Board games are a classic activity to do with friends and family on any night when you want to have some low-key fun at home. From Monopoly to Life, and even certain trivia games, there’s a board game out there for everyone and every occasion.
Board games are fun any time of year, but you may be surprised to hear that there is a variety of Christmas board games specifically meant for the holiday season. When you think about it, board games are perfect to have around during the holidays, especially once everyone is over the excitement of opening gifts.
Some board games are based on your favorite holiday movie, while others are Christmas twists on classic games. No matter what type of game is your favorite, Christmas board games are sure to get you in the holiday spirit.
Keep reading to discover the top 12 Christmas board games for your holiday game night and where you can get them.
Top Christmas Board Games to Enjoy With Friends and Family
It can be difficult to determine which Christmas board games will be a hit with your friends and family and which ones will flop. To help you out, we’ve compiled a list of the top board games for the holiday season that are sure to keep everyone entertained.
You’ll notice some recurring themes. For example, many of these Christmas board games are inspired by classic Christmas movies. There’s something about the familiarity of the game’s characters and ideas that makes it that much more fun. Also, there’s more than one type of Christmas-themed Monopoly game out there!
Without further ado, grab a cup of hot cocoa and check out our list of the best Christmas board games!
Limited Edition Monopoly Christmas Edition (Dispatched from UK)
We have to kick this list off with the quintessential board game: Monopoly. However, this version of the game is a Limited Edition Monopoly Christmas Edition that’ll impress your friends and family.
This holiday version of the classic board game features Santa and the gang – Dancer, Dasher, Prancer, and, of course, Rudolph – as well as many other classic Christmas characters. Play as one of six Christmas-themed tokens to travel around the board and collect your favorite seasonal things, such as:
- A festive feast
- Christmas shopping
- Decorating a tree
As with other versions of Monopoly, this board game is suitable for ages eight and up, so the whole family can join in on the fun. But just because it has a jolly theme, that doesn’t mean this Christmas edition won’t bring out the competitive nature in people that Monopoly is known for!
National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation – Twinkling Lights Game
If you’ve never watched National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, it’s worth adding to your Christmas movie marathon list this season. It’s a must-watch comedy that’s been a classic for many for over three decades.
Inspired by the film, this game is just as fun as the movie. The premise of the game is that Clark Griswold, the protagonist of the film, wants to string up 25,000 lights for Christmas but must overcome obstacles such as trouble-making squirrels and tangled wire. The goal of this puzzle-like game is to form combos of Christmas bulbs and score using the tiles.
Even though your kids may not get the references from this classic 1980s movie, it will still be a fun time for the whole family. What’s more, unlike the film, this game is rated PG and is family-friendly.
Rudolph The Red-nosed Reindeer Christmas Journey Board Game
In this family board game, you have three gameplay options, four character pieces, 32 action cards, 96 space cards, and 80 scoring pieces. Although it may sound complicated, the goal is simply to make it across the board before the other players.
The simplicity of this board game makes it the perfect activity for both kids and adults to enjoy during the holiday season. If you haven’t watched the 1964 classic film that inspired the game, you can do that at the same time to make Rudolph the theme of your night!
Funko Pop! Signature Games: Disney – Chip ‘n’ Dale Christmas Treasures Game
It’s easy to learn, suitable for all ages, and can be played in about 20 minutes. The goal of this game is to test your memory and collect as many cards as you can. Gain points by collecting sets of treasures, including:
- Ornaments
- Candy canes
- Popcorn
- Acorns
- Bells
Don’t be fooled by how quick and simple this game might seem. Some players have even said they find it surprisingly educational. To make this game even more festive, the playing cards are set in the shape of a Christmas tree, so you can use them to make a great centerpiece for your table.
TRIVIAL PURSUIT: Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas
Next on our list of the best Christmas board games for families and friends is TRIVIAL PURSUIT: Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas.
Being such a popular game, it’s likely that you’ve played Trivial Pursuit before, or have at least heard of it. This version is inspired by the Tim Burton classic, The Nightmare Before Christmas, and it contains 400 questions pertaining to aspects of the movie, including:
- Music
- Characters
- Behind-the-scenes fun facts
What’s more, the fun custom coffin-shaped box includes a tray that holds the trivia cards and custom dice for on-the-go fun. This is the best Christmas board game for the ultimate Nightmare Before Christmas fans.
