25 Christmas Party Game Ideas

What Christmas party would be complete without a white elephant game? This is a party pleaser, doubles as a party favour, all while allowing you to get rid of some poor unloved item in the hopes of getting something you will love, or at least tolerate.

Getting the gifts: Be sure all participants are on the same page. If you plan on having a white elephant game, it might be wise to specify what type of exchange it will be. It can be gag gifts, used items (or the re-gift), pamper me gifts, etc. If the gifts are to be purchased set a price limit to keep things fair.

To play, one person goes first and play passes clockwise from them around the circle. The players turn consists of selecting and opening a wrapped gift, or stealing a gift that has been opened by a previous player. If your gift is stolen you open a new gift or take one from another player. (You can't take the gift that was stolen from you back) .When all the gifts are open, and play reaches the first player, a new round begins. Play continues around the circle with each player having one chance to steal a gift or keep the one they already have. Each gift can only be stolen twice. The third person to take it gets it, period.
Note: this is a great game, but not for young children, especially those who are still in the phase of "if I touched it once, it's mine forever". Suggested age group for this game is 10 and up.

Make teams of 2 where each team has access to bows, wrapping paper, tissue, ribbons and tape.
The objective is to wrap your partner in a certain amount of time (2 to 3 minutes should be fine). The teams all judge and the best wrap job is the winner.

If your guests aren't crazy about becoming Christmas Tree goodies, another option would be to have the same game using regular Christmas gifts that need to be wrapped.

The Goal is to be the first person to find someone who has done each item on the list... or just use it as a Christmas Party icebreaker!

 1. Never has had a "White Christmas"
 2. Has celebrated Christmas in another country
 3. Returned a gift s/he received last Christmas
 4. Has seen a real, live reindeer
 5. Believed in Santa Claus until s/he was 10 years old)
 6. Loves the Christmas song "What child is this?"
 7. Has been to Bethlehem
 8. Went Christmas caroling last year
 9. Has peaked at a present before Christmas
10. Still gets his/her own stocking filled each year
11. Has all his/her Christmas shopping done
12. Hasn't done any of his/her Christmas shopping yet
13. Has never seen "It's a Wonderful Life"
14. Has seen "It's a Wonderful Life" too many times
15. Has "re-gifted" a Christmas present
16. Knows all the reindeers names
17. Has never made a snowman
18. Knows what s/he is getting for Christmas this year
19. Has made "figgy pudding" at least once
20. Doesn't like eggnog

The following words are alternate titles for several well-known Christmas Carols. Can you figure out the proper title?
 1. Quadruped with Crimson Proboscis.
 2. Eight P.M. to six A.M. Without Noise.
 3. Minuscule Hamlet in the Near East.
 4. Ancient Benevolent Despot.   
 5. Adorn the Vestibule.              
 6. Exuberance Directed to the Planet.    
 7. Listen: Aerial Spirits Announcing.   
 8. Trio of Monarchs.       
 9. Yonder in a Hay Rack.     
10. Cherubim Audited from Aloft.  
11. Assemble, Everyone Who Believes.
12. Hallowed Past Meridian.               
13. Fantasia of Colorless December 25.
14. Tin Tinniculations.            
15. A Dozen Twenty-Four Hour Yule Periods.  
16. Befell During the Transparent Bewitching Hour.
17. Homo Sapien of Crystallized Vapor.       
18. Desire a Pair of Incisors on December 25.      
19. I Spied My Maternal Parent Osculating.  
20. Perambulating Through A December Solstice Fantasy.

Rules: Match the Christmas movie to the description

 1. Take a soft Christmas stocking and fill it with holiday items. Guests will need to feel the items from the outside of the stocking.
 2. Use items such as candy cane, ornaments, pine cone, candles, jingle bell, mitten, ribbon, pieces of wrapping paper, holly, etc.
 3. Count the number of objects you have.
 4. Tie the stocking closed on the top to prevent peeking!
 5. During the party, pass the stocking around the room and give everyone a piece of paper.
 6. Tell your guests how many objects are in the stocking and have them write down all of their guesses.
 7. Have them pass their paper to the person on their left.
 8. Pull out the objects one by one.
 9. After you are finished, have guests call out funny answers that people made.
10. The guest with the most correct is the winner!

   Tips:
    - You can use large thermal socks if you don't have a knit or felt Christmas stocking to use.
    - Do a test first. Put the objects in the stocking and make sure after feeling, that you can mostly guess the objects are.
    - Have a couple small prizes handy for the winner!

