You’ve decked the halls, trimmed the tree, donned your festive jumpers… Now it’s time for some family-friendly festive fun: Christmas games for kids of all ages.
There’s so much fun to be had over the festive season, from caroling to snuggling up for a Christmas movie, but what about Christmas kids’ games?
Keep your little ones entertained this yuletide with our fun Christmas games ideas.
Whether you’re looking for Christmas party games for kids, family Christmas games, or just some Christmas activities for kids to keep them busy, we’ve got you covered.
In this article 📝
- What is a good Christmas game to play?
- What games to play at Christmas with the family?
- How do you entertain kids at a Christmas party?
- What games do kids play for Christmas around the world?
What is a good Christmas game to play?
So, you’re hosting a Christmas party for your little ones, they’re all hyper on candy canes and chocolate. What next?
Never fear, we’ve got fun Christmas games for children that are perfect for your festive party:
1. Pass the Coal
Like ‘Pass the Parcel’, but Christmassy.
Wrap up a small, round (ish) present, like a bouncy ball or cuddly toy, in layers of black tissue paper, with smaller presents in-between the layers.
Make it extra fun with some ‘forfeits’ written on black paper for the ‘coal cards’.
Suitable for: Ages 2 and up, depending on how small the presents are between the layers. Littler kids will love tearing the tissue layers off, and it’s great for developing their motor skills.
2. Christmas Trivia
Everyone can play a fun Christmas trivia game!
If you have littler kids, add some easier questions to answer, or questions based on Christmas movies they’ve seen.
We like this one by Independently Happy, or you can write your own.
Suitable for: Ages 2 and up (try some easy-to-answer questions for younger kids.
3. Christmas Mad Libs
Mad Libs are always fun, so why not turn them into an even more festive Christmas game for kids?
Need some Christmas Mad Libs inspiration?
How about this one by Happiness is Homemade?
Suitable for: Ages 5 and up, as your little one learns to read and write.
4. Snowman Shy
Just like a classic coconut shy, but with homemade ‘snowmen’ instead!
Get some white plastic cups and draw on coal eyes, a carrot nose, a dotted smile, and a brightly-colored scarf.
Then, equip your little one with a beanbag or small ball, take aim, and fire!
The aim of the game is to knock down as many snowmen as you can!
Suitable for: 18 months and up.
5. We Wish You A Smelly Christmas!
This sensory Christmas game for kids is great for any age.
Find a few empty jars and fill each one with a famous ‘smelly’ Christmas item.
Then take it in turns to put on a blindfold, have a sniff, and guess what’s in the jar.
Not sure what to put in the jar?
How about some pine needles, peppermint candy cane, chocolate, cinnamon sticks, or dried orange?
Suitable for: 18 months and up.
6. Christmas Charades
A classic Christmas family game that’s perfect for a festive children’s party.
Either have each player think of their own Christmassy movie, activity, book, or TV program, or use these pre-made suggestions by The Shabby Creek Cottage.
Suitable for: 5 years and up.
7. Snowman Drawing Challenge
A fabulously festive Christmas game for kids when it’s time to calm things down.
Each player has a Post-it note on their head, and they have to draw a snowman on it, without looking.
But best for slightly older kids ‒ little ones who are new to drawing might end up with doodles on their faces!
Suitable for: 7 years and up.
8. Christmas Bingo
You’re never too young for a game of Bingo!
Make your own Bingo sheets and calling cards, or print out these by The Many Little Joys.
Cut out the calling cards, then jumble them up in a Santa hat, then start calling them out.
Your little elves can use green and red M&Ms or mini marshmallows for Bingo markers (provided they don’t eat them all too soon!).
Make sure you’re stocked up with a fun festive prize, like a bar of chocolate or toy, and the first to shout ‘Bingo!’ wins!
Suitable for: 4 years and up.
9. Silver Bells Memory Game
Get your little one’s minds whirring with this fun Christmas kids’ game!
Get a pack of Hershey’s Kisses and write some numbers (or mini festive drawings) on the bottom of each one in Sharpie.
Make sure that you have pairs of the same drawing or number.
Then, mix them up, put them on a table, and have your little elf match up the pairs in turns.
Suitable for: 2 years and up.
10. Christmas Corn Hole
A twist on the standard corn hole game, this Christmas kids’ game puts your little elf to work for Santa!
On a large piece of card, draw Santa’s sleigh, but make sure it’s drawn empty.
Then, load up your little elves with beanbags tied with string (the presents for the sleigh), have them stand a few feet away from the cardboard sleigh, and have them toss the ‘presents’ into the sleigh.
