27 Best New Year’s Eve Games for Families for Ringing in 2025
on Nov 07, 2024
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Looking for exciting ways to keep the whole family entertained this year’s New Year’s Eve party? We’ve tested and curated the ultimate list of family-friendly New Year’s Eve Games for Family parties that will make counting down to midnight a blast for everyone – from toddlers to teens to grandparents!
Quick Summary
Don’t have time to read the whole article? Here are our top tips for creating quick and fun New Year’s Eve games for family parties that
Must-Do Activities:
- 🎈 DIY balloon drop (15 min setup, under $10)
- 📸 Memory makers: photo booth + props
- ⏰ Countdown bags for kids (open one each hour)
- 🎮 Quick games: Minute to Win It challenges
- 🌟 Personal touches: family awards & time capsule
Pro Parent Tips:
- Schedule active games early (7-8:30 PM)
- Have backup activities ready
- Include snacks in your planning
- Keep kids engaged with hourly surprises
- Print our free game templates below!
Tested with real families, kid-approved, and actually doable (even if you’re planning last minute) 😊
Table of Contents
Start Your Own Family Traditions for NYE
The most memorable New Year’s Eve celebrations aren’t about fancy parties or expensive decorations – they’re about creating unique family traditions that your children will remember (and possibly roll their eyes at) for years to come. Here’s how we celebrate, plus tips for creating your own traditions.
Our Family’s Quirky NYE Traditions
Every family has their own special way of ringing in the new year. In our house, we embrace a mix of American classics and European traditions:
- Sparkler Time: We bundle up and head outside for a magical moment with sparklers, creating light paintings in the dark winter sky
- European Feast: We serve raclette, a wonderfully stinky Alpine cheese that’s melted and scraped onto potatoes and bread – a German New Year’s tradition (even if the kids wrinkle their noses!)
- Quirky Entertainment: Our family’s favorite tradition is watching “Dinner for One,” a hilarious 1963 British comedy sketch. The story of 90-year-old Miss Sophie and her birthday celebration has become such a tradition that our kids can recite it by heart
- Classic Countdown: Like millions of others, we tune in to watch the Ball Drop in Times Square
- Sweet Toast: We clink fancy glasses filled with sparkling grape juice
- Midnight Love: End the night with big “muah” kisses all around
Tips for Creating Your Own Traditions
- Mix Old and New: Combine classic traditions (like watching the ball drop) with unique elements special to your family
- Include Food: Food traditions, like our raclette party, create lasting memories and engage all the senses
- Embrace the Quirky: The best traditions are often the slightly weird ones that make your family unique
- Keep It Age-Appropriate: Adapt traditions as your kids grow (like our sparkling grape juice toast)
- Document Everything: Take photos each year doing your special traditions – they become precious time capsules
Remember, the best traditions often start by accident – maybe it’s the year you all wore pajamas backwards, or the time you made midnight pancakes. Pay attention to what brings joy and laughter, then make it an annual event.
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New Year's Eve Games for Family Parties
I can't believe that in a few short weeks we will ring in another new decade! My 15 year old said the other day that will will be her third decade already!
Not full decades of course, but it will be the third decade that she has been around for at least a while! I'm not even going to admit how many decades that makes for me... LOL!
If you're looking for a fun way to spend New Year's Eve with your family, we've got you covered!
From crafts, to games, making your own time capsule with free printables, NYE recipes and more - this list will help you celebrate the best New Years yet with your kids!
- Plastic tablecloths
- Party balloons
- String
- Safety pin
Transform your living room into Times Square with this simple but spectacular activity! Our family has done this for three years running, and the kids' faces light up every time those balloons cascade down.
Pro tip: Use metallic balloons for extra sparkle in photos.
This hilarious word-matching game has become our family's signature NYE activity. It's especially great for bridging the generation gap between grandparents and kids.
Game highlights:- Quick to learn (2 minutes)
- Creates inside jokes
- Perfect for breaking the ice
- Can be played in teams or individually
- Free printable questionnaire (download link below)
- Decorating supplies
- Small container
This meaningful activity creates lasting memories and becomes more precious each year. Our family opens last year's capsule before creating the new one - the kids love seeing how their answers change!
Kid Friendly Easy Minute To Win It Games for Your Party {The Best!}
Who doesn't like Minute to Win It? Every New Year's Eve party needs an assortment of these fun games and there are lots of winners in this fun list of minute to win it games perfect for family-friendly New Year's Eve!
Transform the anticipation of midnight into an interactive game that keeps kids engaged while teaching time-telling skills. Think "Pin the Tail on the Donkey" meets New Year's Eve!
Create a colorful display of hopes and dreams for the coming year! Each family member writes their wishes on decorative paper and adds them to a dedicated wall space. Whether it's "learn to ride a bike" or "visit grandma more," these visual reminders become a cherished family time capsule. All you need is paper, markers, and tape or pins for hanging.
