Creative Office Christmas Party Ideas

Last Updated: May 2, 2022

The air is getting crisp and it’s slowly starting to get colder in the office. The holidays have finally arrived, and you can’t wait to celebrate with your coworkers. Office Christmas parties can be great fun, and these creative office Christmas party ideas are sure to be a hit with everyone.

Jump to a specific section to answer your question:

• Corporate Christmas Party Themes
• Small Office Christmas Party Themes
• Best Office Christmas Party Ideas on a Budget
• Places to go for Office Christmas Parties
• Activities for Office Christmas Parties
• Food and Drink for Christmas Office Parties

Corporate Christmas Party Themes

Having a party for a large corporation may seem like a lot of time and money. However, that is not always the case. There are ways to throw a fun Christmas party for lots of guests that is cost-effective and done efficiently.

Cookie Exchange

One of the best parts of the holiday season is all of the baked goods. Having a cookie exchange is the perfect idea for companies of any size. It can be casual and done during either the day or night. Tell everyone beforehand to bring different kinds of cookies to work. Then, people are able to go around and taste the different types. Make sure they make a note on what ingredients are in the cookies in case of allergies.

Here Comes Santa Claus

Who says Santa Claus isn’t real? With this party theme, he definitely is. Have guests get creative and wear their best Santa Claus or North Pole outfits to the party. A prize can be awarded to the person that is most spirited and dressed the best. Serve Christmas themed food and drink, like Santa Claus bread and hot chocolate. Whether you choose a separate venue, or just decorate the office, make sure to use fake snow and lots of candy canes to resemble the North Pole.

Christmas Dinner Party

If you want to a more sophisticated company event, consider having a Christmas dinner party. This can be a semi-formal event, and should be decorated in a more elegant manner. For example, think of having poinsettia centerpieces and crystals on the tables. Snowflakes can be hung as a delicate accent.

Small Office Christmas Party Themes

Small office Christmas parties are tons of fun, especially if you add some creativity. With smaller parties, you are able to have gift exchanges and spend more time with all of the guests.

Sweater Weather

A staple of Christmas is the ugly Christmas sweater trend. Include on the invitation that you want everyone to come dressed in their favorite ugly Christmas sweater. Provide a prize for whoever has the ugliest sweater. If you don’t want to provide all of the food, make it casual and have a signup sheet for food and drink to bring to the party. This theme is a little more generic, so you should have an activity, like a gift exchange, for the party.

Christmas Potluck

This theme is also more casual. Tell people to wear Christmas themed clothing, like sweaters or green and red shirts. Again, you should have a signup sheet for the food and drink. This way nobody’s items will overlap. To be even more festive, you can provide holiday themed plates, napkins, and cups for everyone to use. Play Christmas music in the background to get everyone in the spirit.

Winter Wonderland

For something more whimsical, consider having a winter wonderland themed party. Tell guests to arrive in sweaters or something white. Fake snow can be on the tables, with snowflakes hanging from the ceiling. Remember to have some sort of activity, such as a cookie decorating contest. If you don’t want an activity, make sure you have food and drinks to people can eat and socialize.

Best Office Christmas Party Ideas on a Budget

Throwing a Christmas party doesn’t have to be costly. There are many ways that you can continue to spread cheer, while bonding with your coworkers on a budget.

Giving Back

Give back to the community this holiday season. If your company has a specific philanthropy they work with, then see if you can organize something around that. If not, do some research and try to volunteer somewhere local. This is the perfect way to bring joy into another person’s life, all while spending time with coworkers.

Capturing Memories

The best way to capture life’s moments is through pictures. Have a classic holiday party and create your own holiday photo booth. To do this, find a blank wall or an area you can put fabric for a backdrop. Create funny props out of paper and long sticks. People can hold up fake Santa hats or Santa beards. Have a camera that can self time, and be sure to share all of the pictures afterwards. These will be cherished for years to come, and can be used to decorate around the office.

Pajamas and Pancakes

This theme is three things: simple, casual, and fun. Have guests bring in various kinds of pancakes along with different breakfast foods. They can bring in a variety of fruit and juice for the party. Make a signup sheet so everyone knows what they should bring, and the kind of pancakes they should be providing. Everyone should come in their pajamas, and you can choose whether or not you want to have a gift exchange.

Places to go for Office Christmas Parties

Even though the office can be a great place to have a Christmas party, it can become repetitive. Branching out and going to a separate venue with activities can be a nice change of pace. If you aren’t sure about doing a separate venue or a specific activity, make sure to take a poll and ask your coworkers.

Christmas Light Tour

Christmas lights during the winter are simply magical. Why not admire them with your coworkers? If your company has the resources, rent vans or a bus to take everyone around a neighborhood with Christmas lights. If not, see if people would be willing to carpool.

Ice Skating

Another fun and interactive outing is to the ice skating rink. Give people the option of either skating, or doing another activity in the area. Ice skating rinks are also used to hosting large parties. They should have space for food and drinks, but make sure you still call ahead and confirm this with them.

