Virtual Christmas Party Ideas For Work 🎅 Christmas Metaverse

What is a metaverse Christmas?

Christmas in metaverse is a virtual way to celebrate one of the most important holidays. Virtual Christmas parties can encompass almost everything as traditional offline events without needing a physical location. Instead of driving or flying to a venue, visitors can join the online platform from anywhere.

Even after the lockdown, virtual Christmas events are still popular. First and foremost, due to the range of benefits that make them outshine traditional in-person parties.

• Low cost
  Booking a convenient place on Christmas Eve can cost a fortune. Plus, all the necessary employee documents and tickets can make pricing out of control. On the contrary, a virtual event doesn’t require a location. So an online celebration already helps reduce your budget by almost half and save you time by eliminating the bulk of organizational processes.

• Easy-to-attend
  Online parties provide you with an opportunity to gather every member of your team wherever they are. There’s no need to spend money on flight tickets or look for the most convenient time. For a virtual party, participants just need to have an internet connection.

• Seamless networking
  Remote workers lack team interaction. Besides working processes and meetings, there may be no more touchpoints between them and the rest of the team. So online team buildings for international teams are a chance to get to know each other and form more meaningful relationships.

• Unlimited
  Unlike the physical venue, the virtual space has no restrictions on the number of participants. Throwing a party for 10 or 250 employees is almost the same for an online platform. This means you don’t have to worry about your company size because you can be sure that no matter how many employees decide to attend your virtual Christmas party, there is a place for everyone

• Interactive
  No one gets bored at online parties because every activity is suitable for any number of people. You can easily break a large group into several subgroups in breakout rooms during a meeting. Thus, everyone gets a chance to play a game. In fact, whatever performance you decide to include in the event, every team member will be in the front row to watch and participate.

It’s worth noting that in addition to these benefits, there is one pain point that you should keep in mind. The most sensitive and elusive goal at a virtual Christmas party is engagement. When people arrive at an ordinary party, they usually join circles with their acquaintances’ to start with small talk.

While at virtual parties, many feel uncomfortable being the first to start a conversation on an “open mic.” To raise the level of engagement and give colleagues the spirit of Christmas, you’ll need a detailed script that includes partying, games, and other nuances.

Checklist of Christmas virtual team building activities

Most people strongly associate laptops, phones, and other devices with working routines. Therefore, it’s hard for a team to focus on getting in the party spirit if they’re using these. So instead of having fun, they, by habit, start scrolling corporate chats, running the numbers, and checking their inboxes.

Working routines are a Christmas spirit killer. Your primary responsibility is to shift their attention from day-to-day tasks to catchy online Christmas party ideas. After all, Christmas is a big holiday for the company, where the whole team sums up the year’s results and shares their achieved records and goals for the following year. If you want to throw a party that will win the hearts of your team, the following checklist can help you to get started.

I. Send an invitation for Сhristmas online activities

An invitation is the first step to impressing a team. Therefore, your letter should pique people’s interest while simultaneously being informative. Make sure to include all the details of the event: time, date, and link. When there’s an option to get together from the office, mention this too. Plus, if the online platform is not familiar to your colleagues, leave brief instructions on how to register and join the event.

Next, to stir up interest at the party, tell a little about it in the invitation. It is worth mentioning what the dress code and theme of the party will be, what competitions and master classes you’re going to hold, whether you invite guest stars, and other virtual Christmas ideas for work that you’ll implement

The design of the invitation also makes a big impact on how your party will be received. You can design the template yourself or use online resources to create a digital envelope that your colleagues can open, read, and save as a keepsake.

II. Think about Christmas ice breakers virtual activities

You need to start working on engagement from the launch of your virtual Christmas party. Don’t wait for one of the employees to start the conversation. As mentioned, online parties have a slightly different atmosphere from offline events. So it’s up to you to break the silence. To do this, you can use several virtual Christmas work party ideas that will help warm up the crowd a little.

1. Gains and Goals

Summing up the year’s results is typical for companies and many individuals. The activity “Gains and Goals” will help to share these results and get to know each other better.

1. First, divide the Miro board into two parts.
2. Call the left side Gains and the right side Goals.
3. Ask everyone to write on the left side the most fantastic thing that happened to them that year, and describe their goals for the next year on the right side.

For example, you can write that you held a virtual team Christmas party this year and your goal is to go on vacation more often or spend more time with your family.

2. Take a picture

The photo booth is the most popular place at a corporate party. Unfortunately, online parties often lack such a great place where you can take a photo of the whole team as a memento of the annual event. Still, there’re at least three ways to fix this shortcoming.

The simplest is to make a screenshot. It may sound dull, but if you ask everyone to change their video backgrounds to a Christmas-themed one, it’ll help other attendees.

