10 Christmas Board Games & Party Games For the Whole Family

One thing we love about Christmas is that it comes unfailingly every year! It means Christmas trees, lights, gifts, tales of Santa Claus, happiness and, best of all, having a fun holiday with the family. 

This festive period is every kid’s dream and, to a certain extent, every adult’s reprieve from work. It’s also the best time to spend moments with your family, creating long-lasting memories you’ll cherish.

Since the Christmas holiday usually comes with a lot of enjoyment, having fun with the family is not a very difficult thing to achieve. You can always go to the cinema to see a movie, go Christmas shopping, start a new Christmas tradition or play Christmas board or party games. 

What are Christmas Board and Party Games?

If you have decided on having a Christmas party or a comfortable gathering of friends and family, one of the ways to pass the time and ensure that the holiday is unforgettable is by engaging people by playing board games. 

These games are filled with the complete giddiness of holiday cheer! They mostly require items that you already have and can be used over and over again. At the end of the day, not only would you have had a successful Christmas gathering, you would have a fun game that you and your family can play anytime you want. 

What’s more? Every time you play the game, you will remember the high spirits you and your family were in when you played it during Christmas.

Spreading Cheer by Playing Games Together

The Christmas holiday is all about cheer, laughter, carols and giving gifts to loved ones. So even if your family isn’t the kind that is into playing board games or party games together—a situation which is highly unlikely, by the way—the good news is that Christmas board games can be used as gifts. 

You can always wrap the most trending ones up and give them to the kids as a gift. In a way, you would be contributing to the holiday spirit.

Furthermore, it is easier to communicate when you are playing games because everyone is relaxed and enjoying, without their phones or other electronic gadgets that can distract and hinder you from communicating with each other. 

Also, playing a game with the family improves everyone’s listening skills including the kids because they are all involved in the game and their opinions matter greatly to everyone else. 

Lastly, playing Christmas board games and party games with the family gives you all the traditional benefits board games offer like improving teamwork skills and cognitive skills, stimulating the brain and, of course, ensuring everyone is having fun.

What to Think About Before Picking a Game to Play

Simply deciding that you want to play a board game or party game during Christmas sometimes isn’t enough to ensure that the holiday is something to remember. There are many things that can go wrong too quickly and that is why this article is addressing the most important thing about getting a Christmas board and party game. 

Appropriate Age Range

One thing to consider when picking a game is the age range of the players. Think about it like this, a family with more young kids than older ones would definitely enjoy a different kind of game than a family with older kids. 

What should you opt for? If you have a family with younger kids, then you would want to pick a game with more colors and less brain work. You would want to pick something that can be easily understood and equally enjoyed by everyone in the family. 

If your family has older kids, then you would want to pick something fun and easy to understand but not so easy that it becomes ridiculous to play. You would want something a little brain-tasking that is capable of posing a challenge—but not an impossible one.

Length of Gameplay

As fun as playing games during Christmas is, nobody really wants to spend the whole holiday doing only one thing. Make sure that it doesn’t last so long that everyone will get bored and pray for it to finish. 

Ultimately, playing a Christmas board game is just one of the things that can be done as a family during the holiday. There are other events to explore, and engaging in one for too long can ruin the high holiday spirits.

Best Christmas Board Games to Play

Christmas is one of those few times that gives the family a chance to spend quality time together. And, because this time is so rare, you definitely don’t want to botch it by engaging in something boring.

Here are our 10 favorite Christmas board games and party games to play during the holidays!

1. Christmas-opoly

What we love about this game? It’s a fun family game that makes allowance for more members of the family than a conventional game.

If you and your family like the classic Monopoly board game, then you will like this game even more. It follows the path of a classic Monopoly but only with a little more fun and Christmas cheer. Just like the classic game, there are properties to buy, mortgage and sell, and, yep, the properties are Christmas-related.

Of course, there are also other perks to this game other than the fact that it has the classic Monopoly theme. It is also a family game, which can be played by two to six players—the perfect number for most families. It also has a Christmas theme with pieces like a reindeer, a teddy bear, Scrooge, a candy cane and a lump of black coal—all the things you see around during Christmas.

This game is easy to fall in love with by both young and older children because of its colorful and original characters. The benefit of this game does not just end with the holidays, this game is capable of teaching your children about the basics of economics while having fun and creating a wonderful holiday.

2. Tis the Season

Why we love this game? It can be played together with other popular trivia games even when the holiday season is over.

If you think you know everything there is to know about Christmas—right from the movies ‘til the history—then this game is definitely the one for you. It has a lot of information about Christmas, most of which are guaranteed to blow your mind. 

Tis the Season comes with a lot of game cards, with 1800 trivia questions revolving around Christmas TV, songs, carols, movies and the world, ensuring you and your children learn something new and fun while playing the game. There is just no way you can exhaust them at one party; they can be used over and over again at other parties, too.The questions in the game are also relevant to all age groups so everyone in the family can play and enjoy the holiday together.

You only need to mix them with some other trivia game cards. Lastly, this game is best for large Christmas parties with family and friends but also suitable for small Christmas gatherings. 

If you looking specifically for Christmas Bible trivia, make sure to check out this list for some fun Christmas questions from the Bible.

3. Spot It! Holiday

Why we love this game? It is a game guaranteed to improve the perception skills of the family as a whole.

If you have kids between four to 15, then you may seriously want to consider this game for Christmas. The reason for this? Two to eight can play this game and it is so easy to play, the name is practically explanatory. All you need to do is be the first to spot what one card has in common with another. Fail to notice it and you lose! 

There are many versions of Spot It!. They are all equally fun with 55 cards to draw and spot things in. This version makes use of holiday characters, decorations, treats, and more. No matter what combination of cards you draw together, there is always something in common.

