15 Fun Office Christmas Party Ideas
Santa has a big job to do when it comes to Christmas, so he might skip over office buildings and just visit homes. It’s up to you to bring Christmas to the office! Are you up for playing Santa?
Invititations
When it comes to office Christmas party ideas, first things first is you don’t want anyone complaining “I didn’t get the memo!” Therefore, it’s probably necessary to reach out to each busy employee by a couple of means: email and printed memos.
For your office memo, include the following information:
- Title: Memo, Memorandum
- Header: Basic memo info: To, from, date, and subject.
- Event info: Date, time, venue
- Detailed info: Type of food to be served, potluck info (if applicable), contests to prepare for, gift exchange, and basically any other details that pertain to your office Christmas party.
Sample Christmas Party Invitation Wording
If you have all of this information and a friendly message, then your memo is all set! Here’s an example:
To: All office staff
From: Cindy Lou Who, Human Resources Director
Date: Wednesday December 10th, 2014
Subject: Annual Office Christmas Jingle
It is with joy and much anticipation that I announce our annual Christmas Jingle! This fun celebration will be held on Tuesday, December 23rd in the conference room and rear patio beginning at 9am. Be advised that this year, we will only be working a half day on the 23rd which means you are all free to leave after the party!
Don’t forget to bring a wrapped gift valued at no more than $25 for our traditional Dirty Santa Gift Exchange, and don’t forget to brush up on the 12 Days of Christmas! Also, those who decide to stay after the party to help clean up will be paid for their time.
Be sure to join in this celebration! All phone lines will be cut off so there will be no work allowed! I hope to see you all there!
Decorations
What is a Christmas party without some good decorations? For an office Christmas party, here’s some cute office Christmas party ideas:
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Stockings: Wherever it would look nice, hang stockings with each employees name on it. This can also be used as favors or to put favors in, but more on this later!
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Cubicle/office decorating: Leave the decorating up to each employee and allow them to decorate their own personal spaces!
- Christmas tree: Set up a Christmas tree for everyone to pitch in and decorate together like one big, happy family!
What's your favorite Christmas dish?
Food
Every party needs good food, and for an office party, there’s usually lots of mouths to feed. Here’s a few food options to consider when looking for office Christmas party ideas:
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Holiday potluck: Have everyone sign up to bring a favorite holiday dish. This is usually a pretty successful thing for an office to put together.
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Order pizza and wings: If you are keeping the office party casual, pizza and wings are normally a winner! Maybe order some salad for those eating on the lighter side, too.
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Restaurant party: Rather than worrying about planning food, plan the party at a restaurant and foot the bill there instead. To make it easier to budget, you can put together a mini menu for people to choose from; anything that they want beyond the menu is their financial responsibility.
- Beverages: If you are throwing the party at the office, consider having eggnog, apple cider, water, soda, and tea as beverage choices. If alcohol is allowed, be sure to set a limit!
Christmas Gift and Game Ideas
- 16 Best Christmas Party Games
Who doesn’t love a good Christmas party? Make the party a time to remember with these fun Christmas party games for kids, families, and office parties! - 25 Dirty Santa Gift Ideas Under $25
If you want to stay on the 'nice' list, you best play nice and bring a great gift to your Dirty Santa party! Check out our list of the best 25 Dirty Santa Gift Ideas under $25! - Christmas Gifts for Coworkers: Gift Exchange Ideas
Looking for Christmas gifts for coworkers, you've come to the right place! Have a small budget? We've got you covered! Check out the list of gift ideas below: Under $20, Under $50, & Under $100!
Games
Just because the party is at work, it doesn’t mean you can’t actually make it fun! All work and no play makes the mind a scary place! Lighten the mood by including a few office games!
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Cubicle decorating contest: Many offices will decorate the entire office, but why not make it a contest for fun? Each person is responsible for decorating their own personal space. If you want to make the judging quicker, you can limit the contest to a door decorating contest instead! Winners should be announced and recognized at the party.
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Dirty Santa: AKA Chinese gift exchange or white elephant gift exchange, this is a way for each person to give and receive a gift without spending a lot of money! Alternatively, you can do a secret Santa!
- Musical Santa hats: Everyone stands in a circle holding a hat except for one person, then the music starts. When a hat is passed to you, you must pass it to the next person until the music stops. When the music stops, everyone holding a hat must quickly put it on their head, and whoever doesn’t have one is out, taking one hat with them until one person is the winner!
Favors
Although favors aren’t really a necessary part of an office Christmas party, it still adds a nice touch. Here are some office Christmas party ideas:
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Go home early: If this was not announced, place a piece of paper in each stocking sending them home after the party rather than back to their desks!
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Christmas ornaments: These can be relatively inexpensive and always bring a smile to peoples’ faces!
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Cookies: Who doesn’t love festive Christmas cookies? Peanut butter blossoms and frosted sugar cookies are my favorites!
So there you have it, a bunch of great office Christmas party ideas! Ho-ho-ho!
