Holiday party icebreakers for work and family.
40 festive icebreaker questions for office holiday parties, virtual team events and family get-togethers. Ask them out loud, or play them as a free live game where everyone votes on their phone, then guesses how the rest of the room voted.
Festive debates
- Real tree or artificial?Real · Artificial
- Holiday music can start…Right after Halloween · December 1 · Never
- Decorations should come down…On New Year's Day · Mid-January · Whenever
- Open presents on Christmas Eve or Christmas morning?Christmas Eve · Christmas morning
- Best holiday drink?Hot chocolate · Eggnog · Mulled wine
- Wrapping paper or gift bags?Wrapping paper · Gift bags
- Best holiday movie: a classic or something new?A classic · Something new
- White lights or coloured lights?White · Coloured
- Snow for the holidays?Yes please · No thanks
- Holiday cards: send them or skip them?Send them · Skip them
Office holiday party
- Secret Santa is…Fun · Stressful
- Ugly holiday sweater?Wear it proudly · Hard pass
- At the holiday party you'll find me at…The dance floor · The snack table
- The office party should be…Daytime · Evening
- Holiday party: at the office or somewhere else?At the office · Somewhere else
- Gift exchange: set a budget or anything goes?Set a budget · Anything goes
- Best office party game?Trivia · Karaoke · Gift swap
- Leave the party early or stay till the end?Leave early · Stay till the end
- Holiday party dress code?Festive · Casual
- Should the boss give a speech?Yes, a short one · Please no
Holiday would you rather
- Would you rather spend the holidays somewhere snowy or somewhere sunny?Snowy · Sunny
- Would you rather get one big gift or lots of small ones?One big gift · Lots of small ones
- Would you rather bake the cookies or decorate the tree?Bake cookies · Decorate the tree
- Would you rather host the holiday dinner or bring a dish?Host · Bring a dish
- Would you rather get socks every year or fruitcake every year?Socks · Fruitcake
- Would you rather wrap all the gifts or untangle all the lights?Wrap the gifts · Untangle the lights
- Would you rather have a quiet holiday at home or a big family gathering?Quiet at home · Big gathering
- Would you rather give the perfect gift or receive it?Give it · Receive it
- Would you rather see midnight on New Year's Eve or be asleep by ten?See midnight · Asleep by ten
- Would you rather shop for gifts early or at the last minute?Early · Last minute
Holiday this or that
- Gingerbread or sugar cookies?Gingerbread · Sugar cookies
- Hot chocolate or apple cider?Hot chocolate · Apple cider
- Ice skating or sledding?Ice skating · Sledding
- Board games or a movie marathon?Board games · Movie marathon
- Turkey or ham?Turkey · Ham
- Candy canes or chocolate?Candy canes · Chocolate
- New Year's resolutions: make them or skip them?Make them · Skip them
- Fireplace or fairy lights?Fireplace · Fairy lights
- Gift cards or real gifts?Gift cards · Real gifts
- Leftovers or a fresh meal?Leftovers · A fresh meal
A good holiday icebreaker is light, festive and easy for everyone, including the colleague who joined last week. If your group celebrates different holidays, lean on the winter, food and party questions rather than any one tradition.
Questions people ask
What are good icebreakers for an office holiday party?
Festive questions anyone can answer in a second: real tree or artificial, is Secret Santa fun or stressful, when can holiday music start. Keep them light, and steer clear of religion, politics, money and drinking.
How do you run an icebreaker game at a holiday party?
Start the free Holiday party pack on HTruths and put it on the big screen. Guests join with their phones, vote on each question, and guess how the room voted. Six questions take about ten minutes, which is just right before food or a gift exchange.
Does it work for a virtual holiday party?
Yes. Share your screen in Zoom, Teams or Google Meet and paste the join link in the chat. Everyone plays from their own phone or laptop, with no app and no sign-up.
Should I play these live or send a poll?
Play them live when your group is together at the same time, in a room or on a call: you show each question on a screen and everyone sees the reveal together. Send them as a poll when people are in different places or on different schedules: pick up to 10 questions, share one link, and people answer whenever suits them. The poll stays open from six hours to a week.
Ready to play?
Two ways to use this list, both free with no sign-up and no player limit.