The days before Christmas are your chance to throw down and have fun. To help spark your creativity, here’s 7 Christmas spirit week ideas!
Christmas spirit week shouldn’t just be for boomers and boring office parties. That’s why I want to help you build some excitement with your friends. I’ve come up with 7 of the best ideas you can use to get into the festive spirit. Some are classic ideas with a dash of Midwest charm, while others might just make you laugh and cringe. Trust me, they’re all fun!
Throw on your ugliest Christmas sweater and start sipping some hot chocolate because this list will really have you feeling the holiday season vibes.
7 Christmas Spirit Week Ideas
1. Ugly Christmas Sweater Party
It might sound a little overplayed, but there’s a reason the ugly Christmas sweater party is the G.O.A.T of all Christmas-themed gatherings. Most people already have one lying around, so it’s easy for everyone to participate. Plus, who doesn’t want an excuse to wear a comfy, oversized sweater?
It’s also a chance to get creative. Sure, you can just toss on one of your grandparents’ old Christmas sweaters, but I like to really lean into it. Throw on a Santa hat or some reindeer antlers. The aim here is to look as ridiculous as possible. I mean, it is an UGLY Christmas sweater party, after all.
Crank up the enthusiasm by adding a competitive element to the party. A few small prizes for different categories should do it. You’ll be surprised how much people get into the party when they’re chasing that win!
If ugly Christmas sweaters are getting a little too repetitive, there aren’t any rules saying you can’t wear Christmas pajamas or an elf costume instead! And who says it is reserved just for the party? Try out an entire ugly Christmas sweater day!
2. Christmas Karaoke
Whether you like singing or the idea of it makes you want to crawl inside yourself, you can turn Christmas karaoke into a fun event for everyone. What I like most about this idea is that everyone can participate. Even if you don’t have stage-worthy confidence, you can easily get a few laughs with a cringeworthy rendition of “Jingle Bells.” Remember, laughter is great for relieving holiday stress!
Like with Ugly Christmas Sweater Day, you can get everyone into it if you award prizes for the best and worst singing. If someone really doesn’t want to participate in the singing, let them be a judge.
3. The Gingerbread Games
Then there are gingerbread games. I always like putting a competitive twist on making gingerbread houses. Start by pairing everyone up at random. Each pair gets one of those corny gingerbread house kits you made when you were a kid.
Each duo has two hours to make the most ridiculous gingerbread house possible. Encourage teams to go for a unique theme rather than a plain old Christmas cabin. Have everyone anonymously vote on their favorite and award a prize. Will the SpongeBob-themed gingerbread pineapple house win, or will it be a gingerbread version of the Creel House from Stranger Things?
4. Make a Christmas Photo Booth
Throw together a Christmas-themed photo booth. Throw in plenty of props and Christmas decorations so everyone can get creative with their snaps. Elf ears, Santa hats, Rudolph noses, Christmas ornaments, a Frosty the Snowman top hat, and the classic “naughty” and “nice” arrows are all hits.
Get creative and spread some Christmas cheer! Making your Christmas-themed props and decking out the photo booth are half the fun. This is also a really inexpensive idea, as you can easily buy decorations at a dollar store and print selfie props you can download for free.
The best part? A Christmas photo booth is a huge hit with any age group!
5. Christmas Movie Marathon
Host a group Christmas movie marathon. Put together a list of Christmas movies that you can easily stream, then have everyone vote on their top three favorites. Tally the votes and pick the winners. Once you’re ready to start your festive flick binge, make sure you have plenty of classic Christmas snacks and drinks on hand.
If you want to make it even more fun, have several categories that everyone can vote on, like classic Christmas movies, corny holiday rom-coms, and Christmas comedies. After the votes are in, choose the winner from each category for your marathon.
6. Christmas Comfort Food Potluck
Have everyone bring their favorite Christmas comfort food for a festive feast. Pull out some Midwest classics, like cheese balls and potato skins, or lean into the Christmas spirit with more traditional holiday shareables, like pigs in a blanket or deviled eggs.
Make sure everyone knows that they don’t have to be Gordon Ramsay to participate in the fun. I suggest coming up with a list of items people can bring that don’t require culinary skills.
7. Christmas Gifting Games
There are plenty of Christmas-themed gifting games you can play with a group at your Christmas party. If you just want to run a traditional Secret Santa, randomly and secretly pair participants and have them buy small gifts for each other.
I recommend keeping the budget limit around the $10 mark. This prevents anyone from feeling left out or pressured to spend money they don’t have. You can also make it clear that handmade gifts are just as welcome.
Once everyone is ready, have them place their secret gifts under the Christmas tree. Have a volunteer elf hand the gifts to their respective recipients. It’s always fun to see if you can guess who gifted what to each person.
There are also plenty of exciting gifting game alternatives for your Christmas party or gathering, like White Elephant or Pass the Present. Don’t be afraid to put your own spin on the game by coming up with a unique format or a theme for the gifts.
Be Inclusive and Put Your Own Twist on Things!
I always recommend adapting these ideas to the preferences of your specific group this holiday season. Add your group’s unique sense of humor to the ideas and encourage everyone to get involved in the planning. There are no rules when it comes to holiday spirit week activities!
Don’t forget, the holidays can be lonely for some people. Group activities are hugely beneficial for mental health, so try to involve those who might not have much else going on this time of year.
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