 

1. Get an oversized tablet of paper and an easel. Don't forget a thick marker!
2. Write the names of Christmas carols on individual strips of paper and put them in a Santa hat.
3. Divide your guests into teams. You may use as many teams as you want, 2 to 4 teams tends to work well.
4. One person starts by picking a selection out of the hat. Draw a depiction of the carol in question while your team guesses.
5. Someone on another team is the time keeper.
6. The person has a minute to draw. If his team does not guess it in the designated time, other teams can steal a point.
7. Points are allotted for correct guesses. You designate the point structure.

   Tips:
 - Make sure the easel is set up so that all guests can see what is being drawn from wherever they are seated.
 - Point system can include 5 points if your team guesses in 1 minute, 1 point if another team guesses afterwards

 

Divide the group into teams each team forms a line. Place a 2 taped markers on the floor a few feet from the teams. Give each team a bag of marshmallows (large, not the mini size). The first team member in line stands behind the tape marker. On "Go" the 2nd one in line takes a turn trying to "catch" a marshmallow in their mouth. Once a team member catches a marshmallow, they get out of line. The team that finishes their line first wins.

 

For this game you need green construction paper. Give everyone a chance in attempting to rip a sheet of green construction paper (behind their back) into the shape of a Christmas tree (they cannot look at their trees until finished). Once they've finished ripping, and before they look, give them little stickers to decorate their tree with. Once all done, hang everyone's tree up and have everyone judge for the best looking tree.

 

Place a large bowl of Hersey's kisses on a table. Divide your group into two teams and have them line up around 10-15 feet away from the table. Give the first people in the row mittens that are slightly larger than they would ever need. On the mark of "Go", the first player of each team runs to the table (with their mittens on), takes a Hershey's kiss out from the bowl and tries unwrapping it with the large mittens. After they unwrap it they have to run down and pop it into the next person's mouth. The next person takes the mittens and runs to the bowl to do the same.

 

   This is based on the TV show of the same name. Some minute-to-win-it X-mas game ideas are as follows:

    1. See how many marshmallows you can get through the wreath and into the bucket in a minute game
    2. Can you stack the cups with one hand in a minute game.
    3. How many ornaments can you balance on a yardstick and paper towel tube without it falling over in a minute game.
    4. Can you get the red pompom on a string up on your Vaseline covered nose in a minute game.
    5. The Nut stacker game.
    6. How many ornaments can we hang on the string without using our hands in a minute game.
    7. Can you get the cookie from your forehead into your mouth without using your hands in a minute game.
    8. Try to open the present with ski gloves on before doubles are rolled.

 

This game can be played in two ways. 1. have guest guess the total number of ornaments on the tree or have them guess the number of themed ornaments on your tree. Santa's, reindeer, Disney characters, etc. This game can also be played using a clear large jar or vase with many Christmas ball ornaments of different sizes and colors. Guest try to guess how many ornaments are in the container. Make sure you count your ornaments before you place them on the tree. The winner is the person closest to the number without going over.

 

This is a popular ice breaker game. In the game, a person tell three stories about themselves, two of which are true, and one that is not. The goal of the player is to determine which story is not true. You can play this in a Christmas party setting in a group with the theme topic of "their worst Christmas gift".

 

Everyone gets in a circle and is given two pieces of paper and a pen. On the first paper each guest writes down any "What If" question. Collect all of those papers into a bowl. Next, pass out the "What If" questions and have each guest write the "Then" answer to that specific question onto their second piece of paper. Have each guest put their "What If" question into one bowl and the "Then" answer into a second bowl. Now it's time to read them. Have each guest take 1 paper from the "What If" bowl and 1 paper from the "Then" bowl. Take turns going around in a circle and reading the two papers back to back.

 

Host a Christmas or holiday themed party where all the guests come wearing the most hideous Christmas sweaters they can find. Guests can choose a winner by voting for the tackiest sweater.

 

Make a big bowl of cotton balls and get a container of Vaseline. Put some Vaseline on the chins of each member of each team (ideally, 2 teams of about 5 people each). The first players in line run to the bowl of cotton balls and stick their chins in, trying to get as many to stick to the Vaseline as possible. They run to the back of their line, so the next players can have a turn.

When everyone on a team has a beard, that team wins.
As with the other game, be sure to take lots of pictures of everyone wearing their Santa beards. Also have plenty of towels and water to get the Vaseline off.

 

Create teams and make a list of items they need to return with. If you choose to keep the searching local, either at your home or in the neighborhood, include items like a miniature light string, a piece of holly, a leaf off a poinsettia plant, and the like.

