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Christmas is all about spending time with loved ones. Whether you have kids or not, Christmas is a magical time of year, with so much to see and do.
Free Christmas Activities
We have compiled a list of the best, fun yet affordable festive activities suitable for families.
Make the build-up to Christmas Magical with these 15 Free or very low cost Festive Traditions, Days out & Xmas themed Night Ideas…
1 – Festive Games Night
You simply can not beat a games night and Christmas games nights are no exception.
We have 100s of FREE printable Christmas themed games here and even more festive quizzes that you can play online or print off here.
2 – Visit the Coca Cola Truck
The Coca Cola truck tours the UK every December. Visiting the festive truck is fast becoming a beloved yearly, Christmas tradition for many families.
The truck is free to visit and hands out free mini cans of Coke, and other Coca-Cola merchandise.
You can find the truck tour dates and locations here.
3 – Christmas Movie Night
We have many Christmas Movie nights throughout December and they are always a treat. We pop on our Christmas PJs, have some popcorn and all snuggle up with our blankets.
During December and January, the free movie channel movies24 transforms into Christmas24 and you can get free Christmas movies 24/7.
Check out this Christmas film advent calendar.
4 – Visit Neighbourhood Christmas Lights
Wrap up warm to take a walk around your local area, or jump in the car and try to find the best light displays on your neighbour’s homes.
You can use our combine it with this free printable Christmas lights hunt. Print it off here.
5 – Christmas Treasure Hunt
Christmas scavenger hunts are a great way to have some festive fun. There are a few ways to arrange a hunt…
- Around the House – you could hide 20 baubles around the house and get the kids to find them.
- Around the House – Use our free printable scavenger hunt and find all the items on the list. Print it off here.
- Outdoors – Use our free printable Christmas lights hunt and find all the items on the list. Print it off here.
6 – Christmas Karaoke Night
Fancy yourself a bit of a Mariah Carey? This one your neighbours will LOVE! Make a picky tea and crack out the Karaoke machine!
If you don’t own a karaoke machine, you can use youtube to find 100s of free karaoke songs with lyrics.
7 – Elf on the Shelf
This is something I haven’t partaken in personally! My Elf just sits on the shelf and reports back to Santa if my twins are naughty. But some people do the whole 25 days of naughty Elf activities.
You don’t have to purchase the original Elf, which is quite pricey, any elf will do. Mie cost about ยฃ3 at my local supermarket.
8 – Track Santa
Did you know you can track Santa’s journey around the globe on Christmas Eve? There are a few good, free websites and apps which allow you to not only track Santa, but throughout December you can countdown to Christmas, play games and more.
Here are all the best, free Santa tracking websites.
9 – Free Santa Video
Over at the ‘Portable North Pole’ website, you can get a fantastic, free video from Santa that is completely personalised to your child. This has been a firm favourite of my children for many years.
Get your free video from Santa here
10 – December 1st Party
On December 1st, my personal family tradition is to put all the decorations up with the kids, blast Christmas music, have a party food tea, pop on the Christmas bedding and lay out their Christmas PJs and advent calendars.
Once the halls are decked, we settle down to the first Christmas movie on our Christmas film advent calendar.
11 – Christmas Crafts
Making your own Christmas decorations and presents is a great way to save money. Although there is some initial outlay, most children have paper, paints and craft items.
12 – Free Letter from Santa
If you write a letter to Santa at the below address, you will get a reply completely free.
This service is run by the Royal Mail and costs nothing more than the price of a stamp – Just remember to get your letters out on December 1st to avoid any delay in your reply.
Address to write to…
Santa/Father Christmas
Santa’s Grotto
Reindeerland
XM45HQ
13 – Do a Good Deed
This is another one of my personal family traditions. We do one thing for charity each year and it’s surprising how much fun we always have. It’s such a good feeling too.
There are loads of ways to help out around the festive season, here are a few family friendly ideas…
- Have a clearout and donate your old stuff to a charity shop
- Donate any new/unused toys you may have to a charity toy collection
- Volunteer at a food bank or homeless kitchen
- Raise money for a children’s charity or local food bank
- Visit an OAP home and hand out some of your crafts
For inspiration, Check out this Kindness Advent Calendar
14 – Go Carol Singing
Although not as popular as it was back in my day, carol singing is free and fun! If you don’t want to go knocking on doors, why not join your local choir, or simply put on a show for the family!
15 – Family Christmas Come Dine with Me
Why not have your own Christmas come dine with me? You have to eat so it shouldn’t cost any more than usual. You could have parents make the main and kids make the dessert, then all score each other’s efforts.
Losers have to do the dishes!
If you love saving money at Christmas check out these easy ways to cut costs at Christmas
We hope you enjoyed these free Christmas ideas, and have found some new affordable traditions that last a lifetime. If you think we have missed any others worth knowing, please let us know in the comments below…
