Best Christmas Games for Adults to Make Your Holiday Party Unforgettable
The winter holidays are a great time to bring friends and family together to celebrate the season with a Christmas party. However, if you’re sending Christmas invites to folks that don’t know each other very well (or at all), planning some Christmas games for adults can help everyone interact with one another. Party games aren’t just for kids. There are plenty of activities that can engage grownups and help break the ice between strangers. And, really, what could be more rewarding than introducing all of your favorite people and making new holiday memories?
From ugly sweater contests to holiday movie trivia, a little friendly competition can make the celebration that much more interesting. And don’t forget prizes to fuel the fun. They don’t have to be expensive, just a little something to give the games a playful edge. In no time at all new friendships will form and everyone will head home with that warm, fuzzy feeling that the holiday spirit brings. By next year you may all be spending “Friendsmas” together.
Don’t worry about coming up with all of the Christmas games for adults yourself, we have a bevy of ideas for you below. And, hey, let us take care of the holiday party invite inspo, too.
Christmas Games For Adults: Getting Started
So here’s the thing, you want to make these holiday games playful, but not completely childish. There should be a certain level of difficulty here that makes the game a touch competitive, but not completely impossible to win or figure out. For example, “Pin the Nose on Rudolph” is probably not your best bet when coming up with Christmas games ideas for adults, but that doesn’t mean you can’t get a little silly with things. Let’s dive into your options.
Ugly Sweater Contest
We’re not sure how or why the ugly Christmas sweater came to be, but it seems like retailers try to outdo one another each and every year by producing sweaters that are more hideous than the next. Invite your guests to participate in an Ugly Christmas Sweater Pageant of sorts. Each contestant can even plead their case as to why their sweater is uglier than that of their competitors. Top prize wins an ugly Christmas sweater medal.
Holiday Movie Trivia
Think of this as pub trivia night, but it’s all about holiday movies. Pull quotes from flicks like Home Alone, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, Elf, A Christmas Story and more to find out which of your friends or family is most knowledgeable on these classic Christmas films.
Name That Holiday Tune
Along the same line as the Holiday Movie Trivia game, play Name That Holiday Tune with your guests. Choose holiday tracks that range from classics to slightly lesser known songs, playing just 5 seconds of each. The guest who scores the most points gets control of the party playlist for the rest of the festivities.
Party Guest Scavenger Hunt
This will get people talking … literally. Create a scavenger hunt list and pass it out to party guests. But instead of finding objects, people need to find guests that meet the criteria of each thing on the list. Make it things like “Despises eggnog,” “Actually loves fruit cake,” “Travels more than 1,000 miles for Christmas Day.” It will encourage people to mingle so that they can cross each thing off their scavenger hunt list.
Limbo
Is a party even really a party without a game of limbo in some fashion? For this you can either ask two friends to hold a long scarf as the “limbo stick,” lowering it for each passing level. Or Amazon has a super cute inflatable candy cane limbo game that is sure to be the life of the party.
Holiday Pictionary
Again, we’re taking a classic party game and giving it a Christmas-y twist. Make all of the Pictionary words festive to turn it into Christmas games ideas for adults. Ideas include candy cane, Christmas lights, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, Frosty the Snowman, sugar cookie, holiday movie and snow day, among others. Keep the words in a Santa hat or stocking for extra fun.
One-Handed Gift Wrapping
You know how bridal shower games often include creating a wedding dress out of toilet paper? Well, take that concept but apply it to gift wrapping a present … with one hand tied behind your back. Whoever wins the challenge gets to pick a gift out of the holiday grab bag.
Toilet Paper Snow Man
Piggybacking off of that toilet paper bridal shower game, set guests up in teams of two or three where one person poses as the “snowman” and the other team members have to wrap them up in a way that makes them look like one. Bonus points for finding accessories that outfit them in true Frosty style.
