15 Christmas Party Themes to Spread the Holiday Magic in 2024

Jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle all the way! Oh, what fun it is to celebrate the season with a grand party!

Whether you’re hosting a soirée with friends or a jolly office bash, we’ve prepared the ultimate guide to help you host a Christmas party that will have everyone talking well into the new year. From glamorous winter wonderlands to hilarious ugly sweater shenanigans, we’ve got all the best Christmas party themes for adults to enjoy.

So grab a cup of cheer, put on your Santa hat, and let’s go sleigh this year’s celebrations!

🎅 Classic Christmas Party Themes for Adults

Embrace the charm and timelessness of the holiday season with a selection of classic Christmas party themes.

🎄 1. Christmas Past, Christmas Yet to Come

Get inspired by this classic Dickensian story, and take a journey through time with a Christmas Past, Christmas Yet to Come themed party. Choose a nostalgic look back into the 20s, 70s, or, if you’re partying with Gen Zs, even up into the 90s, or imagine what Christmas will look like in 30, 40, or even 100 years in the future!

🎄 2. Nutcracker Ballet Bash

Get ready to embark on a journey filled with beautiful music, stunning performances, and the joyous spirit of the holiday season with this timeless Christmas staple. This theme is all about sugar plum fairies, toy soldiers, and dancing snowflakes coming to life. The Nutcracker Ballet Bash is a theme for both fans of the ballet as well as those looking to immerse themselves in a festive atmosphere.

🎄 3. Santa’s Workshop

Bring the joy of creation to your celebration with a Santa’s Workshop theme. Turn your party into Santa’s workshop, and let participants work together on a DIY project. This type of party is a great opportunity to craft and connect, and each participant gets to take their creation home. Ideas for holiday crafts include:

🎁 Making Christmas ornaments
🎁 Painting candles
🎁 Making cards
🎁 Making seasonal wreaths.

🎄 4. 12 Courses of Christmas

A Christmas potluck party is always a great idea, as it takes the pressure off the host and allows participants to bring in their favourite dishes. This year give it a little twist and test your guests’ creativity, and let the potluck dishes be inspired by The 12 Days of Christmas carol. What will two turtle doves or eight maids a-milking inspired dishes look like? It’s time to find out!

🎄 5. Favourite Holiday Song

Channel your inner Mariah Carey, and get ready to sing your heart out with a favourite holiday song theme party. Ask your guests to dress up as their favourite holiday song or artist and then perform their song karaoke-style. You can continue your party with more karaoke hits!

🎄 6. Winter Wonderland

The winter season is all about cosiness, warmth, and comfort. So why not bring this feeling into your party with a Winter Wonderland theme? Decorate with white, silver or gold accents, and ask your guests to dress accordingly. Keep the lighting dim and play ambient music to capture the mood.

🎄 7. Red (and Green) Carpet

Roll out the red (and green) carpet for an elegant Christmas celebration! Invite guests to dress in their finest festive attire for an evening of glamour and sophistication. With sparkling décor, exquisite cuisine, and plenty of champagne toasts, it’s a holiday affair worthy of Hollywood’s elite.

We have other great ideas for elegant Christmas themes if that’s your cup of hot cocoa!

🎄 8. Helping Elves

Embrace the spirit of giving and invite your guests to turn into helping Elves and participate in charitable activities. Those can include wrapping gifts for retirement or childcare homes, assembling care packages, or raising funds for a favourite cause. It’s a heartwarming way to come together, celebrate the season, and make a difference in the lives of others.

🎅 Unusual Christmas Party Themes for Adults

Bring a twist to your holiday celebrations this year with these out-of-the-box ideas, perfect for unusual but merry celebrations.

🎄 9. Reindeer Races

Gather around for a party full of games and competition. Guests can participate in games like reindeer relay races, antler ring toss, and sleigh-pulling contests. You can also play board and card games. It’s sure to be a night filled with laughter and playful competition, where everyone’s a winner in the race to spread Christmas cheer!

🎄 10. Ugly Christmas Sweater Party

This Christmas party theme is bellowed for a reason! Invite guests to wear their most outlandish, colourful, and creatively hideous Christmas jumpers for guaranteed laughter. Organise a contest for the ugliest design, and don’t forget to snap many photos!

🎄 11. Christmas Around the World

Join Santa on his tour and bring holiday staples from around the world to your party this year. Whether it’s a French Yule log or Italian Panettone, global holiday traditions will add an international flair to your celebration.

🎄 12. Dancing with the Christmas Stars

Put on your dancing shoes and take to the floor for this cheerful holiday dance bonanza. Either simply put on your favourite dance numbers, or organise a dance class for you and your guests. With twinkling lights and festive tunes, you’ll dance the night away in a whirl of joy and jingle bells.

🎄 13. Tropical Christmas

Do you love Christmas but hate winter? Then this theme is for you! Deck your party space with palm trees, sandy beaches, and exotic tropical decorations, serve summery cocktails and Caribbean-inspired delicacies. Santa in shades? Now that’s a tropical delight!

🎄 14. Holiday Movie Night

Lights, camera, Christmas cheer! From Elf to It’s a Wonderful Life, play a marathon of timeless classics, serve themed snacks, and celebrate the season with cinematic splendour. For extra fun, ask your guests to dress up as their favourite Christmas film characters.

🎄 15. Christmas in the Barbieland

In case you missed it: 2023 was the year of Barbie. After its record-breaking opening weekend and the impact the film made even before its premiere, we cannot imagine the Barbie theme not taking over any and every party that will take place this year and beyond, even a Christmas one.

The theme is actually pretty easy to carry out because, with Barbie, you can be anything you want: an accountant Barbie, a CEO Barbie, a stay-at-home-mom Barbie, and, of course, a Christmas Barbie. And, as we learned from the movie, Kens can be anything they want too! So everyone will find it easy to dress up and play along.

🎅 Final Thoughts

So there you have it, 15 Christmas party themes for adults to make your holiday celebrations merry and bright! Whether you’re going for a traditional theme or planning to switch things up a bit, a dull yuletide is not in the books this year. So grab your tinsel and twinkling lights, and get ready to host the most unforgettable Christmas party!

For more seasonal cheer and inspiration, check out our Christmas section.

FAQ