The most challenging way is to invite everyone to take a photo of themselves and send it to a shared folder. Why is it so difficult? Because just a few may agree on taking a picture.

Finally, the most innovative way to bring everyone together is to provide your participants with digital tools. You can find a service that works just like a virtual photo booth. Once your employee makes a selfie, the service automatically edits their photo and changes backgrounds in seconds. So everybody gets pictures of the party’s memories.

3. Christmas Bingo

It is impossible not to hear Jingle Bells at least once during the season. This song plays in every supermarket, café, and even on the streets. Christmas bingo is one of the most popular virtual Xmas party ideas for work that helps identify those who most often run into stereotypical stories about the winter holidays.

To play Bingo, you need to create your own bingo list or use a ready-made template. Include the most common activities such as “Made a snowman”, “Watched Home Alone,” and so on. Then, share this list with others and ask them to check the actions they performed already. As the game progresses, pay attention to the most interesting cases and ask the players to share their experiences.

III. Choose themes for Christmas virtual events

Choose a theme to make enhance the contrast between your virtual party and a work meeting. The general theme makes developing a full-fledged scenario for an event more accessible.

Note that many don’t see the need to dress up unless they have to leave the house, so probably a costume virtual Christmas party might be the wrong choice. However, you can ask your colleagues to use some accessories for the overall atmosphere.

Christmas is already a theme for parties. Santa Claus, elves, Rudolph the reindeer, and more provide enough details for a complex composition. Nevertheless, you can come up with your own ideas. Here are some examples of interesting virtual Christmas party themes that you can implement.

• Campfire gatherings

Bonfires ooze with the vibe of comfort. This is the best place to talk with colleagues, share a story, and have a lovely evening with music and virtual Christmas party games for work.

Most importantly, with an online platform, you do not need to make a real fire, just put a video of a virtual bonfire to create the atmosphere and think about a few other details. Deliver a small set with the needed accessories for cooking smores and making hot cocoa to your coworkers in advance. You can also send a little candle that they can light up during your event.

• Pajama party

Remote work gives all of us absolute freedom in choosing how we dress for work. So why not take advantage of pajamas as your party theme? It’s a costume party where everyone can be themselves. Ask co-workers to accessorize their look with pillows, an eye mask, or a soft toy.

Better supply your employees with the necessary little things. Send warm branded blankets or knitted socks suitable for your party and winter evenings. This cozy theme fits small and well-known teams. Many choose this theme even for offline parties.

• Superhero league

Growing up, you probably tried to follow your hero or role model. Your virtual party may be the best place to reveal your childhood superhero. However, as mentioned before, people might not be in the mood for a costume party, so you’ll need to boost their spirits a bit.

To motivate people to dress up, hold a contest for the best costume or the most catchy story of a character. And most importantly, there must be a range of interesting gifts for winners.

IV. Send physical elements to implement Christmas virtual party ideas

Counterintuitively, the physical details are essential to a virtual party to provide a tangible experience and a sense of unity. It would be better if you took care of it in advance so everyone can receive the package at the same time. So, what can you send to your employees?

1. Sets for workshops

If you’re going to arrange any kind of Christmas team building activities virtual, your team members will probably need some extra tools and ingredients. Take advice from the workshop host to compile a list of everything required to buy the necessary products.

Some services even offer ready-made kits and deliver them, making it easy for you. Be sure to leave a comment to your colleagues that they will need this set during the virtual party.

2. Food and drink

It might be a bit old-fashioned, but parties without a buffet table look less attractive. You can use food delivery to please your colleagues with a small traditional dinner or send Christmas snacks in parcels. If you’re worried about product transportation, consider long-lasting treats like a hot chocolate mix, marshmallows, candied fruit, roasted nuts, cookies, and candy canes.

3. Christmas-themed accessories

In this category, you can add anything from home decor items like garlands, wreaths, and instant snow to dress code details like funny headbands, scarves, and hats. Depending on the party’s theme, you can add other elements that complement the overall atmosphere of the holiday. If some of your team is joining your party right from the office, try to decorate the room with similar details so as not to break the theme.

V. Pick virtual office Christmas party ideas and Christmas virtual games for work

Besides management speeches and Christmas icebreakers virtual activities, your party should include different kinds of entertainment for different tastes. To start small, think about performances. Who can you invite to spirit up your virtual event? It can be singers, artists, or professional hosts. Doing so will ease your job as an organizer and fill your virtual Christmas party with joy.

When creating a holiday scenario, pick enough Christmas online party games to play with the whole team. You can decide on quizzes, trivia, drawing, and guessing options. Various online tools help you hold any activity online, like dividing groups into different breakout rooms, sharing slides, arranging quizzes, etc. Virtual Christmas games for work are the best way to engage with team members and encourage cross-department communication.