10 points for landing in the sleigh ‒ the elf with the most points wins!
Suitable for: 3 years and up.
11. Don’t Ring The Bells!
Let your little one practice their motor skills and spatial awareness with this fun Christmas game for kids.
Attach some jingle bells to string, and tie them like an obstacle course for your Christmas party guests to navigate.
Another great Christmas kids’ game to get the energy levels a little calmer.
Suitable for: 4 years and up.
12. Bell Pong
Like beer pong, but much more kid-friendly!
Set up your solo cups on a table, then have your little ones try to throw jingle bells into the cups.
Add points to each cup (more points for cups at the back) for a fun Christmas game with a prize.
Suitable for: 4 years and up.
13. Pin the Nose on Rudolph Game
It’s not a party unless you play ‘pin the tail on the donkey’!
This time, the traditional donkey transforms into Rudolph, and the tail becomes his classic red nose.
Suitable for: 3 years and up.
14. Christmas Emoji Riddles
Kids and adults alike will love these festive riddles.
Not played an emoji riddle game before?
All you need to do is guess the Christmas movie or song from a series of emojis.
You can create your own Christmas emoji riddles, or use a pre-made selection, like this one from Crazy Little Projects.
Suitable for: 7 years and up ‒ these can be a bit tricky, so better for bigger kids.
15. Ho Ho Ho Heads Up
The classic ‘Who Am I?’ game where each player places a post-it note with a Christmas character on their heads ‒ without seeing it.
Then, the rest of the party guests give them clues as to who their character is without saying ‘sounds like’ or revealing the character.
So much festive fun!
Suitable for: 5 years and up ‒ these can be a bit tricky, so better for bigger kids.
16. How Many Jingles?
Another fun sensory Christmas game for kids.
Pop some jingle bells into a gift box, wrap it up, then have your little elves shake the box to guess how many jingle bells are inside.
Don’t forget a prize for the winner!
Suitable for: 2 years and up.
17. Christmas Musical Statues
Another of the more classic Christmas party games for kids, Musical Statues is simple and so much fun.
Get your little dance machines on the floor, crank up the festive tunes, then pause the music at random times for them to ‘Freeze!’.
Anyone moving is out, and keep playing until there’s one dancer left.
Suitable for: 3 years and up.
18. Christmas Alphabet
Take it in turns to spell out the alphabet using only Christmassy words in this educational Christmas game for kids.
A for advent, B for baubles, C for caroling, etc.
Suitable for: 2 years and up.
19. Glove Gift Unwrapping
If your little elf is a teensy bit too quick at opening Christmas presents, why not turn it into a fun Christmas game?
Pop some gloves on your little peanut, then have them try to unwrap the present with them on. Want to make it even more challenging?
Oven mitts.
Suitable for: 2 years and up.
20. Christmas Pictionary
One of the most popular family games with a festive twist.
Prepare some cards to choose from at random, then take turns to draw what’s on the card and have the rest of the Christmas party guests guess what it is.
Suitable for: 5 years and up.
21. Storytelling for Santa
Another of our favorite educational Christmas games for kids, you simply take it in turns to say a word or sentence to create a festive story.
Keep it Christmassy!
Suitable for: 4 years and up.
What games to play at Christmas with the family?
Not sure which Christmas games to play with the family?
We love the ‘Minute to Win It’ Christmas games ‒ they’re quick, easy to learn, and aren’t as likely to end in tears!
They’re perfect for quick-fire fun during the yuletide season.
Not got long for your Christmas activities for kids?
Try these three Christmas ‘Minute to Win It’ games:
22. Christmas ‘Minute to Win It’ Candy Cane Catch
There are a few ways to play this game ‒ they get trickier!
First, for littler elves, put some candy canes into a bowl, and hand them one to hook the others with.
The person with the most candy canes hooked in a minute wins!
Or, for older kids, have them hold the ‘hooking’ candy cane in their mouth while they try to get as many candy canes as they can in a minute.
Or, for a truly tricky version, try it blindfolded!
Suitable for: 2 years and up.
23. Christmas ‘Minute to Win It’ Reindeers’ Ring
Ring toss, but festive!
Have your little elf don some reindeer antlers, get some plastic or inflatable rings, and take it in turns to throw the rings to land on the antlers.
The person who gets the most rings on the antlers in one minute wins!
Suitable for: 4 years and up.
24. Christmas ‘Minute to Win It’ Stack the Snowmen
Just like our Snowmen Shy from earlier in this list, this Christmas game for kids involves stacking the plastic (or paper) cup snowmen back up as fast as you can ‒ in less than a minute.
