10 Virtual Holiday Party Ideas

I can’t believe Christmas is exactly one week away! We usually have a huge gathering with my extended family (30+ of us). We’ll feast, hang out, play some poker, and open presents. It’s always a fun time. But just like Thanksgiving, things will be different this year for our holiday gathering. It will be just the three of us (Jeff, Olivia, me), my parents, and brother. Although I’ll miss seeing my loud and hilarious cousins in person, I’m thankful that we’ll still be able to connect virtually to keep everyone safe. In partnership with Washington Department of Health, I’m sharing 10 virtual holiday party ideas to safely gather with friends and family! Can you guess which one we will be doing?

1. Secret Santa

I actually just did this virtual holiday party idea with my girlfriends a couple of weeks ago! We’ve been doing an annual girls’ Secret Santa exchange for the last five years so we weren’t going to let COVID get in the way of our tradition. We used Elfster to randomly assign Secret Santas. Gifts were either shipped directly to the person they were assigned to or dropped off on the front porch (contact-less, of course). We later opened the gifts over Zoom and guessed who the gifts were from!

2. Game Night

We used to host game nights every month at our house. COVID isn’t going to stop us from a little friendly competition. We love Codenames and I’m happy to report that the online version is just as fun and super easy to set up! I also recommend the House Party app which has four different games to play!

3. Costume Contest

My entire family and I love costume contests for our holiday gatherings to really get our creative juices going. One year we did an ugly Christmas sweater contest, and last year was who dressed up the nicest. The winners always went home with a prize. A costume contest is simple to do virtually too. Pick a theme, show off your costumes over an online meeting, and chip in for an e-gift card as the prize!

4. Virtual Tasting

Each family can send a dessert, wine, or hot cocoa package to each other. Hop on an online meeting and try each item together. If you want to make it into a contest, vote who sent the best dessert/wine/hot cocoa for a virtual prize!

5. Dance Party

Our family loves to sing and dance. I’m telling you, our family gatherings are crazy and fun! Take it online and get a festive fam jam going with your favorite holiday songs. You can also try Christmas caroling together or play name that tune!

6. Try A Recipe

Pick a recipe and gather the ingredients in advance. Then make the recipe together through a virtual meeting! You can do this with any kind of recipe including appetizers, dessert, or even cocktails. Jeff actually did this as a team work event and it looked like a lot of fun. They made ravioli from scratch. It was funny watching him make it cause he rarely ever cooks. But the aftermath wasn’t fun cause I had to help him clean up the big mess he made lol!

7. Decorating Contest

Decorate a gingerbread house or sugar cookies over Zoom and vote on the best one for a virtual gift card prize! Out of the many virtual holiday party ideas, this is my favorite one because it’s interactive and I think the kids will love it. I’m planning to propose it to my family!

8. Movie Night

After dinner, stream your favorite holiday movie. You can install Teleparty, which synchronizes video playback and adds group chat to Netflix, Disney, Hulu and HBO. Don’t forget to gather your favorite snacks and make a hot cup of cocoa for the coziest viewing experience!

9. Christmas Tree Tour

Show off your decorated Christmas trees online (here’s my holiday home tour). Each family can share the story behind the theme or pick one ornament that is meaningful and share why it’s your favorite!

10. Gather Online

No time to execute elaborate virtual holiday party ideas? No problem! You can simply gather online by setting up an online meeting with a click of the button. I recommend Zoom or Google Meet. Everyone can catch up with each other and go around sharing a funny story or what you’re grateful for this year. Be sure to schedule a time in advanced so everyone can plan around it!

I hope these 10 virtual holiday party ideas with Washington Department of Health sparked some creative ways to plan your gatherings this year! Check out their Safer Gatherings site for more ideas, tips and guidance. Even though we are physically apart, there are many new ways to virtually connect with friends and family. Stay safe and I hope you all have a happy holidays!