List of Fun virtual Christmas Party Ideas

1. Mixologist workshop

What would a party be without delicious cocktails? It’d be even better if your employees could prepare them like professionals. Invite a certified mixologist and set up a virtual bar. Consider both alcoholic and non-alcoholic options so that everyone can enjoy tasty drinks.

In addition to the workshop, a professional bartender will tell more about a drink’s history, which gives every participant a unique experience. To hold a mixology workshop, send special ingredients to your employees in advance.

2. Dance lesson

Few are willing to accept a proposal to dance in front of colleagues, but the majority can support a dance class as one of many virtual Xmas party ideas. Learn some energizing moves with a trainer and enjoy the music. The workshop is suitable for active teams.

So before choosing this activity, ensure you understand your employees’ interests. Otherwise, this class won’t be as successful as it could be. Most importantly, as the host, you should join the class too to inspire the shyest employees.

3. Workshop on painting gingerbread

Gingerbread cookies have become an integral symbol of Christmas just like Santa Claus or a Christmas tree. So instead of buying ready-made cookies, offer your colleagues the chance to make their own while implementing one of the most engaging Xmas virtual party ideas.

Please send your colleagues all the necessary ingredients for decorating and a couple of gingerbread pieces for a workshop. It will be inconvenient if you spend half the party baking cookies. A professional pastry cook will help you prepare a beautiful dessert or even assemble a whole gingerbread house. It all depends on how much time you have for this activity.

4. Carols singers

Professional singers are a great option for those who love carols but aren’t into singing them. You can book a whole virtual concert or play just a few songs between games. Even a couple of recognizable tunes will give your event the miraculous spirit.

Perhaps your small show will turn into karaoke because it’s hard not to sing along when you know all the words by heart. A great option is to play virtual 12 days of Christmas together. If your team has people from different countries, find their traditional Christmas songs and add them to your playlist.

5. Gift exchange

Gift exchanges are the most important event of the winter holiday. And if you think a virtual Christmas party can’t use a Secret Santa game, you should have another thought coming. After all, you can now give fantastic and helpful gifts in digitized form. The easiest option is a gift card.

A few weeks before the party, use a randomizer to distribute who gives a gift to whom. Be sure to indicate the budget and ask participants to fill out a short questionnaire about their hobbies. Based on the questionnaires, it will be easier for employees to choose a gift card for their desired store or any other digital gift. During the party, everyone receives their gift, which can be used immediately without leaving home.

8 Virtual Christmas games that create the holiday spirit

There are many simple yet fun games you can play with your team members. Here you’ll find the most easy-to-implement options. You’re not limited to these virtual Christmas games for office only, but the list includes the most popular activities for you.

1. Name that song

There are a number of famous Christmas songs as well as rare finds. Check how well your team members know the songs.

How to play:

• Put together a playlist of 15 songs.
• Send your players an online form with 15 blank spaces.
• Once everyone is ready, play 10 to 20 seconds of the first song and ask them to write down the form name of the song. Better to choose the parts without words to make the game more interesting.
• Once you’ve played all the songs, check the answers and announce the winner.

2. Scavenger Hunt

Scavenger hunting is one of the best virtual corporate Christmas party ideas if you’re looking for a way to stir up your co-workers a little.

How to play:

• Create a small list of Christmas items everyone has at home and send people out to find them.
• When watching the incredible race, just wait until the winner collects all their treasures. The list can include a variety of things. For example, ask people to find their winter coat, warm blanket, Christmas tree decorations, or favorite holiday present.
• A little physical activity can raise endorphin levels that cheer people up. After all, remote work is often a sedentary lifestyle, and it is time to change that.

3. Charades

A party guessing game is perfect for a virtual holiday event. The rules of the game are simple and clear:

• Divide all participants into two or more teams.
• Each team chooses an “actor” who gets their list of words. The more terms the actor can describe to their team without uttering a word, the more points the team will earn.
• Try to create equal lists for each team, including simple words like Santa Claus and snowman and complex ones like the Polar Express and Scrooge.

4. “Can You Hear Me Now?”

You might prefer drawing fun virtual Christmas games to play with coworkers if you’re not in the mood to showcase your colleagues’ acting skills.

How to play:

• Put several teams into different breakout rooms.
• Each team member receives one secret word that they can’t share.
• The team captain becomes the first “Describer”, while others are “Drawers”.
• The Describer tries to explain their world using geometric terms, such as shapes and lengths. For example, when describing the word “Christmas tree”, the Describer can say to draw three triangles, one below the other.
• The first drawer who gets the Describer’s word right must say it aloud. The others can show what they have drawn.
• Once a team has guessed all the words, they can exit the breakout room.
• The first team to finish is declared the winner.