Funko Pop! Dr. Seuss – Grinch Grow Your Heart Card Game
Featuring beloved illustrations from Dr. Seuss’ Christmas classic, this Funko Pop! game has players take turns being the grouchy Grinch and playing his classic tricks. Players draw cards and choose which Christmas goodies they want to keep. Whoever is the Grinch steals cards to improve their own score, but their heart grows with each turn. Staying true to the narrative, the goal of the game is to add more heart tokens to signify the Grinch’s growing heart.
With simple turns and flexible scoring, you’ll want to play this game again and again while watching the classic Christmas movie. Straight-forward and simple, this game is suitable for children as young as six, but it’s fun for the whole family!
Christmas Carols & Songs Game
This game features the best Christmas songs and carols, enough to provide your family with hours of entertainment. The game comes with 300 questions that feature:
- Kids’ Christmas songs
- Christmas carol figures
- Christmas carol movies
The objective of the game is to fill in the missing words and sing your favorite Christmas lyrics as your progress through the game. This game tests your knowledge of the Christmas carol lyrics you hear every holiday season, so you may end up being surprised that you occasionally draw blanks! To kick things up a notch, there are also cards that test you on your knowledge of Christmas carol facts, many of which are not common knowledge.
This game can be described as entertaining and educational, and it can easily be played throughout the holiday season.
Frosty The Snowman – Follow the Leader Card Game
Featuring everyone’s favorite talking snowman, this game is another gem from Funko that’s fun for the whole family. This can be described as a cooperative game, where you must work with your fellow players to move Frosty’s friends backward and forward to swap their places in the parade. The way to win is to get the kids in the right order.
This game is especially great for little kids, and it can be played in less than 15 minutes. It also makes a great stocking stuffer, and it’s something to keep them busy on Christmas morning!
Monopoly: Disney Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas Edition
This edition of Monopoly features characters, artwork, and gameplay inspired by the Tim Burton classic. It features six collectible tokens for you to use to move around the board as one of your favorite characters from the movie, including:
- Oogie Boogie
- Evil Teddy
- Jack Skellington
- Zombie Duck
- Sally
- Mayor’s Hearse
The goal is to become the king or queen of Halloweentown by buying, selling, and trading popular locations as seen in the movie, such as Zero’s Tomb and Spiral Hill. What’s more, you can buy and sell toy assembly lines and play with Jack Skellington’s Monopoly money. Between this game and Trivial Pursuit, there is no shortage of Christmas board game options for The Nightmare Before Christmas fans!
Santa’s Sleigh Ride – An Educational Christmas Board Game
The fast-paced game is easy to learn and takes only 15-20 minutes to complete. You play as Santa, and the goal of the game is to race the other players (“Santas”) throughout the world, stopping in large cities along the way to drop off gifts. This is where the educational aspect of the game comes in, as you and your children will learn geography and maybe even discover some new cities.
The first player to arrive back at the North Pole wins. This may sound like an easy game, but don’t be fooled. The twists and turns in this board game make it a little challenging!
Monopoly: A Christmas Story Collector’s Edition
This is inspired by the classic holiday movie, A Christmas Story. Just as with other editions of Monopoly, you buy, trade, and sell your favorite locations from the movie. The six collectible tokens are iconography from the movie, including:
- Ralphie’s bunny suit
- A fragile crate
- A leg lamp
- A bar of soap
- Broken glasses
- The Old Man’s car
Relive the funniest and most memorable scenes of the film in this entertaining Christmas board game. If you still want more comedy, play the movie in the background while you challenge your fellow players!
‘Tis The Season Christmas Trivia Game
This popular game features the best trivia questions from the top Christmas films, including:
- Elf
- A Christmas Story
- Home Alone
- The Nightmare Before Christmas
- White Christmas
- It’s a Wonderful Life
- Miracle on 34th Street
- Dr. Seuss’ How The Grinch Stole Christmas!
But it doesn’t just stop at films. This game features all types of Christmas trivia, including songs, TV shows, and even world trivia. Some of the questions in this game are challenging, but overall it’s designed to be educational and entertaining.
There’s never a dull moment with this game, as it has something for everyone. What’s more, it comes in a compact size, making it easy to travel with and bring to your Christmas family gatherings.
If you haven’t watched any of the movies on the above list, we highly recommend that you do as a starting point, so you can have a chance of winning this game!
Conclusion: Christmas Board Games to Bring the Family Together
Christmas board games are a great way to connect with your friends and family during the holiday season. Even on Christmas Day, there’s always some downtime between opening presents and your Christmas feast. Having some board games around that are fun for the whole family gives you something to do while you eagerly await your holiday meal. Anyway, if you’ve ever played Monopoly, you already know that the right board game can keep you occupied and challenging your opponents for hours!
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