Christmas Party Game: "Everyone Decorate the Gingerbread House" & Rally Race

Christmas Party Game: "Everyone Decorate the Gingerbread House"

This festive and fun decorating activity will bring out the silly inner child in your guests! It can used at Children's parties or Adults.

Theme

Have fun and be festive as each guest puts their own unique design on a premade gingerbread house. By the end of the evening, you and your guests can laugh at how the gingerbread house looks!

Setup Details

• Main Table Or Card Table

Have your table in the center of the room for the Pre-assembled gingerbread house.

• Royal Icing

• Use bowls or trays around the table or house for easy candy access.

Candy Buffet

Set up small bowls or trays filled with various candies on a separate station.

Include items like:

• Gumdrops
• Candy canes (miniature and broken pieces)
• Chocolate chips
• Licorice ropes
• Sprinkles
• Marshmallows
• Holiday M&Ms
• Necco Wafers
• Holiday Lifesavers
• Nerds
• Starlight Mints
• Mike & Ike’s

Icing Station

Use disposable piping bags with colored and white icing for gluing candies.

Decoration Inspiration Board

Optional: Print some inspirational photos from Pinterest, but encourage your guest to be free-flowing!

Seating/Flow

Arrange to have some chairs at the table but also options for guests to stand. Your guests can take a turn throughout the party.

Other Supplies

Hand wipes, paper towels, paper plates, and plenty of royal icing!

• Instructions for Guests
• Take Turns Adding Candy
• When your guests arrive, let them know that throughout the evening, they can pick a candy and place it on the gingerbread house as they like.
• Encourage everyone to get in touch with their inner child, it’s to be fun and silly!
• Capture the Moment And Make Some Memories
• Take photos after each guest’s addition to watch the house’s design come together.

As the Evening Wrap-Ups

Once the house is completed, gather your guests for a group picture around the gingerbread house.

The Gingerbread Rally Race Decorating Party

A few years ago, after watching an episode of Master Chef, they had a rally race for a meal and it was hilarious. So I thought that it wouldn't be fun to try that with a gingerbread house decorating. My husband and I gathered our heads and mapped out this rally race.

We were able to play it with our then teenage children, so I know it can be teams of two, but the more, the merrier for this game. I hope to convince my now adult children to do it again this year.

Objective

The goal is for each team to race against the 30-minute clock to see which team can decorate the best-looking Gingerbread house. Only one team member can decorate at a time, and they must race back to their team to tag out before the next member can start.

Setup Details For Each Team

• Dining Table or two-fold tables
• If you use the dining table - set up two Gingerbread house stations on opposite ends.
• If you are using two folding tables, set them up so they are apart. Some teams can't see what the other is doing.
• Have bowls or trays with the same candies at each Gingerbread house.

Candy Buffet

Set up small bowls or trays filled with various candies on a separate station.

Royal icing to glue candies onto the gingerbread house.

Other Supplies

Hand wipes, paper towels, paper plates, and plenty of royal icing!

Two Rooms:

Decorating Room: Where the gingerbread and candy supplies are.

Waiting Room: Where the rest of the team members wait for their turn.

Teams

Divide your guest into teams of 2-6 players

Timer

Main Timer: Set for 30-45 minutes for the whole decorating game.

Individual Timer: A stopwatch or timer to track each player 30- 50 second decorating turn. Flexibility here depends on the age of your guest.

How to Play:

Starting the Race:

• The host or one team player announces, “Ready, Set, Go!” and starts the main timer.
• The first team member in the Waiting Room races to the Decorating Room to begin their turn.

Decorating Rules:

• Each team member has 30 seconds to decorate their team’s gingerbread house.
• The player starts their individual timer when they begin and must stop immediately when the time is up.

Tagging Out:

• When their turn ends, the player races back to the Waiting Room and tags the next teammate.
• The tagged teammate then sprints to the Decorating Room to start their turn.

Team Strategy:

• Teams can discuss their overall design plan before the race starts.
• No team members may communicate while the decorating is underway to keep it exciting!

Rotation:

• This pattern continues until the main timer reaches 30 minutes.
• Each team member will have multiple chances to contribute to the gingerbread house.

Ending the Race:

• When the 30-minute timer ends, all decorating must stop.
• Each team’s gingerbread house is presented for judging and laughs!

Judging Criteria:

• Creativity: How whimsical and festive is the design?
• Overall Appearance: Is it visually appealing and holiday-themed?
• Judges or the host will select the winning team and hand out prizes if desired (e.g., holiday treats, small trophies, or bragging rights!).

When my husband and I played this as a family with our two children, we all just agreed which house looked more festive.

I hope that these two Gingerbread house decorating activities makes it's way into your home during the holidays!

To learn how to throw a budget friendly Christmas party, check out the article below.

This activity allows every guest to feel part of the creation and leave with a sense of Christmas joy and laughter.