5. What’s next?

Home Alone is the highest-grossing Christmas movie of all time. People go back to watching Kevin McCallister’s story so often that they can even speak his lines word-for-word. What about other winter holiday movies? How well do your colleagues know their stories?

The easiest way to check this is to play the “What’s next?” game. Choose a dozen movie scenes, but do not fully show them to participants.

For example, play a scene from the movie Home Alone when Kevin returns from the grocery store. However, pause the movie right before Kevin’s bag rips. Then ask your players, “What’s next?” You can give options for answers, or you can complicate the game. Whoever guesses the most scene endings will win a prize as the biggest fan of winter holiday movies.

6. Film Dubbing

Along with high-class films, there are those whose plots didn’t win the viewer’s hearts. Some of these movies are so bad that you may not even have heard their names. This is what makes them best for fun online Christmas activities.

• Select scenes from bad movies and show them to participants without sound.
• Divide the participants into teams and ask them to come up with lines that can replace the original text.
• It’s a game of creativity, so there are no winners. But there will be a good mood with interesting stories.

7. Mafia: Christmas edition

Mafia, a.k.a Werewolves, is a well-known party game that can get you into the real Christmas spirit with just a few slight rule changes. First, you need to assign a role to each player secretly.

Here we have just four roles:
Grinch: Grinch steals gifts from children and tries to hide his bad temper.
Children: They are the majority in this game. They don’t have extra power, but they hope the Grinch doesn’t take their gift.
Elf: An elf can save one child’s gift each round.
Santa: Santa can reveal each player’s ability to find the Grinch.

For a 10-player game, you need 2 Grinches, 6 Children, one Elf, and one Santa.

How to play:

• The game starts at “night.” All players close their eyes, and the narrator ensures that everyone follows the rules. The narrator then invites the Grinch to wake up, and the Grinch chooses a gift to steal from one of the sleeping players.
• Once the Grinch has finished, the narrator tells the Grinch to go back to bed and wakes up the Elf. The Elf picks the player they want to give a gift to and goes to sleep.
• The last move of the night is Santa, who points to any player. The narrator can answer if the player is the Grinch or not.
• After that, the sun comes up, and people open their eyes. The narrator announces who lost their present during the previous night. If the Elf made the right decision, then everyone still has their gift. Players argue about who the Grinch is and vote throughout the day.
• At the end of the round, players without a present and those excluded by voters are eliminated from the game. From now on, they can only silently observe the game.

8. Christmas Trivia

Who is the smartest one on your team? Winter trivia questions will help you find it out. It seems that Christmas is such a famous holiday that no more mysteries are left to discover. However, many filler questions can still be tricky for some.

For example, did you know the tradition of putting up a Christmas tree came from Germany? Or, can you name all of Santa’s reindeer?

Think and make a list of the most interesting questions. With the help of online tools, you can simultaneously conduct a test for the whole team and announce the winner based on the results.

What do you need for Christmas games online?

• Instruction

It may seem that the rules of playing Christmas work games virtual are clear and known to everyone. However, game instructions aren’t superfluous detail, but rather a guarantee that each player will understand all the nuances. Add rules to a Miro board or Google slide and ensure everyone can access them. In the instructions, describe the game’s purpose and each player’s role.

In addition, answer any questions the teams have, if any. This pregaming stage will take quite a bit of time, but it ensures the game itself runs smoothly.

• Digital tools

If you need to incorporate digital tools for playing games, you should describe to your employees how to use them. Most of today’s new online instruments are user-friendly. However, you need to tell your coworkers beforehand the list of tools they will use.

For example, you can use Zoom as a virtual Christmas party venue, Miro as a bulletin board and bingo place, a photo editing app as a photo booth, and so on. You can include brief instructions on your invitation cards or take a little time before each activity to share all the info.

• Additional items

If you are using hybrid games, then players will need some things on their hands. For example, for the game “Can You Hear Me Now?” players need a pen or piece of paper to draw what the Descriptor tells them.

To avoid such trifles before each game, ask colleagues to prepare the necessary items at the beginning of the event. This rule doesn’t apply to the game Scavenger Hunt, where the whole point is that players do not know what they need to look for before the game starts.

• Mood

For your colleagues to enjoy fun games, you need to take care of the overall atmosphere. That is why you shouldn’t immediately begin the event with games. To get started, use a couple of icebreakers and chitchats, only then should you move on to the main part. Try to put other virtual Christmas activities between games so that members can relax, talk, and take a break.

First of all, the entire Christmas event is dedicated to fun. Hosting an online party can be tedious, but luckily there are plenty of services out there that can do it all for you. Instead of the usual Zoom meeting, you get access to a 3D platform where your team can celebrate any holiday virtually: metaverse New Year party, Thanksgiving Day, Luna New Year event etc.

Party.Space will help you create an exciting metaverse event where even fans of offline parties will want to stay longer.