Our top 17 things to do for Christmas with our families

Read our guide on 17 things to do for Christmas with your family.

1. Go for a meal

It’s nice spending time with loved ones over Christmas. It goes without saying it’s the season for eating delicious food. Why not get the family together and head out for a nice meal? Nothing is stopping you from indulging in an early Christmas dinner before the big day.

2. Put up the Christmas tree

One of our favorite things to do for Christmas is putting up the tree. Get the whole family involved. Decide how you’re going to decorate the tree. Use tinsel, baubles, and lights to make your tree stand out with a soft ethereal glow. We recommend playing some Christmas music whilst you’re putting up the tree to get in the festive spirit.

3. Go ice skating

This is a great Christmas activity for everyone to enjoy. Ice rinks are usually set up throughout November and December, so be sure to visit before they close. Most ice rinks have props to help even the most novice skaters on the ice. There’s something magical about being wrapped up in the cold crisp air skating on the ice.

Why don’t you turn it into a competition and see who the best skater in your family is? This can be a fun way to bring out everyone’s competitive side.

4. Watch Christmas films

Another great thing to do for Christmas with your loved ones is snuggling on the sofa to watch Christmas films. You could spend the whole day watching back-to-back Christmas films. Bring your duvets and an endless supply of snacks and drinks and you’re set for the day. Some of our favorite Christmas films are:

• The Polar Express
• Elf
• Fred Claus.

You could make a Christmas film advent calendar, where you watch a different Christmas film each day of December.

5. Play in the snow

Whilst not everyone may appreciate the snow, here at Santa Academy, we love having snow days. You could enjoy a full day outside playing in the snow. Some fun activities you could enjoy in the snow include:

• Sledging
• Building a snowman
• Snowball fight
• Make snow angels
• Build an igloo.

After all that fun in the snow, warm yourself up with a delicious hot chocolate with whipped cream.

6. Christmas markets

This is a great event for all the family as there’s so much to do and something to suit everyone. Christmas markets have a range of delicious foods and drinks such as bratwursts, crepes, hot chocolate, and mulled wine. Other things to enjoy at the Christmas market are:

• Rides
• Music/Entertainment
• Stalls selling homemade gifts, decorations and toys.

7. Family photoshoot

Still looking for things to do for Christmas as a family? We have a great one you can do from home. Buy or make some Christmas themed props and create your own photoshoot from your living room. You could all wear matching Christmas jumpers and reindeer antlers. Have fun pulling silly faces and making memories. You could even use the photo for your Christmas card.

8. Go for a Christmas light walk

There’s nothing more magical than seeing houses decorated in colorful flashing lights. It’s great walking around your neighborhood and seeing how people decorate their houses. You could even extend your walk to a park and see what displays they have up.

Turn the walk into a game and see how many reindeer or snowman decorations you can spot.

9. Visit a Christmas lights switch-on

This is the perfect family activity to do as the Christmas light switch on is the official countdown to Christmas.

This is one of our favorite things to do for Christmas as we know the full family will enjoy it. Your children’s faces will light up when they see the lights on the Christmas tree. It will give them that sense of joy that Santa will soon be here. The Christmas light switch on is a magical experience and it’s a tradition that you can do each year.

There’s normally food vendors and entertainment such as a funfair and singers on at these displays making a more fun event.

10. Sing Christmas carols

A traditional activity you could do together as a family is sing Christmas carols to people in the community. You could get dressed in matching festive jumpers and start an annual tradition. Visit neighbors or the elderly and let the children fill their ears with festive cheer. You could raise money for a local charity. It’s a great way of giving back to those less fortunate. You could donate proceeds to the homeless shelter or food banks as these are crucial around the festive period.

Traditional Christmas carols to sing include:

• Deck the Halls
• Oh, Christmas Tree!
• We Wish You a Merry Christmas.

11. Visit a pantomime

 This is a fun thing to do for Christmas that all the family can enjoy. Pantomimes are a great way of supporting your local theatres whilst seeing a top-quality performance. Children will be fascinated with the characters, the story, and costumes. They’ll also love the ice cream during the interval. Some popular pantomime productions include:

• Cinderella
• Jack and the Beanstalk
• Aladdin.

12. Visit Santa’s Grotto

This one is more for the kids but we’re sure adults will still have fun. Kids love the chance to meet Santa in person and tell him about all the things they’d like for Christmas. It’s a magical experience that children will enjoy. They will be ecstatic when the elves invite them into the grotto to see Santa. As a parent, it’s a great feeling to see the smile on their face. Santa will usually give them a little present to open. Remember to take a photo of the kids with Santa. Add to the collection each year and see how they grow.

13. Do some arts and crafts

A great day out for the family is visiting an arts and crafts center and getting creative. Kids love getting messy with paints and glitter and I’m sure adults will get stuck in too. It’s fun making your own creations together as a family. Over Christmas time there are plenty of centers offering the chance to create some festive themed arts and crafts. You could hang your new creations from the tree, display them around your home or gift them to relatives. Some good arts and crafts activities include:

• Decorating baubles
• Making Christmas ornaments
• Paint pinecones
• Make a calendar.

14. Bake Christmas cookies

We haven’t run out of things to do for Christmas just yet. Another one to add to your list is baking Christmas cookies. If you’re going to do some baking over the festive period, you have to make some Christmas cookies. Let the full family get involved in the prepping, mixing and decorating. Your mouth will be watering when you smell those freshly baked cookies come out the oven. Why not make extra and gift them to family and friends?

15. Games night

It’s great spending time with loved ones, especially around Christmas time. Not every activity has to be expensive. Some can be done with no costs involved and from your own home, like hosting a games night. Grab all the board games from the loft and have some family bonding time. Have fun playing Monopoly, Mouse Tramp and Kerplunk. Add some snacks and drinks to the mix to make it a proper family night in.

16. Go on a treasure hunt

A fun activity the kids can get involved in is a treasure hunt. Parents can wrap up presents and hide them around the house and garden. Leave some clues to make it easier for the children to find the presents. Kids will enjoy hunting for the presents and seeing what surprises they have.

17. Make a gingerbread house

The final activity on our list of things to do for Christmas is to make a gingerbread house. We all like to indulge in something sweet and tasty right? Making a gingerbread house is a great way to get the family to work together. Everyone can have fun decorating the gingerbread house. However, the most fun will be eating it. Save us a piece!

Still need more ideas?

We trust you enjoyed reading our guide to things to do for Christmas. We hope we have given you plenty of suggestions to try with your family.

Stay up to date with Santa Academy! Find new Christmas stories on the Lacus Herald, written by our Author, Jill, to enjoy each day. Your little one can stay up to date with their favourite characters and all the latest news from Lacus Island.

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