Christmas Movie

If people are looking to be less active for the Christmas party, consider going to a Christmas movie. If there are good movies out, you can always go to the theaters. If not, find a venue to host the move yourself. Serve movie snacks like popcorn with peppermint hot chocolate. Give people the option to vote on their favorite Christmas movie or the movie they want to see the most.

Activities for Office Christmas Parties

No holiday party is complete without an activity. Whether people decide to just mingle, or they want to play a game, find the perfect activity for your office Christmas party.

Secret Santa

Any party is bound to be a good time if you include the classic game of Secret Santa. A few weeks to a month before the party, give everyone a little slip of paper. Have them write their name and three things they would ideally like for Christmas. Make sure to set a budget and have everyone abide by it when thinking of what they want. Then, put the paper slips in a bowl and have everyone choose one. If they get their own, simply put the paper back in the bowl. The goal is to buy a gift for another person, have them open the gift, and finally have them guess who their Santa is.

White Elephant

White Elephant is a classic game with a bit of a twist. Once again, set a budget for gifts. You should also specify what kinds of gifts can be involved. Sometimes with White Elephant people get joke gifts. Make sure you say whether or not these kinds of gifts are allowed. The gifts should be wrapped and then placed in a pile. People pick numbers for what order to choose gifts in, and gifts are opened as they are picked. People can choose to steal a gift from someone else, or open a new one when it is their turn. Gifts are then stolen up to 3 times until they are “locked” in possession of whoever has them.

Gingerbread House Contest

If guests of the party like to be creative and crafty, a gingerbread house contest is necessary. Make sure you provide the supplies for a gingerbread house. Buy gingerbread house kits, icing, graham crackers, peppermint sticks, and gumdrops. Use paper plates, plastic knives, and lots of napkins for easy cleanup. You can even get both cheap and festive aprons for people to wear in order to get more in the spirit of the holidays. Here are some additional gingerbread house decorating ideas. 

Cocktail Contest

For a less-conventional party game, have a cocktail making contest. Everyone should be in charge of their own supplies when making their favorite cocktail. They should bring the recipe to exchange with others at the party. Have guests try the different cocktails and vote on which one is best. The one that wins the vote could receive a festive personalized wine glass or beer stein. Remember to have two categories that people can enter for the contest: alcoholic and non-alcoholic.

Food and Drink for Christmas Office Parties

Food and drink is a must for any party, let alone a Christmas party. It’s important to provide food and drink for all of the guests attending the party. It’s especially fun during the holidays to get creative with the food and beverages, so look at these ideas for more inspiration.

Hot Chocolate Bar

Everyone thinks of hot chocolate when they imagine a beverage for the holidays. For the hot chocolate bar, have different kinds of hot chocolate. You can choose to do classic milk chocolate, white chocolate peppermint, or even dark chocolate hot chocolate. Have dishes filled with mini and normal sized marshmallows. Provide holiday themed cups or mugs to put the hot chocolate in. Set the cups up beforehand, and hang candy canes from the rim for a festive touch.

Cookie Wonderland

If you don’t want to have a cookie exchange, but still need a festive treat, make a cookie spread for your party. Use your favorite recipe for sugar cookies and cut out plenty of different shapes. Use cookie cutters in the shape of trees, candy canes, stars, and presents. You can bring them plain and have everyone decorate them as an activity. You can also bring them to the party already decorated and ready to eat.

Christmas Brie

An easy, and delicious, party snack is cheese and crackers. Take cheese and crackers to the next level with a Christmas brie wheel. To make this appetizer, wrap a wheel of brie in puff pastry. With the leftover dough, cut out a christmas shape, such as a tree, bell, or a star. Place that on the top of the wrapped brie. Whisk one egg and brush over the wheel so that the pastry sticks together. Bake the brie until brown and puffy, and put a twig of rosemary on top to garnish. Finally, surround with an assortment of crackers and have guests serve themselves.

Delicious Red and Green Food

Just because you want food to be festive, doesn’t mean that you have to use red and green food coloring. These food ideas come naturally colorful and will look just as good as they taste.

Bruschetta: This is the perfect red and green appetizer for any party. Dice up tomatoes, and add in garlic and chopped basil. Add salt and pepper and use it to top a toasted baguette.

Caprese Skewers: For something slightly more elegant, make caprese skewers as an appetizer. Get small balls of mozzarella, whole basil leaves, and cherry tomatoes. Place on skewers and drizzle with balsamic vinegar.

Christmas Pasta Salad: For larger groups, making a pasta salad is a good option. Cook red and green naturally colored pasta and let cool. Then add in feta, olives, and a dressing of your choice. Toss together and serve cold.

Chocolate Dipped Pretzels: For an extra snack or dessert, consider making chocolate dipped pretzels. Find green and red colored candy melts to dip the pretzels in. Melt the chips in a double-boiler and coat large pretzel sticks. While the chocolate is still soft, roll the sticks in a variety of sprinkles.

 

Christmas parties are the perfect time to spend time with coworkers. Whether you want to have a casual potluck, or put on a fancy dinner, make sure you stick to something you know everyone will enjoy. Not only is food and drink important for the party, but having an activity is too. You can also send elegant invitation to get everyone in the spirit. Encourage others to bring in holiday cards to share with their coworkers and remember to take plenty of pictures for memories.