If you choose to have guests traipse all over town for items, you can have even more fun. You might require them to purchase a holly-decorated box of tissue, or have them provide photo proof that they went down your city's Christmas Tree Lane. Whatever it is, be creative and enjoy the process. People love this game, not only because it reminds them of childhood, but it helps people get to know other party guests they might know that well and it's a game that gets people working together, which can always be fun.

 

1. Each person should bring two gifts. One gift should be to an agreed value (for example, $10) while the other should be worthless (like an old shoe or a used train ticket). The valuable gift should be suitable for males or females of any age, if possible. Both gifts should be wrapped neatly and in a way that disguises them, so no one can tell the difference between a valuable gift and a useless gift.
2. All gifts are placed together in one pile.
3. Each person takes 2 cards from a deck. (If there are over 26 people, each person gets 1 card but there are 2 rounds total.)
4. The master of ceremonies (MC) shuffles the second deck of cards and picks a card. If someone has the matching card they can choose and immediately open one gift from the pile, but not the one they brought. The MC continues to pick cards one at a time until every player has chosen two gifts. There is always the chance that a player will choose two worthless prizes or two valuable gifts. After the game is finished, players may like to swap gifts to make it fair for all players.

   Items Required:
 - Each guest brings two gifts (one valuable and one useless) wrapped neatly
 - two standard decks of cards

 

This is the season to wrap Christmas gifts and presents. This team game puts fast wrapping skills to the test! The objective of the Mummy Wrap Christmas game is to cover the 'mummy' from head to foot with toilet paper except for the eyes! The first team to wrap the mummy wins!

Players form into two teams. One player from each team is chosen to dress up as Santa. Each team is given a jacket, pair of pants and balloons. Players are given 4 minutes to dress Santa and stuff as many balloons as they can into his jacket and pants without bursting any. The team which has the most balloons stuffed into Santa is the winner.

   Items Required:
 - Two large red jackets
 - Two large red or black pants
 - red and white balloons (blown up)
 - stopwatch

 

1. Two players are selected to play this game
2. One player is selected as the 'waiter' and the other player is the 'diner'
3. The hands of the 'diner' are tied behind their backs!
4. Both of the players are blindfold
5. The players sit on a chair facing each other
6. The 'waiter' is given a plate of messy food such as spaghetti, baked beans or ice cream
7. The pair of players have to finish the 'buffet' as quickly as possible - the 'buffet' is timed from the start to completion
8. The next pair of players are selected to play
9. The players with the fastest time are the winners!

   Items required:
 - Dish of spaghetti, baked beans or ice cream
 - Spoon
 - Sheet to cover the players (if you feel kind!)
 - Teams of two

 

Have some fun playing Traffic Lights Game - a great Christmas game for the festive season and holidays. The objective of the Traffic Lights Christmas game is to divide the group into three teams, Red, Orange and Green. All players are then blindfolded and mixed together. Players must try and locate all their team members by shouting out their colour. The first complete team is the winner.

1. Appoint a non player as a judge.
2. Divide the group into three teams, Red, Orange and Green.
3. Blindfold all players.
4. Get players to mingle around the room.
5. When the judge begins the game, all players must try and reform their colour team as quickly as possible. This is the noisy part!
6. The first team to get all their players together is the winner.

 

1. Every player is given a balloon to blow up
2. A face with hair, eyes, eyebrows, nose, moustache and beard must be sprayed on the balloon with whipped cream or shaving foam
3. On the count of three all the players must try to shave their balloon with a butter knife
4. The first player to shave their balloon, without bursting it, is the winner

    Items required:
  - Balloons
  - Shaving Foam or whipped cream

 

Pick a Christmas carol and have guests take turns singing lines from the song. One guest begins by singing the first line and others continue by singing the next. If someone messes up or forgets a lyric, they must take a drink.

 

The objective is to guess the names of selected celebrities. Any verbal clues are allowed - but the name of the celebrity must not be mentioned, or any direct reference to the name such as "His name begins with a 'B'.

 1.  Every Player must write down the names of 5 celebrities on slips of paper, or Post-it notes
 2. The slips of paper are folded and put into a hat
 3. The players are split into two Teams
 4. Each Team selects a person who will give the clues
 5. The clue-giver of the first team picks a Celebrity name out of the hat
 6. The player has 1 minute to get their team to guess as many celebrities as possible
 7. The clue giver for the other team follows the same rules
 8. The game is played in three rounds
 9. One point is given for every name guessed
10. One point is deducted if a clues is 'illegal'
11. The winners are the team who have the most points

    Items required:
  - Pens or pencils
  - Slips of paper or Post-it Notes