to make it extra special.
Family Christmas Game Ideas
- Christmas Charades: play charades using Christmas themes such as movies, characters, and songs.
- Candy Cane Scavenger Hunt: hide candy canes around the house and have the kids go on a search. Whoever finds the most wins a special prize!
- Reindeer Ring Toss: young kids will have fun tossing rings around a reindeer’s antlers. You can make your own reindeer out by using a cardboard box for the face and tree branches for the antlers.
- Oven Mitt Unwrapping Game: when it’s time to open presents, each person wears a pair of oven mitts while trying to open their gifts. This makes for a hilarious time and will prevent the family from opening gifts too quickly. Make it even more funny with these 7 Christmas gag gifts.
- Pin The Heart On The Grinch: a holiday twist on the classic pin the the tail on the donkey game, hang up a large image or poster of the Grinch and take turns pinning paper hearts on him while blindfolded. Whoever gets the heart closest to the correct area wins!
2. Create A Theme & Dress Up Accordingly
While a classic and traditional Christmas is always something to cherish, putting a spin on it can be extra exciting! Come up with a fun theme for your family Christmas and incorporate the theme into all the activities you do and the food that you make.
Get the kids involved in the choosing of theme – have everyone come up with a theme idea and then decide together which one is the winner. A big part of the themed Christmas party can be dressing up accordingly. Help the family decide what each person should wear to plan it advance! Get creative and think outside of the box; it makes it more fun and silly to dress up in unique costumes.
Family Christmas Party Theme Ideas
- Pajama Party
- Winter Wonderland
- Classic Christmas Characters
- Disney Characters
- Christmas Luau
- Groovy ’70s Christmas
3. Have Each Family Member In The House Make A Dish
If the kids are old enough to cook or bake with minimal supervision, put each family member in charge of making a dish or dessert. Giving everyone a special job will make the Christmas party more meaningful and collaborative.
Start by planning out your menu for Christmas; whether you stick with the same classic and traditional meal you do every year, or you switch it up, make sure everyone has a part in the cooking or baking. The younger kids can take part in making some of the easier dishes with a little bit of guidance.
You can also choose to just bake cookies together as a family for a fun traditional activity. Have everyone decorate the cookies in their own way and take pictures as memories to cherish for years to come. Make sure to serve your food with Christmas serveware to make it feel extra festive.
4. Have A Gingerbread House Decorating Competition
Decorating a gingerbread house is a fun traditional Christmas activity that kids and adults both enjoy! Take it to another level by having a gingerbread house decorating contest with each other. This is typically best for families with older kids who enjoy a small competition.
If you have a large family, separate into teams of two for the contest; smaller families can have each person compete individually. Each team or person can create a fun theme for their gingerbread house to make it stand out in the competition. You can also set a specific rule that everyone has to follow to make it more interesting.
A fun way to decide on the winner of the contest is to post picture of each gingerbread house on social media. You can have people vote on there which gingerbread house they like the most. Otherwise, you can designate a vote in the house who gets to choose the winner. Give the winner(s) a special prize at the end!
5. Do A Fun Family Photoshoot With Homemade Christmas Props
A picture is worth a thousand words; take a bunch of family photos during Christmas to savor the memories! A family photoshoot is a fun Christmas activity that everyone will enjoy doing together.
Start by crafting some holiday themed props for the photoshoot: make small signs out of cardboard, paper hats, Santa beards, and other silly items. Set up a phone or a camera on a stand and use the timer to get photos of your whole family together.
You can then get these photos printed to give to other family members and friends. You can also put them in a Christmas photo album; continue to do photoshoots each Christmas to add to the album for a book of sweet memories.
6. Set Up A Hot Cocoa Bar & Have A Christmas Movie Marathon
A Christmas movie marathon is always a great way to bond with your family! Whether you watch your favorite classics or check out some new holiday flicks on TV, it’s fun to gather around the television and get into the festive spirit.
To make your movie watching even more fun, set up a hot cocoa bar with sweets and snacks. Do this with a variety of hot cocoa mixes, chocolate stirring spoons, mini marshmallows, peppermint sticks, holiday cookies, and other delicious treats. Some of these food gifts can be used for your bar!
You can also set up a popcorn bar during your movie marathon. Lay out a large bowl of popcorn with individual bags to use and a variety of add-ins to choose from such as flavored seasonings, chocolate candies, and any other unique toppings. These DIY bars are an exciting way to make your holiday feel more special.
7. Make Homemade Christmas Cards To Give To Each Other
If you’re looking for family Christmas party ideas that are extra meaningful, this idea is nice one to incorporate into your festivities. Crafting Christmas cards as a family and sharing them with each other can be a nice way to bond and to remember what’s truly important.
Place everyone’s name in a bowl and have everyone draw a name to see who they’re making a card for. Everyone can write a nice note inside of their homemade card to give to the family member. This is a great activity for kids of any age!
Optionally, you can create homemade cards to give to a children’s hospital or to solider overseas. This is a wonderful way to teach children about the importance of spreading kindness during the holidays.
Now that you’ve learned some fun family Christmas party ideas, visit our Holiday Headquarters to find decoration inspiration to make your home feel extra festive for the party! From ornaments to accents to wall art and more, give your home a Christmas makeover.
