Christmas is always a great time to get together with friends and loved ones. You get to reminisce about how the year went, meet friends and family you haven’t seen in a while, and more.
Why To Play Christmas Games
If you have a Christmas party planned, one way you can make the party filled with memories is by playing games. Playing games during your Christmas party will help to break the ice and encourage mingling among your guests.
However, there is a need to know what kind of games fit this kind of setting. There are many games you can play during a Christmas party, and you can choose from any of them.
However, you want to choose games that will leave your guests with pleasant memories long after the party. Thus, we have compiled these fun and engaging Christmas party games to play with friends to make memories you’ll treasure for a lifetime.
Candy Canes Card Game
For this game, three people will circle around a pile of candy canes, which should be less than the number of players. Then, get a deck of cards and let everyone take turns pulling cards; the goal is to get four of a kind first.
The first person to get four of a kind, say four Kings, will take a candy cane very stealthily. Then, others will race to grab the remaining candy canes; the person without a candy cane is eliminated.
- Christmas Charades
Start by printing out several Christmas terms to be acted out, and then divide everyone into teams; one person will act. The rule of the game is that the actors cannot talk or signal any of the letters; the team must guess. You will set a time limit, and the team that guesses the term correctly within that time gets one point. The final winner is the first team that gets twenty points.
- 20 Questions
In 20 questions, one player will be the answerer; they will pick a Christmas-themed object while other players ask questions. The players are allowed to ask twenty yes or no questions and guess the object correctly.
If any player gets the object, they will pick the object for the next round. Otherwise, if no one gets the term after the twenty questions, the answerer wins and continues to the next round.
- Family Feud Christmas
In Family Feud Christmas, players are divided into teams to answer made-up questions from several holiday-themed survey responses. The game’s judge will allot time to each team to write three guesses on a piece of paper.
Then, the judge will reveal if their guesses were listed and what their value is; number one ranks 50, 2 ranks 40, and so on. Once the judge has exhausted all the questions, they will tally the points to determine the winner.
- Stocking Fill-Up
Divide the players into two teams and place a Christmas stocking on the other end of the room for each team. Players will race to their stocking with a spoonful of candy, drop the candy, and go back to their team. The race will continue until there’s a winner, which is the first team to fill up their stocking.
- Find Santa’s Friends
Start by hiding some stuffed or plastic elves and reindeer everywhere in the house. If younger kids are playing, give them a head start and also make the items easy to find. For older kids, you can hide the items in trickier places and let them look after the younger ones have looked. You can include prizes for winners to make the game more competitive and fun.
- Pin the Nose on Rudolph
Print out a picture of Rudolf and put it on the wall; you can also draw it if you can. Then, get a red circular piece of paper with a piece of tape or thumbtack. The goal of the game is for players to try and put this on Rudolph’s nose; mark their names for each attempt. The winner is the player that pins the nose most accurately; ensure that everyone gets a chance.
- Blindfold Christmas Drawing
You need at least three players to play this game; start by grabbing some markers and paper plates. Blindfold the players and let them hold their paper plates on their heads while one person will be giving the instructions.
The instructor will describe a Christmas scene and every other player will try and draw this onto the plate. The winner of the “Blindfold Christmas Drawing” game is the one with the most accurate drawing.
- Stocking Guessing Game
Stocking Guessing Game is another fun Christmas party game to play; you need at least four players for this game. It is a fun discovery game great for kids and adults alike; players try to identify the item in the stocking.
To begin, a host will stuff random items into a stocking and tie a string or ribbon around the top. It is important to tie the top very well so that no one will be able to peep inside.
Then, everyone sits in a circle and passes the stocking around to feel what is inside it. Players will get note cards where they will write down what they guess is in the stocking. The winner of the Stocking Guessing Game is the player that guesses the most correct items.
- Christmas Memory Game
Christmas Memory Game is another great way to enjoy Christmas with friends and family; it is perfect for children and adults. Start by printing the game’s PDF package on a white stock printer paper and carefully cut them into equal squares. You can laminate the cards so that you can use them at the next Christmas party – or any other time.
To play the game, pick eight Christmas images and draw or print two of each image so that you’ll have sixteen in total. Next, set the cards in a 4×4 layout on the table and give each player a chance to pick a card.
The player will try to find the match; if they do, they’ll keep it, get a point, and try another. The game will continue until a winner emerges, which is the one who first reaches the predetermined quantity of points.
- Christmas Carol Pictionary
For this Christmas party game, you need at least four players where each team tries to guess an illustration. You will start by listing some Christmas carols on different flash cards; then divide the players into teams.
One person will act as the illustrator; they will draw from the pile of cards and, in one minute, illustrate the carol. If the person’s team guesses correctly, they get a point; the first team to get twenty points wins.
- Holiday Storytellers
Holiday Storytellers is a fun game to play during a Christmas party, involving at least four players. The game will start with everyone standing in a circle and one person will make up a holiday story using a sentence.
The person after them will then recite what the previous player(s) said, adding it to their own sentence. Whoever forgets a detail in the story is out, and the person that recalls all the details wins the game.
- Name That Carol
For “Name That Carol,” you need at least four players; then, print out a list of song titles and lyrics. Distribute the printout to teams or individuals, depending on how many people are playing.
Each team will guess the song title and the team with the most correct guess will win the game. Meanwhile, you can also play the carol song out loud instead of printing the links; people will guess by listening.
- Christmas Mad Libs
At least four players are required to play Christmas Mad Libs; print the game’s form and give a copy to players. Each player will fill out the form and return it; then, the judge will shuffle the forms and pass them out randomly.
While the judge passes out the form randomly, it is still possible for a player to get their own card; it is okay. Once everyone has gotten a form, each person will read the form in their handout aloud.
The designated judge decides the winner of the game, or the winner can be decided based on the laughs. That is, the form that gets the most number of laughs wins the game.
- Gift Wrap-Up
For Gift Wrap-Up, you need at least six players; the players will pair off, depending on the total number. Then, you will tie one person’s left hand to their teammate’s right hand. The goal of the game is for the players to wrap the gift using their free hands.
Then, give everyone an example gift and let them attempt to duplicate it; the harder it is to duplicate, the better. You can set a time limit between one and three minutes after which the judge will pick the most accurate gift.
These games will ensure everyone has a good time during the Christmas party but ensure you inform your guests beforehand. Some guests would prefer to know about the game ahead of time so that they can plan their schedules accordingly. This way, enough people will be able to participate in the game; the more the merrier.