The holiday season is a time for office parties and get-togethers with friends and family. But it can be difficult to stay connected when you’re using teleconferencing technology instead of meeting in person.
Still, there are a few tricks you can use to make your remote celebrations go smoothly. In this guide, we’ll show you how to host the perfect virtual holiday party.
Planning Your Remote Holiday Party
There’s no busier time of year than the holidays. So, you’ll need to plan your virtual holiday party accordingly.
Send Invitations in Advance
In order to catch your guests before they make other plans, you should send out your invites at least a month or two in advance. This is especially important if you plan to exchange gifts and then open them during the event, as you’ll need to account for shipping time.
Prep Ice Breaker Games if Appropriate
Also, think about what you want to achieve with your virtual holiday party. If everyone at your gathering already knows each other well, a game could be a lot of fun. But if you’re planning a company event and want more of a team-building feel, you may want to focus on personal conversations instead.
Set Up Breakout Rooms in Zoom for Large Groups
Of course, it’s hard to have a conversation with a large number of people at the same time. This is especially true if your virtual holiday party will have dozens or even hundreds of attendees. In this case, you should take advantage of the breakout rooms Zoom and many other teleconferencing apps offer.
Breakout rooms allow your guests to split up into smaller groups. This can be perfect for having more intimate conversations and can also make any games you play more manageable. Just make sure that you know how to set up this feature as the host before your party starts (for example, if you use Zoom, check out their support guide on enabling breakout rooms).
Virtual Holiday Party Activities
If you do decide to play games at your virtual holiday party, we recommend the following options:
- Patchwork Adventures: In Patchwork’s signature game, Mr. Douglas’s Treasure, each player is sent a real-life package of puzzles, clues, and locked pouches. Everyone must work together to solve the mystery and find the treasure—this unique experience won’t be forgotten by your guests anytime soon.
- Airbnb Online Experiences: Airbnb offers more than just vacation rentals. With their Online Experiences service, they have all sorts of escape rooms and scavenger hunts that you can remotely attend.
- Pinturillo: The only issue with the two options listed above is that they can cost you a good bit of money. If you’re on a tight budget, Pinturillo offers a much more affordable activity for your virtual holiday party. It’s basically an online version of Pictionary, and it’s completely free.
- Goat-2-Meeting: This isn’t exactly a game, but it’s certainly a lot of fun. Goat-2-Meeting allows you to take a tour of the Sweet Farm animal sanctuary. It also lets you host barnyard critters such as Kevin the pig and Niblets the goat as distinguished guests of your virtual holiday party.
With a wide range of virtual holiday party ideas like this, your guests might even have even more fun than if they had met up in person.