Pro tip: Take a photo of your wall and revisit last year's wishes before creating new ones.
Perfect for getting everyone moving and laughing! We've tested these games with groups from 5 to 15 people, ages 4 to 84.
Top 3 Crowd-Pleasers:- Cookie Face (Balance a cookie on your forehead and get it to your mouth)
- Stack Attack (Stack 15 cups in a pyramid)
- Penny Tower (Stack pennies using only one hand)
Transform a corner of your room into a festive photo studio that'll capture memories all night long! Our family's been doing this for 5 years, and these photos always become treasured keepsakes.
What you'll need:- Sparkly backdrop (metallic curtain or festive fabric)
- Ring light or well-placed lamps
- DIY props (templates provided below)
- Smartphone tripod
- Optional: Portable printer
Turn your living room into a game show studio! Create teams and compete in quick challenges that use common household items.
Top 5 Family-Tested Challenges:- Candy Cane Hook
- Time: 1 minute
- Materials: Candy canes, small rings
- Goal: Hook as many rings as possible using a candy cane in your mouth
- Stack Attack
- Time: 1 minute
- Materials: 36 plastic cups
- Goal: Stack and unstack cups in a pyramid
- Cotton Ball Transfer
- Time: 1 minute
- Materials: Cotton balls, vaseline, bowls
- Goal: Transfer cotton balls from one bowl to another using only your nose
- Paper Plate Skate
- Time: 1 minute
- Materials: Paper plates
- Goal: Race across the room using plates as skates
- Balloon Keep-Up
- Time: 1 minute
- Materials: Balloons
- Goal: Keep multiple balloons in the air as a team
- Print score sheets (template provided)
- Create team names and colors
- Award silly prizes
- Take video clips for a highlight reel
A hilarious dice game where tiny rubber pigs are your lucky charms! Players toss two little pigs and score points based on how they land - whether they're on their snouts, backs, or in more adventurous positions like the "leaning jowler." Perfect for all ages and guaranteed to get everyone giggling while waiting for midnight. Our family's been playing for years and it never gets old - even grandparents love this one!
Pro tip: Create tournament brackets to keep the excitement going all evening.
Create festive party crowns in seconds using just pipe cleaners! Simply twist colorful pipe cleaners into "firework" shapes and attach them to a headband base. Way more fun than store-bought hats, and kids love designing their own unique styles. Makes for adorable midnight photo ops!
Pro tip: Use metallic pipe cleaners for extra sparkle under party lights.
These festive black-and-gold cookies look fancy but are simple to make! Dress up regular sugar cookies with metallic sprinkles and edible glitter for an Instagram-worthy New Year's Eve treat. Perfect for midnight snacking and they double as party decorations until the countdown.
Pro tip: Make them a day ahead and store in an airtight container to save time on party day.
Turn two paper plates, dried beans, and decorations into festive noisemakers for midnight! Kids love personalizing their own shakers with markers, stickers, and streamers. Much more exciting than store-bought noisemakers, and perfect for little hands to shake at countdown time.
Pro tip: Use a stapler instead of glue for secure assembly that lasts all night.
Create mess-free "firework" decorations using colorful ribbons and paper tubes! Kids thread ribbons through toilet paper rolls to make bursting displays that pop up and down. These sparkle-free alternatives to glitter make great centerpieces and can be stored for next year's celebration.
Pro tip: Use metallic ribbons for extra shine under party lights.
Jump-start your family's 2025 goals with a fun word selection game! Use an online word generator to help kids and adults pick their inspiring words for the year ahead. Then brainstorm together how to bring these words to life - whether it's "Adventure," "Create," or "Kindness." Makes a great addition to your time capsule or vision board activities.
Pro tip: Write everyone's words in a special place to revisit throughout the year.Classic board games like Monopoly, Scrabble, and Pictionary are perfect for young and old alike. They are great choices for family fun on New Year’s Eve.
Snack ideas include festive popcorn mixes, snowman crackers, cheese platters, and fruit trays. These are quick to make and perfect for family snacking.
Family favorites like “Home Alone,” “The Princess Bride,” and animated classics like “Toy Story” are perfect movies for a mix of laughter and adventure.
What are some of your favorite friendly New Year’s Eve activities?
Thanks for including my printable trivia games!
Great round up of activities!
Great planning for New Year celebrations…
Thanks for sharing creative activities that we can enjoy with our family on new year eve, will try and share my experience with you.
Hey MICHELLE MARINE !!!
Its been great to read such blog. I really appreciate it.ew Year’s Eve is the perfect time to play some fun games together.Make each of your guests write down resolutions, each on its own slip of paper. Pull one slip of paper out of a basket at a time and read it out loud. Everyone has to write down who they think made each resolution. At the end of the readings, the person who guessed the most correctly wins a prize. Read some of the wrong guesses out loud for fun!
Keep sharing
warm regards