Halloween is over and the hallmark movies are already coming out, which means it's officially the holiday season. Yes that’s right, it’s way closer than you think, so get out the decorations and your ugly holiday sweaters! And this year, we won’t be caught scrambling to organize a virtual holiday party for work… snow thank you. So start brainstorming now for the perfect way to wrap up the year and finish with a bang.
Whether your company is fully remote or still partly working from home, a virtual work holiday party is a vital part of boosting and maintaining company culture. Your employees deserve some time to kick back, have fun and celebrate their hard work. And this time, year we want them to have something to actually look forward to...instead of just another zoom happy hour. It’s time to spruce things up a bit and organize a curated, unique and memorable virtual event! Luckily, Santa’s elves have delivered: Here are 11 Ideas for your upcoming virtual holiday party for work.
1. A Very Merry Mystery | Host a Game Night
For your work virtual holiday party, why not attend an actual office party? That’s right, you can get everyone involved and excited by hosting a game night; one unlike anything you’ve experienced before.
This is A Very Merry Mystery. Set in the 90s, you’re all invited to the office holiday party of Kringle Toys Inc. They plan to recover from a… less than ideal year by launching a new and exciting toy at the party, but when the president of the company begins his annual speech, it’s discovered that someone has stolen all the toys and destroyed the prototype! Now 8 guests of the party have been identified as suspects, and it’s up to you and your team to figure out who could have committed such a crime, and save the holidays!
With 8 live actors, over an hour of scripted content and all the ugly christmas sweaters you could ever need, Moniker’s A Very Merry Mystery is the fun interactive game night you’ve been looking for. Navigate through Zoom breakout rooms to interview the eclectic suspects, and work with your teammates to discover the culprit and their motive. Combining team building with live theatre, A Very Merry Mystery is a great substitute for a night out with your colleagues. Come for the mystery, stay for the laughs and collaboration you won’t find at any other work virtual holiday party.
2. Santa’s Sack | Deliver a Gift to Their Door
The holidays are a time of giving, so why not take this opportunity to treat your team and let them know you appreciate their efforts and contributions. A little recognition can go a long way in making sure everyone feels valued and happy to be a part of the team.
Chocolate Soup offers curated boxes of treats and thoughtful gifts to send to each member of your team. With numerous delicious options to choose from, you’ll be able to choose something you know your team will love. Order these delightful surprises in tandem with another activity on this list, and kick off your virtual office holiday party for work by opening the boxes all at the same time. You’ll enjoy a sense of togetherness even from afar, and be able to treat yo ‘elf and everyone else!
3. Jingle All The Way | Add Entertainment To Your Party
A regular old zoom holiday party just isn’t going to cut it anymore. So, branch out by organizing some entertainment for your eve of festivities. Think: singers, a magician, a DJ, comedian, Christmas carolers or anything your heart desires. A platform like Idea Hunter is a great resource to find something that works for you and your team.
So grab some eggnog, don your best ugly holiday sweater and let the professionals take care of the rest. Hiring entertainment will give your team something to look forward to, and drastically level up your virtual holiday party for work to an interactive and exciting event!
4. Noel-It-All | Holiday Trivia
Having an activity during your virtual work holiday party guarantees that there is something to do, and helps you avoid those awkward zoom silences that we’ve all experienced. Bump up the action with some Holiday Trivia!
Who doesn’t love a little trivia and some friendly competition? With this Holiday Trivia, you’re in for laughs, excitement and more. Compete with both traditional trivia and extra challenges to see who is crowned the winter, oops I mean winner! With highly customizable options, you can even add in some questions specific to your company and team for a truly unique experience. This event will also include a timer so no one is tempted to hop on Google for the answers!
Bonus Tip: Team your colleagues up with others outside their department or who they don’t normally work with for extra team bonding. Or, add a fun incentive prize for the winning team to really amp it up!
5. It’s Not the Holidays Without an Ugly Sweater
The uglier, the better I always say. You definitely cannot go wrong with an Ugly Sweater Competition for your Virtual Holiday Party this year. Give your team ample time to thrift, borrow or even make an ugly Christmas sweater of their dreams. Then gather on your virtual platform of choice, enjoy some festive drinks and let the fashion show begin!
You can use a voting platform such as Get Feedback or Slido to streamline your voting (and keep it anonymous so no one’s feelings get hurt). Add a prize for the winner such as a wine gift basket, food delivery of choice, or an even uglier christmas sweater for all the laughs. Don’t forget to snap a photo and make some hilarious and festive memories at your work virtual holiday party.
6. And the Oscar Goes To... | End of the Year Awards
Add some glitz and glam to your regular old virtual office party for work with a Virtual End of Year Awards. Formally invite your team to a glamorous awards party where they’ll socialize, sip martinis or other holiday cocktails, and graciously accept awards for all their hard work this past year. Encourage everyone to dress up to make it feel like more of an event.