Suitable for: 3 years and up.
How do you entertain kids at a Christmas party?
Wondering what to do over the festive season when you’re not hosting a children’s Christmas party?
Have a look at these eight fun Christmas activities for kids:
25. Christmas Scavenger Hunt
A fantastic Christmas children’s activity that you can make last as long as you want.
Add more things to find if you want to keep the kids entertained for a couple of hours, or hide fewer, easier-to-find items for littler kids.
You can hide whatever you want, as long as it’s festive, but how about a ‘Twelve Days of Christmas’ theme, so you can keep track of what needs to be found?
Each little elf needs to find the 12 items from the song. Here are our suggestions:
- Pear (plastic or real) ‒ A partridge in a pear tree
- Toy dove ‒ Two turtle doves
- Toy chickens ‒ Three French hens
- Toy birds ‒ Four calling birds
- Gold-colored bracelets ‒ Five gold rings
- Plastic (or chocolate) eggs ‒ Six geese a-laying
- Toy swans ‒ Seven swans a-swimming
- Milk duds ‒ Eight maids a-milking
- Cut-out music notes ‒ Nine ladies dancing
- Ken dolls ‒ Ten lords a-leaping
- Slide whistles ‒ Eleven pipers piping
- Toy drum ‒ Twelve drummers drumming
Suitable for: Any age, just make sure to choose bigger items that are easier to find (and at the same eye level) for littler elves.
26. What’s in Santa’s Hat?
Another sensory Christmas activity for children.
Put some secret items into a Santa hat, then have your little elf put their hand in and guess what’s inside.
Not sure what to put inside?
Toys, candy canes, jingle bells, oranges, and festive decorations make great additions.
Suitable for: 2 years and up.
What games do kids play for Christmas around the world?
Feliz Navidad, Joyeux Noël, and Meri Kurisumasu!
Over 160 countries around the world celebrate Christmas, but what games do children play over the festive season outside of the US?
27. Australia
Christmas in Australia is pretty different from the US ‒ it’s summer on the other side of the world!
So instead of building snowmen, a fun children’s Christmas activity in Australia is to build a sandman, using sand and water, like a sandcastle!
28. China
The majority of people in China don’t usually celebrate Christmas in the ‘traditional’ sense, but do embrace some activities like decorating and getting together with family.
There aren’t many children’s Christmas games in China, although they do have a tradition of giving each other apples on Christmas Eve, with messages of goodwill printed or etched onto the skin.
29. France
In France, kids’ Christmas games are similar to the US, but there are a few children’s Christmas activities that are different.
On Christmas Eve, children leave their shoes by the fire or the door for Santa (Père Noël) to fill with presents.
They also put on small festive puppet shows at home for their family to watch.
30. Germany
In Germany, from St Nicholas Day (December 6th) until Christmas Eve, children are encouraged to tidy and clean their toys and rooms, ready for new gifts on Christmas Day (Erster Feiertag).
Why not turn it into a Christmas game for kids by making it a competition?
31. Italy
Christmas is a family affair in Italy, with a lot of different traditions for children.
One particularly fun Christmas activity for kids in Italy is caroling from house to house in their neighborhood during the Novena (the nine days in the before and including Christmas Day).
32. Spain
In Spain, families and neighborhoods get together on La Noche Buena (the Blessed Night, also known as Christmas Eve) to light bonfires called luminarias to honor the journey taken by Mary and Joseph on Christmas Eve.
These have turned into fun festivals with lots of Christmas activities for children.
33. Mexico
Mexican Christmases take some inspiration from Spain, but have a few of their own traditional Christmas activities for children to enjoy.
On the first evening of Las Posadas (the nine days leading up to and including Christmas), children in Mexico have a piñata party.
If you want to pay homage to your Mexican heritage, why not incorporate a Chritsmas piñata party into your festive activities?
34. Japan
Christmas isn’t seen as a religious holiday for the majority of families in Japan, more a time to spread joy and spend time with family.
For Christmas kids’ games in Japan, they like to play ‘Russian Mini Puff Tree’.
To play, buy or make some small cream puffs, and add something spicy to a few of them (wasabi is traditional in Japan), then mix them up and stack them so they look like a Christmas tree.
Next, take turns to pick random cream puffs to see who gets the spicy ones!
That’s it! 34 fabulously festive fun Christmas games for kids!
Which ones are your favorite?
Or do you have any special traditional Christmas activities for kids in your family that we haven’t listed?
Share them with the rest of the community on Peanut!
And if you’re after Christmas presents for your little one, we’ve got plenty of ideas for girls and boys of all ages!