The Big Christmas Bucket List Of Fun Activities For Families
The build-up to Christmas gets more intense every year… and then Christmas Day is over in a flash. So why not spread out the festive fun by creating a Christmas Bucket List for your family?
A bucket list is a brilliant way to make the most of every day during the festive season, to keep kids from simmering over in anticipation of the big day and to help you savour spending quality family time together.
Wonderful Christmas Bucket List Ideas
Cherry-pick from the ideas on this list to create your own bucket list of ideas to help make Christmas memorable for you and your family.
Visit a Christmas Tree Farm
Take a family trip to a local Christmas tree farm to pick out the perfect tree. Kids will love the adventure of choosing their own tree.
Decorate Gingerbread Houses
Gather the family around the table to decorate gingerbread houses. The disasters are almost as much fun as the successes!
Write Letters To Santa
This is a lovely tradition to instil in your children. It’s also a great way to get them practising their handwriting!!
Have a Christmas Movie Marathon
I’m not suggesting you do the whole marathon at once. But how about you put together a Christmas Movie Marathon list and work your way through it over the festive season.
Make Tree Ornaments
Spend an afternoon crafting homemade ornaments that will become family heirlooms (of sorts!). It makes decorating the tree extra special each year.
Go Ice Skating
Visit a local ice skating rink for some festive fun and then sip on hot chocolate afterwards.
Bake Christmas Cookies
Set aside an afternoon to bake Christmas cookies together, then set the kids loose decorating them. Bag them up and give them to friends and neighbours as early Christmas treats.
Visit Santa Claus
There are only so many years that kids will want to visit Santa Claus, so make sure you make the most of every single one of them.
Set Up A Hot Chocolate Bar
Set up a hot chocolate bar for an afternoon with different toppings like marshmallows, whipped cream, and candy canes. Let the kids create their own custom hot chocolate drinks.
Read Christmas Stories
Gather a collection of Christmas books and read a different story each night before bed. This can become a cherished holiday tradition that kids look forward to each year. Remember to save The Night Before Christmas for Christmas Eve!
Visit A Crazy Christmas Lights House
Every town, city or neighbourhood has one, sometimes they even do it as a way to raise money for charity. So go on, seek out the zaniest house covered in Christmas lights.
Go Carolling
Organise a carolling outing with friends or family. Singing Christmas carols door-to-door is a fun way to spread holiday cheer and get the kids involved in the community.
Have a Family Game Night
Dedicate an evening to playing board games or card games with the family. How about mixing in some classic board games with fun Christmas themed games like these from our Christmas Games Bundle of 16 fun games for all the family.
Make Christmas Cards
Create handmade Christmas cards to give to family and friends. It’s especially lovely to give handmade cards to older relatives who will so appreciate them.
Host a Christmas Craft Day
Set up a crafting station with various holiday-themed projects. Kids can make decorations, gifts, or even their own wrapping paper and cards. It’s a great way for everyone to take a load off and chill out being creative for a few hours.
Have a Pyjama Day
Betwixtmas - the days between Christmas and New Year - are perfect for having a family pyjama day. Watch movies, read books, drink hot chocolate, eat comfort food and stay in your PJs all day long!
Go on a Holiday Scavenger Hunt
Create a scavenger hunt with holiday-themed clues and items to find. This can be done indoors or outdoors and is a fun way to keep kids active and engaged.
Go To A Christmas Show Or Pantomime
Look for local performances of holiday concerts, plays - A Christmas Carol with Scrooge is always a good one - or a pantomime and book seats early! It’s a great way to soak up the magic of Christmas whilst being entertained.
Make Reindeer Food
Mix oats and glitter to create ‘reindeer food’ that kids can sprinkle on the lawn on Christmas Eve. This fun little tradition always adds an extra layer of excitement to Christmas Eve.