This game is fun for parents teaching younger children to be more observant. It would go a long way in sharpening their perception skills. What’s more? It could be played outside the holiday season and it would still be as equally fun to play.

4. Pin the Nose on the Snowman

Why we love this game? It is a fun game that can be played by two to 10 children at a number of places, including the classroom.

If you have heard about the popular party game, Pin the Tail on the Horse, then the way this game is played should not be strange to you. 

In this game, there is usually a single snowman with a blank space around the area where the nose, which is usually shaped like a carrot, can be pinned. The kids look at the snowman and cover their eyes with a blindfold before trying to pin the carrot on it. Of course, they must be careful not to pin the nose elsewhere or they lose.

The wonderful thing about this game is that it is equally as fun for everyone who is playing the game, whether they have the blindfold on or not. One downside of this game, however, is that the snowman, noses and blindfold are all made of paper so they can only be used once unless you laminate them first.

5. Christmas Memory Match

Why we love this game? It gives the players the benefit of developing their cognitive skills while having as much fun as possible in this game.

Although Christmas is all about creating fun memories with friends and family, there is absolutely nothing that says these fun memories cannot be made while learning some core basic skills. 

Thus, if you have children who are above the age of three, and you want to improve their memory matching skills, then this game is the best for you. All you need is to have them memorize or examine the cards before flipping them around and picking the ones that match.

The Christmas Memory Match is a colorful game that can be played between two to four players, and is most suitable for young kids because it does not have anything to do with the ability to count or spell; all they need is to recognize the image on the cards.

The cards are made with hard durable material so it is extremely difficult to destroy and can be used for a long period of time at several events because of the universality of the images on the card.

6. The Santa Claus Game

Why we love this game? Because it is extremely rich in the holiday spirit and allows the little angels to play Santa and belt out their best “Ho Ho Ho”.

Have you or your kids ever dreamt of being Santa for just one night? Then you have come to the right place. This Christmas-themed board game—with emphasis on giving gifts and not merely receiving them—is capable of giving you and your kids the benefit of playing Christmas every time you want to play a board game together.

Easily played by children between the ages of three to seven, this game creates an allowance for two to four players, all of whom have a sleigh filled with gifts to disperse during the course of playing the game. 

It is also very easy to understand. The instructions are pretty straightforward and incapable of confusing the kids. During the course of the game, they can sing as many holiday songs as possible while twirling snowflakes. It does not take that much time to complete the game; in about 15-20 minutes, the game is usually more than over and the kids are ready to play another round or do other things.

7. 12 Days

Why we love this game? It is easy to add this as a new family tradition because of the extreme fun to be had when playing the game.

Inspired by the popular carol, 12 Days of Christmas, this perfectly illustrated Christmas-themed card game is one of the best ways you can light up your Christmas parties or gatherings. 

This game makes use of some traditional card playing technique, although there are subtle reminders of what Christmas is about, giving the cards as a gift to the other players. In order to win a round, the players must have a gift card or a Santa Claus or Mrs. Claus card. 

Furthermore, this game can be played and easily enjoyed by anyone who is above the age of eight, including adults and can be played between three to five players.

One good thing about this game is that it can be played any time of the year and it will still be as fun and relevant as it was during Christmas. Lastly, the game can be easily played even if you don’t speak English because the cards consist mostly of numbers. All you need to know are the instructions of the game.

8. Holiday Fluxx

Why we love this game? It can be played every holiday and it would still be a relevant party game.

This is simply the simplest and most interesting version of the Fluxx ever! It is a game that is guaranteed to bring life to any holiday. 

There are no complicated instructions to follow. The rules are flexible enough to be bent or tempered towards the whims of the players. That is why the game is described as a game that is never the same twice.

This holiday card game is a simplified version of the traditional Fluxx card game. This version comes without creepers that make the game hard to play or go on for a long period of time. 

It is also highly recommended for children who are between the ages of eight to 15 years and can be played between two to six players for a period of thirty minutes. After which, the game comes to a rousing end.

9. Letters to Santa

Why we love this game? It teaches the whole family how to strategize. Players must have a strategy before entering the game in order to win.

For adults, Christmas is an opportunity to spend time with family, play games and have fun. For kids, it is also a time to receive gifts from Santa. That’s the foundation of this game. 

Players rush to get their letter to Santa before anyone else so that their wishes can be fulfilled. It can be played for as long as possible by stating that whoever gets the gift first wins or lets it draw ‘til the 10^th gift.

This game has everything to recommend it for the making of a fruitful yuletide season. It’s best played by adults and children older than the age of 10, between two to four players, and within 15-25 minutes.

Lastly, Letters to Santa is a game that is easy to love by both young players and adults. It’s easy enough to understand by young children and engaging enough to capture the interest of the adults. 

10. Christmas Scavenger Hunt

Why we love this game? It is ideal for both a party filled with guests or a small gathering with the family.

Good at finding things hidden in plain sight? Then you may have just found your perfect party game! Spice up your Christmas party with a good ‘ol scavenger hunt your guests will love! Just grab the cards, divide into groups, and have each group hunt the items on their cards. The first team to get all the items on their cards wins.

This game comes with an indoor and outdoor deck. This allows groups to either run only around the house or around the neighborhood. It can also be played by two or more players (the number is limitless), who are six years or older. 

This game packs the perfect amount of fun to keep both the kids and adults interested. The cards can also be used at other scavenger hunt-themed parties.

Conclusion

And in the end, here we are. If you’re looking forward to the Christmas holiday, you’ll definitely want to play one of these games! They’ll be a fun addition to this year’s festivities and maybe even become a new family Christmas tradition!

If you’re looking for more Christmas games to play, check out these Christmas party games you can make yourself!