Guess What Happens Next: Hallmark Christmas Movie Edition
Hallmark Christmas movies are notoriously predictable, which is exactly why we love them. In this game, you’ll compile a list of questions about Hallmark Christmas movie storylines, and guests have to guess “what happens next.” For example, a question can be, “When an astrophysicist goes home for the holidays, what happens when she hops on her small town’s carousel?” (Yes, this is actually the premise of a real Hallmark movie). Make the answers multiple choice. In this case, the actual answer will be “She travels back in time five years and falls for her childhood frenemy.
Rooftop Drop Bean Bag Toss
Think of it like the lawn game cornhole, but make it holiday appropriate. Amazon’s Rooftop Drop Bean Bag Toss features a festive chimney along with red and green bean bags for tossing. It’s an easy way to get a little sporty if trivia isn’t really everyone’s thing.
Ornament Guessing Game
Have you ever tried your luck at one of those games where you have to guess how many jelly beans or gumballs are in a jar? This game is kinda like that one—only guests have to guess how many ornaments are on your Christmas tree. Winner gets an ornament to take home!
Gingerbread House Competition
The iconic gingerbread house is quintessential to holiday festivities, so why not make a competition out of it? Purchase gingerbread house kits at your grocery store or on Amazon (this set includes four houses in one box). Determine a judging panel among some of your guests, while the others break off into teams to create the most magnificent house of all and win bragging rights.
Santa’s Gift Sack Race
Get everyone’s hearts racing with a good old-fashioned sack race. But this time, instead of potato sacks, use the biggest “Santa sacks” you can find. It’s a great way to work off all of those sugar cookies you and your pals will likely be indulging in.
Untangle the Lights
No matter how organized you are, holiday lights end up becoming a tangled mess from year to year. Have your guests race to untangle sets of Christmas lights, with whomever finishes fastest named the winner.
Spoon-and-Ornament Relay Race
If this sounds like a riff on the classic spoon-and-egg race you’re absolutely right. Put guests in teams of two, and create a start line and a finish line. The person at the start line has to carry an ornament on a spoon and pass it off to a teammate waiting at the halfway point to the finish line. They will take the spoon and ornament and attempt to clinch the win by getting to the finish line fastest with the ornament still sitting atop the spoon.
Who Am I? Game
On Post-It notes or index cards, write the names of classic Christmas figures. We’re talking Santa, Rudolph, Frosty, Buddy the Elf, Mrs. Claus, Grinch, Ebenezer Scrooge, Ralphie from A Christmas Story—you get the idea. Each player blindly chooses a card with a character’s name on it without seeing who it is and holds the card up to their forehead so that everyone else can see. Then that player needs to ask everyone else questions to help them identify which character they are. Whichever player guesses their character asking the least number of questions wins.
What Are Good Christmas Games to Play at an Office Party?
Not all Christmas games ideas for adults are suitable for the work Christmas party, but there are plenty on this list that likely won’t break any HR rules. The best office holiday party games are:
- Ugly Sweater Contest
- Party Guest Scavenger Hunt
- Gingerbread House Competition
- Holiday Pictionary
- Name That Tune
Wrapping Up Your Christmas Party Games For Adults
When all is said and done, Christmas party games for adults can be a better way for everyone to go home with presents (or, rather, prizes) than a typical White Elephant gift exchange or Secret Santa. Of course if you also want to add in a Favorite Things Party element to the festivities, that could be a nice way to gift those you care about, too. Just remember, it’s not about how much money you spend, it’s about the time you spend together. Be sure to browse our invitation collection today and lock in the guest list for your soiree before social calendars fill up. Our party invitation maker is perfect for crafting the idea invite.No one is going to want to miss all of the Christmas party games you’re about to pull out of your Santa hat. In fact, they’re going to be talking about these memories for years to come and waiting for next year’s Christmas Save the date.
Photo by: Courtney Cook, Lore Schodts, Madison Kaminski, Jonathan Knepper, Jace & Afsoon, Greg Barbosa on UnSplash
