Are you looking for a way to liven up the annual office Christmas party? There are many free Christmas office party games that can be an entertaining addition to your next corporate holiday event and turn an otherwise dull party into something unforgettable.
Ideas for Christmas Office Party Games
There are many tasteful games that can be part of an office Christmas celebration. Games are a great way to break the ice and add a fun element to any celebration. Some ideas to consider for your office party are:
People Bingo
This game is a great way to get people talking. Create a bingo card with holiday-themed statements in the squares instead of the usual numbers. You can include facts like:
- Still believes in Santa Claus
- Watches It's a Wonderful Life every year
- Hasn't finished shopping for Christmas
- Has made a gingerbread house
- Has never gone ice skating
Players must find people to match the statements and write their names in the squares on their cards. The winner can either be the first person to get a traditional bingo by filling a row or the person who marks the most squares.
In addition to this version of Bingo, there are other options to consider as well. There are plenty of free printable Bingo cards that can be used for a game. Consider one with a Santa Claus theme or one with a Christmas theme.
If you need help downloading the printables, check out these helpful tips.
Santa Hat Game
This simple games requires nothing more than a bunch of Santa hats. To begin, pass out Santa hats to each guests as they enter the party venue. Have one person designated as the leader. The leader of the game will be in charge of taking off and on his hat. The purpose of the game is to follow the leader. If the leader takes off his hat, you do too. The object of the game is to take off your hat as soon as the leader does. If you are last one wearing a hat, you lose! To make the game humorous, have a penalty for the last to be wearing a hat such as having to sing a silly Christmas song. To add a challenge to the game, play it while food and drinks are being served and people are distracted by conversations.
Name That Song
Create a playlist of Christmas music and have your coworkers guess what song is playing. Play just the first line of the song and give people the chance to guess. People can sing along to the songs to make this game even more fun. To appeal to a variety of musical tastes, include old and new songs along with some unique ones to make the game more challenging.
Gift Wrap Game
This game requires a present to be wrapped in several layers of paper. The present can be a gag gift or something that will be appreciated. Everyone will sit in a circle and pass the gift around while music is playing. When the music stops, the person holding the gift will remove one layer of paper. Repeat the game until someone unwraps the last layer of paper. That person will be the one who wins and gets to keep the present.
Name That Logo
Before the party, cut out logos from magazines. Use recognizable logos and paste each one on a card. Assign a number to each card and have people write down their guesses. The person with most correct guesses is the winner.
Team-Based Games
Team-based games are good free Christmas office party games because they get more people involved in the fun. A few possibilities include:
- Charades: Charades is a classic adult Christmas party game. Ask the guests to form teams and act out holiday-related words and phrases for their team members to guess.
- Christmas Trivia: Fans of Jeopardy and other quiz shows will enjoy testing their knowledge. Create questions about the history of Christmas, Christmas songs, Christmas movies, and more. Christmas trivia can also be an individual game if you use it as a paper-and-pencil quiz.
- Impromptu Dress-Up: Give each team basic supplies like tape, scissors, and long sheets of colored paper. Ask them to dress one team member as Santa, a snowman, or another holiday-themed figure using only these supplies. Set a time limit and award prizes to the best costume creation.
- Pictionary: Pictionary is similar in spirit to charades, except people will be drawing the words and phrases for their teammates to guess. You will need a white board or an easel with a large pad of paper, so everyone can see.
Office Party Game Planning Tips
You should keep the following things in mind when planning your Christmas office party games:
- Goals: What is the purpose of playing games at your party? Do you want to use them as icebreakers to get people talking? Do you want to provide entertainment? Do you want an opportunity to award prizes? Knowing your goals can guide your game choices.
- Personalities: What is the personality of your office? Is it filled with hip, young twenty-somethings, is everyone close to retirement age, or is there a mix? More people will play along if you can tailor the games to their interests.
- Inclusiveness: Usually the first step towards inclusiveness is to call it a company holiday party instead of a Christmas party and to avoid overtly religious decorations and party themes. However, you should strive to be as culturally and religiously inclusive as possible in games, too. For instance, if you're playing a game of People Bingo, include a Hanukkah-based square, and make sure there are squares devoted to non-holiday-specific winter activities like skiing.
- Size of the party: The larger the group, the more difficult it will be to pull off a game involving the entire party. Smaller gatherings lend themselves toward team-based games where everyone can join in.
- Venue - Take the size and set-up of the venue into consideration when planning games. A room filled with tables offers less flexibility than an open space for mingling and dancing. You don't want to inconvenience the guests to play a game, and making guests scramble over tables and chairs could potentially cause injuries.
Make It a Tradition
Make your annual Christmas party something to look forward to each year by including a few fun games to the mix. Make it a new tradition to play a new game each year at the party and keep those games that have been a hit in the past as part of your yearly celebration.