Donate Toys to Charity
Teach kids the joy of giving by having them pick out toys to donate to a local charity or toy drive. It's a meaningful way to share the holiday spirit with those in need and let’s face it, it’s also a good way of decluttering before the next influx of stuff1
Have a Cookie Exchange Party
Host a cookie exchange party where each guest brings a batch of their favourite cookies to share. Have mulled wine ready for adults and hot chocolate for the kids.
Make A Christmas Eve Box
Now this isn’t an essential, there’s enough else going on at Christmas. But if you have the brain bandwidth, putting together a Christmas Eve box with a few fun bits is a great way to keep kids from brimming over with excitement for Christmas Day. (Link to MML Christmas Eve box guide)
Go on a Winter Nature Walk
Bundle up and take a walk through a local park, nature reserve or even a wintry beach. Look for signs of winter and enjoy the crisp air. Bring along a thermos of hot chocolate to keep warm.
Have a Christmas-Themed Photoshoot
Whether you send out family photo Christmas cards or not, the festive season is a great time to set up a mini photoshoot with festive props and backgrounds to create photos you can look back on for years to come.
Make a Holiday Scrapbook
A holiday scrapbook is a great school holiday project for kids. They can fill it with photos, ticket stubs, and other mementos from your family Christmas activities. This is a great way to preserve memories and let kids practise their creativity.
Host a Family Talent Show
Organise a family talent show where each member can showcase their special skills, whether it's singing, dancing, or telling jokes. This is a particularly great idea if you’re hosting a family get together for extended family and friends.
Have a Christmas Puzzle Challenge
Choose a challenging puzzle that all the family can dip in and out of finding pieces to fit together for over the festive season. Our family does one every year and we all manage to play nice until it’s near the end, when the fight is on for who can complete it!
Create a Christmas Memory Jar
Ask everyone in the family to write down special moments and memories on slips through the festive season and place them in a jar. On New Year's Eve, gather everyone together to read and reminisce about all the fun times.
Make a Christmas Quilt
If your family is creative and good at craft you could challenge everyone to work on a simple quilt project together. Each person can contribute a square with their own design, creating a cosy keepsake to keep you warm.
Make a Christmas Countdown Chain
Create a paper chain countdown to Christmas. Each day, remove one link from the chain, building excitement as the big day approaches.
Put Together A Christmas Playlist
Put together a Christmas playlist of your family's favourite Christmas songs. Encourage everyone to add their choices to the playlist, then you can play it on Christmas Day.
Visit a Christmas Market
Take a trip to a local Christmas market and stock up on artisanal gifts, decorations and festive food.
Make Christmas Crackers
Create your own Christmas crackers filled with small toys, jokes, and candy. Then use the crackers to decorate the Christmas Day table.
Make a Christmas Piñata
Make a Christmas-themed piñata filled with candy and treats. It’s a fun addition for kids to look forward to after all the gifts have been opened on Christmas day.
Make a Christmas Bird Feeder
Create a bird feeder using pinecones, peanut butter, and birdseed. Hang it outside to help the birds feed when food is scarce during the cold winter months. Add an extra element by challenging your kids to keep a log of which birds visit the feeder.
Make a Christmas Garland
Create a festive garland using popcorn, cranberries, paper chains, or felt shapes. Kids can help with stringing the items together and hanging the garland around the house.
Have a Christmas Book Exchange
Host a book exchange party where each guest brings a wrapped book that they have loved reading and would like someone else to experience.
Have a Christmas Karaoke Night
Set up a karaoke machine or use a karaoke app to sing along to popular Christmas songs. Let’s face it, we can’t all sing like Beyoncé or Taylor, but it’s still plenty of fun.
Before you go...
Pop over to our Christmas Collection for more Christmas fun games and activities.
Other top Christmas inspiration:
16 Awesome Group Games For A Teen Christmas Party You might also like the Christmas Movie Bucket List. Then there's our Quick Fire Christmas Would You Rather Questions, plus Simple Ways To Make Christmas Memorable For All The Family and not forgetting, Fun Christmas Eve Activities For All The Family
