The Best Gift Exchange Games for Your Holiday Party

The Best Gift Exchange Games for Your Holiday Party 

Are you hosting or attending a party during the holidays with a small group of friends or family? If so, gift exchanges are always a fun way to break the ice and bond with others. You may be tired of the classic white elephant game, so here are a few different ideas to think about when planning your holiday gathering. 

Never Have I Ever Gift Exchange Game 

Create a list of holiday-specific “Never Have I Ever” statements, at least one per guest attending. These can be statements such as “Never have I ever eaten a fruitcake”, “Never have I ever said I loved a gift that I didn’t really like”, or “Never have I ever had Christmas with a tree”. Guests will place their gifts around the floor or on a table upon arrival and the statements are placed in a basket in the middle of the gifts. Each person selects a statement and if they HAVE done what is on the paper, they will switch seats with someone else. Once everyone has shifted around, they open the gift in front of them. 

Auction

If you have a Monopoly game, take the play money out for this one. The “auctioneer” will collect the gifts and distribute equal amounts of “money” to each player. Players can hold, shake and feel the gifts to try and guess what they might be. The gifts stay wrapped during the auction and whoever bids the highest gets to keep them. To spice up the competition, do another auction round after all of the gifts have been opened! 

Guess the Giver

Collect gifts as guests arrive and write a number on each of them. Write the same number on a notecard or small piece of paper and hand it to the guest to write a fun fact about themselves on the back. Have everyone take turns drawing the paper out of a basket, read the fact aloud, and take turns guessing who the fact is about. The person who guesses correctly receives that gift. Repeat until everyone has a gift. 

Roll the Dice

Have guests sit in a circle and distribute gifts among them. Pick an action for each number on a dice and enjoy the game as long as desired. Here are the action steps that can be associated with the dice: 

1- trade gifts with someone across from you

2- trade with the person to your left

3- trade with the person to your right

4- trade with anyone

5- unwrap your gift 

6- everyone passes their gift down twice 

It’ll be nice to let loose a little and play some fun games this season with those you love. You might even take home a fun new gift that you didn’t know you needed or wanted!