Awards can be geared toward employee recognition such as: most improved, hardest worker or employee of the year. Or, they can be hilarious such as most likely to be late to work or most likely to not be wearing pants on the zoom call. Arguably, we think the funny awards are the better option, but you know your team best! Add more to the event by including prizes, or creating award certificates as a funny souvenir from a fun and memorable night. Either way it will boost company morale, there will certainly be enough laughs and good cheer to last well into the new year.
7. Decorate, Eat, Repeat | Cookie Decorating
Bring everyone together with this classic and tasty work virtual office party. With tons of gingerbread house and cookie-decorating kits, this event will be easy, affordable and best of all, delicious.
Prior to your event, you’ll send out your kit of choice or even a bursary and list of ingredients that your team can gather themselves. Gather your team on the virtual platform of choice, grab a cocktail and get decorating. Level up by making it a competition for who can make the most beautiful sugar cookie or epic gingerbread house. Then everyone can enjoy their delicious treat all while sharing in a classic holiday tradition. Either way, this fun and easy activity will have your team laughing in no time. Remember, good things come to those who bake!
8. Snow Laughing Matter | A Holiday Themed Zoom Game
Let’s get creative with Moniker’s hilarious pitch-it style competition, Patent Pending. In this wacky and wild game, teams will compete to design and pitch a product, the more ridiculous, the better.
Each group will be given 3 target markets, 3 problems to solve and 2 hot trends to select from. They must choose one from each of these categories to work with to create their hot new product. In this special elf-dition, holiday version, players will be solving the problems of some festive characters. What happens when a Snowman wants to go inside? Or when an elf needs to reach something high up on a shelf? It’s up to you!
Compete with other teams to win the crowning achievement of the most creative and crazy pitch. Watch as your teammates come out of their shells and think outside the box to sleigh the competition.
9. Rebel Without a Claus | An Escape-Style Game
Jump into a fun escape-style virtual game with your team to save the holidays. Put your brains to the test as you work your way through puzzles, riddles and multimedia challenges to solve the ultimate mystery: Who Kidnapped Santa?
It’s up to you and your team to figure out which of the classic holiday villains from the likes of The Grinch to Hans Gruber committed this crime. It could be any one of these scrooges, so put your thinking caps on to catch the culprit and bring back Santa, before it’s too late!
10. It’s a Wonderful Life | Holiday Movie Night
Elf, It’s A Wonderful Life, Love Actually… we all have a favourite holiday movie that we know and love. So why not get together and share in the holiday movie magic. There are multiple streaming services out there (such as Teleparty, Watch2Gether, or more) that allow multiple people to watch a movie in sync and be able to chat at the same time. If you and your team are looking for a more lowkey way to celebrate the festive holiday, a movie night is definitely for you.
Have a large group? Have everyone vote on a couple of holiday options beforehand and divide up into smaller groups to watch the winning films. Colleagues can chat via the streaming app, have a laugh and feel connected in the comfort of their own homes. So get out both the popcorn and hot chocolate, sit back, and enjoy the show. This is fun and relaxing idea for your upcoming virtual holiday party for work.
11. Lift Your Spirits | Mixologist Class
Bring your team together for a truly unique virtual holiday party for work by taking a class with a professional mixologist and trying out some boozy drinks. Services such as Bar Chef offer curated experiences where you’ll get to learn and craft a fun holiday themed cocktail with the rest of your team. With customizable kits delivered right to everyone’s door, this fun, interactive and delicious activity is the perfect way to bring everyone together and elevate your party experience. Bonus: You’ll have a recipe in your back pocket to whip out at your next christmas party!
12. Deck the (Gingerbread) Halls! | Host a Virtual Gingerbread House Competition
If you’re looking for a simple holiday social for your virtual holiday party that can accommodate a small or large group, consider hosting a virtual gingerbread house building competition! This creative and cozy activity will fire up your team’s creative and competitive spirits while spicing up their homes for the holidays.With a relatively simple execution, this event is perfect for busy party planners. Depending on how much time you have to prepare, you can either mail each member of your group a Gingerbread House Kit or send them a virtual grocery Gift Card and ask them to pick one up at their nearby store.
Set up a Zoom call and as folks are logging on, make sure you’re playing some Holiday Hits to get the jingle bells ringing and the holiday energy flowing. Make the event even more festive by encouraging your participants to arrive in their favourite holiday sweater!Start the clocks and give participants your chosen length of time as you challenge them to decorate the most extravagant gingerbread house! Once time is up, you snow the drill! Give everyone the opportunity to show off their creation and have the group vote for who they think build the holiday house of their dreams. If it’s in the budget, we always encourage awarding prizes to the winners to incentivize everyone to put their snowiest foot forward.
Eat Drink and Be Merry
Keep the magic of the holidays alive with any of these festive options. Whether it’s an exciting competition, a mystery to solve or a classic game with a seasonal spin, this list has something for everyone. So get into the spirit, embrace this opportunity to get creative and start your planning now. The holidays are closer than you think, and it's truly the most wonderful time of the year! The snow-ball’s in your court.
Curious about our virtual experiences for the holidays? Contact us and we’ll use our expertise to help you choose the right fit for your team.
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