15 Great Holiday Party Ideas

“Jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle all the way…” wait a minute, it’s already almost the holidays?? Yes, it is! We’re getting a lot of holiday party DJ and photo booth inquiries, and kudos to those early planners! Most people, however, wait until late October and are scrambling to find a venue, holiday party entertainment, catering, etc. If you’re reading this, then you’re already planning and that’s great! 🙂 

Most of the time, by the time we get booked, the holiday party committee has already made the major decisions, such as where the party will be and the food that will be served. Sometimes, the planning committee already has a theme, too! We just got booked for a James Bond-themed event, recently. We’re looking forward to that one! 🙂

For those of you that do not have a theme or entertainment ideas for the holiday party, we’re writing this article to help give you some great holiday party ideas! So, let’s get to the list!

15 Fun Holiday Party Ideas

1. Hire a Great DJ or Band – Of course, you know that hiring a professional band or DJ is always a great option to liven up the holiday party! It’s much better than simply hooking up your laptop to a not so great speaker or sound system. Everyone loves music and most people love to dance, too! 
2. Rent a Photo Booth – For those people who don’t care to dance, they can take fun selfies, at the photo booth! We bring lots of fun props and you can take unlimited pics. They print, right at the booth, or you can always opt for the social media booth, which allows your guests to share it via social media.
   • We can add your company logo to each photo printout, too. We even offer a green screen photo booth, which allows you to create a custom backdrop for your photo booth prints. If you’re having a certain theme, we can add that theme right into the photo background!
3. Add Karaoke – Who doesn’t love belting out their favorite songs, even if they’re 100% off-key? 🙂 This is fun, but be sure to limit it to a certain time. We’ve done parties that wanted to add Karaoke throughout the evening, while the dancing was happening.
   • Starting and stopping for karaoke isn’t always the best. Some people don’t want to stop dancing, while others don’t want to stop singing. We found that setting separate times is the best solution. 
4. Consider Lawn & Giant Game Rentals – For even more entertainment, you can add games to your event, such as cornhole, washers, ladder golf, bocce ball, croquet, etc. You can even add giant games, such as giant Jenga, giant Connect 4, giant Uno, giant Loteria, and others! The more entertainment, the better!
5. Casino Games – If the above games aren’t too exciting for you, you can consider adding casino games to your event. Casino nights are always fun! 

Holiday Party Themes & Ideas

1. Ugly Sweater Party – Though no one loves wearing ugly sweaters (although you probably had that one teacher in elementary, who did). Everyone loves to compete in an ugly sweater contest for prizes! We’ve seen some pretty hideous sweaters over the years and they’re pretty hilarious! Think sweaters with Christmas lights. 🙂
2. Roaring 20’s Theme Party – Themed parties are always more fun. A roaring 20’s party or even a “Great Gatsby Holiday Party,” is always fun to see! We’ve done these parties and played only big band and swing, for certain parts of the night and wow, it was like stepping back in time! 
3. The ’80s or ’90s Theme Party – Break out your overalls, backward jeans, and colorful clothes for an 80’s or 90’s theme party. Consider best-dressed contests, add lots of fun ’80s and ’90s music, and voila, you’ll have a great holiday party!
   • Bonus: consider voting on everyone’s favorite TV show or movie from the ’80s or ’90s and make it your official theme! Invite everyone to dress up as their favorite character. It will be a ton of fun! 🙂
4. Color Theme Party – You can create a certain color-themed party, like “all black party,” or an “all white,” all red, etc. These are fun and you can have contests, too!
5. Create Your Own Cocktails Bar – This is always fun! Simply set up a bar area and add mixers, mint leaves, fruit, etc. You can leave recipe cards, too, just in case your guests need some direction. Be sure to have a bartender monitor the cocktails being made, so guests don’t over-serve themselves. 

More Great Holiday Party Ideas

1. More Games – You can also have your DJ or band host more games, such as Bingo, trivia, office trivia, musical chairs, etc. Again, more entertainment makes your event more memorable and fun! 
2. Food Trucks – If you can’t decide what to serve, consider hiring food trucks from your favorite restaurants! They can provide a variety of food and may cost a little less, too! 
3. Bubble Soccer – Have you ever wanted to know what hamsters feel like, running in their wheels? Well, Bubble Soccer is kind of similar! You can play soccer, in a giant inflatable suit, but be warned, your guests will bounce and roll around! Be sure to do this before people have too many cocktails! 🙂
4. Bowling – Bowling is always a great way to have a friendly, team-building competition! There are a few venues that also offer bowling, so this may be something to consider! 
5. Masquerade Ball – It doesn’t have to be Mardi Gras, to have a Masquerade ball! We’ve provided a DJ and photobooth for a few fun Masquerade events. They’re always a lot of fun! They even gave us masks to wear. 🙂

​These are just a few great holiday party ideas that you can add to your next holiday party or event. You can actually add many of these ideas to your wedding, party, quinceanera, or event.

Be sure to plan early, since there are hundreds of other companies and people, planning their holiday party and other events, too! Check out our Why Plan Your Holiday Party Early, article, to learn about the benefits of planning early!

Send us an email or leave a comment with your holiday party ideas. We want to hear them! 

​- Austin’s Best DJs & Photo Booths