Whether you’re gathered around the tree with family or hosting a festive soirée with friends, Christmas games are the perfect way to create laughter, memories and a bit of healthy rivalry. 

After all, what’s Christmas without a little magic?

This year, take the time to make your Christmas merry and bright by arranging a few games the whole family can enjoy!

Here are some ideas to get you started:

Sneaky secret Santa… It’s a steal

What you need: Everyone must buy and wrap a unisex gift (decide ahead of time on the limit to spend). Do not put your name on the gift. Gather small squares of paper (one for each player), a pen, a container or Christmas hat to put the numbers in and a sense of humour!

How to prepare: Have a table or place to put all the presents. Each person should try to place their gift on the table without anyone seeing who bought it.

How to play: 

• Count how many people will be playing the game. Get the same number of small pieces of paper as the number of players. Write a number on each square. Start with one and go up to the total number of players.
• Each person must draw a number out of the hat.
• The person who draws number one chooses any gift and unwraps it.
• The person who draws number two can choose to steal number one’s gift or unwrap a new gift. 
• If they steal number one’s gift, number one gets to choose another gift to unwrap.
• The person who drew number three can steal any gift already unwrapped… Or, they can open a new gift.
• Whoever has their gift stolen, chooses a new gift.
• The game continues until the last person’s turn. This person is the luckiest, as they can choose any unwrapped gift they want… Or, they can open the last one.

This game is also called the White Elephant.

Get it unwrapped

• What you need: A variety of stocking fillers, plastic wrap, oven gloves, dice and a bit of speed!
• How to prepare: Roll out the plastic wrap on the floor. Place gifts at random on the rolled-out plastic and then roll the plastic back up. Make your rolled-up ball of gifts and plastic as big as possible. Tip: To make a bigger ball, tie two rolls of plastic wrap together.
• How to play: Everyone takes a turn to shake the dice. The first person to roll a double puts the oven gloves on and starts unwrapping the ball. They continue to unwrap until another person rolls a double. Any gifts that fall out while they are unwrapping, they keep.

Blow out those Christmas candles!

• What you need: A variety of prizes, about 10 tealight candles (you choose how long you want your line), a lighter or matches, and a big deep breath!
• How to prepare: Place the candles on a table or firm surface a few centimetres apart. Place a prize next to each candle. Light the candles.
• How to play: Taking turns, each person stands at the end of the table and blows as hard as they can to see how many candles they can blow out. They win the prize next to the last candle they blow out.

Get rolling!

• What you need: A variety of prizes or cash; a long table; plastic cups or small boxes; tape; and a round Christmas bauble (it will be used as a ‘bowling ball’).
• How to prepare: Tape the plastic cups or boxes to the end of the table so that the opening is level with the tabletop. Mark each cup or box to indicate which prizes they correspond with. 
• How to play: Everyone takes turns rolling the Christmas bauble across the table to try and get it into a cup. If they get it into a cup, they win the corresponding prize.

Spin and win!

• What you need: A ‘lazy Susan’ or something that can spin, cardboard to make an arrow and a variety of wrapped prizes small enough to be placed on the edge of the ‘lazy Susan’.
• How to prepare: Place all the gifts along the edge of the ‘lazy Susan’, make a cardboard arrow and place it next to the ‘lazy Susan’.
• How to play: Everyone takes a turn to spin the ‘lazy Susan’. They win the gift that lines up with the arrow.

Suck up that sweet

• What you need: Straws, sweets that are bigger than the hole in the straw, a shallow container to hold the sweets, and another container to drop the sweets into.
• How to prepare: Place the sweets in the shallow container, the straws on the table, and put an empty container on the table.
• How to play: Everyone has a turn to place the straw over the sweets and suck them up one at a time – with their hands behind their back. Players must use the suction created to drop the sweets into the empty container. The person who completes the challenge in the fastest time wins.

Watch: Other fun Christmas game ideas: