You found our list of the best virtual end of year celebration ideas for work.
Virtual end of year celebration ideas are fun activities you can hold virtually for your remote team at the end of quarter four. Examples include virtual escape rooms, office trivia, and virtual wine tasting. These ideas present an excellent opportunity for businesses to recognize and appreciate their staff’s efforts during the year.
These parties are a type of virtual team celebration, similar to hybrid Christmas and office Christmas parties. The programs include holiday team building activities and virtual Christmas games.
This article contains:
- end of year virtual celebration event ideas
- online end of year party ideas
- online end of year activities for teams
- virtual end of year meeting ideas
Here we go!
List of virtual end of year celebration ideas for work
A virtual end-of-year party is an excellent way for firms to involve their remote workers in the holiday celebrations and company culture. This party allows employees to put their concerns aside and bond with their colleagues. The following are ideas for your online end-of-year activity.
1. Online Office Trivia
Office trivia has always been a cornerstone of end-of-year gatherings and has become more popular online. Having live trivia is a great way to engage your employees and have them compete with one another. In addition, this fun activity is perfect for bigger groups since it allows individuals to form teams and compete against one another, making it ideal for a holiday party.
You can create the ultimate holiday party quiz by injecting seasonal cheer into classic pub trivia. A good idea would be to include questions regarding holiday-related events, songs, and foods. You can also write quiz questions specific to the company’s performance or events that occurred over the past year. The use of visual aids may make your holiday pub quiz more engaging. You can conduct the game cheaply and easily by sharing a slideshow via Zoom or using Kahoot!
Check out this list of virtual trivia ideas.
2. Online Auction
A frantic auction is sure to get the blood pupmping for teams who enjoy a good time. Even if these activities are not traditionally part of end-of-year parties, your team might have fun. For example, if you have specific company items like gadgets that are due for replacement but still usable, you can auction them to staff members. This activity works because many companies typically upgrade their resources at the end of the year.
You can start by giving each member of staff 100 auction tokens. Then, when every participant has logged on to the video conference, show the item to the team, and any interested party may place the opening bid. All the standard auction guidelines apply to this activity. The highest final bidder takes home the prize.
3. Virtual Scavenger Hunt
Scavenger hunts are simple but effective to get your party attendees talking, laughing, and thinking. You can plan a holiday-themed hunt as part of online end of year activities for teams. Every team member can participate from the comfort of their homes.
To get started, list everyday household products and send your partygoers out to get them within a specified timeframe.
Some other holiday ideas include:
- Ugly Christmas Decorations
- Favorite Seasonal Coffee Drink
- Favorite Holiday Outfit
- Wrapped Gift
- Favorite Seasonal Food Items
- Something new you bought this year
- An award you won this year
- A product that came out this year
- A new food you tried this year
You can include some more challenging objects to increase the difficulty level. Keeping the prompts open-ended can make the game more entertaining and interesting. You can also award prizes to the team member who brings back the most items.
Check out holiday scavenger hunt ideas.
4. Awards Party
Typically, awards are usually presented during the end of the year party. This activity gives you the opportunity to celebrate your workers’ successes throughout the year. You can still have all the fanfare and pageantry of an actual awards ceremony, even if your end-of-year party is online. However, hosting the event in-house and having the boss present the awards is advisable and often more impactful.
You can create award categories like:
- Employee of the year
- Team of the year
- Best customer service
- Most improved
- Workplace mediator
- Friendliest
- Best boss
The first steps are establishing a list of categories and choosing the winners. Then, place an order for engraved trophies or make certificates or announcement slides. Next, you can set up an online poll where the company’s employees or departmental members may cast their ballots. Finally, you can announce the winners at the company’s end of year celebrations.
Check out these virtual award ceremony ideas for work.
5. Talent Show
Hosting a holiday talent show is a great way to get employees in the holiday mood and keep the celebration going strong. This option is ideal if you have a confident team or just a few employees who love to be in the limelight. You can give your guests a few minutes to perform a skit, dance number, or other acts they have prepared before the party. Participants at the event can vote for the best performer.
Some workers may not be into this activity, but most workplaces include at least a few amateur musicians, dancers, skateboarders, or magicians who can make this activity great. You can send out invites and accept applications for various skills before the celebration begins. Employee participation in this endeavor should be entirely optional.
A virtual talent show might make your employees feel more at ease. You can choose a theme and encourage your staff to use their imaginations. Employees love to be creative, from playing dress-up to making silly videos to showcasing their skills. A straightforward picture contest in which participants show off their studios, hobbies, or even pets is also a good idea. You can also have an ugly sweater contest or the wackiest dance-off to keep the spirits up. Or, to keep with the end of year theme, you can invite teammates to show off skills they have started learning within the past twelve months.
Pro tip: Make this event an annual activity and show a recap reel from past shows at the beginning of future performances.
Check out this list of virtual talent show ideas.
6. Charity
Helping a non-profit organization is a great method to promote goodwill among your staff and do good in the world. One option you can consider is Beam, the first global crowdfunding platform dedicated to assisting the homeless in obtaining the education and skills necessary to find gainful employment.
Beam’ members’, with the aid of charities and caseworkers, and, most crucially, the public, run online campaigns to generate money for training courses that would allow them to pursue a profession in accounting, cosmetology, or even crane rigging.
Instead of throwing an expensive workplace party, you could present Beam gift cards to your staff and customers. Donors may make an informed decision about who to sponsor on the Beam platform, get regular email updates on their chosen supporter’s progress, and watch as they return to the workforce.
Check out these lists of online volunteering ideas and virtual fundraising ideas.
7. Virtual Escape Rooms
Participating in an escape room is a fun and effective way to bond as a group. Team members participating in an online escape game together can use their ingenuity and problem-solving skills. An incredible escape game challenges your group to race against the clock to decipher a mystery or solve a problem.
Although physical escape rooms are more popular, players can now participate virtually. Themed rooms are a staple of the best escape games, from which you can make your choice. All you need to do is gather your team in a Zoom chat, listen to your host’s instructions, and solve the riddles as a unit. The facilitator may offer some clues or hints to solve the puzzles. One of the best parts about virtual escape rooms is that they can accommodate big groups playing on several levels with different themes.
Pro tip: One fun twist is to create a DIY online escape room with an “escape the year” theme. Puzzles and clues can relate to organizational happenings from the past year.
Check out this list of virtual escape rooms.
8. Wreath-Making Party
A homemade wreath decoration can be a great idea for folks who like creating crafts for the holidays. Wreath-making parties are a great way to kick off the holiday season with team building and relaxation for your employees or colleagues. If you want to keep things easy, you may hire a third party to ship the supplies and organize the wreath creation party. Then, all you and your guests have to do is show up and have fun.
Making a holiday-themed wreath is one of the most obvious choices for this activity. However, you can also make non-holiday-specific wreaths, for example, rings of new years resolutions, photos, or positive affirmations.
9. Holiday Card Contest
For your virtual end of year meeting ideas, you can forgo the boring Christmas cards and try new activities to send holiday happiness this year. A holiday card contest is a wonderful opportunity to showcase the creativity and ability of a virtual team in time for the holiday celebration.
You may have fun with your employees by inviting them to make their own Christmas cards using a free design tool like Canva. Then, during the Christmas party, participants may show off their work, and you can all cast your votes for the favorite. You can also make the activity a timed competition to see who can come up with the most impressive design in minutes.
Here is a list of holiday messages for work.
10. Virtual Wine Tasting
If you want to refine your online end of year party ideas and create an air of sophistication, then consider adding a wine or beer tasting to your schedule of events. Depending on your region, you can hire a local company to facilitate the program. Many options are inexpensive and can educate your employees on the nuances of alcoholic drinks. Plenty of online businesses provide Zoom-compatible opportunities for this kind of work. You send the booze to the homes of your teammates, so you can all have a few haughty drinks together. The sommelier will walk you through the drinks and collect your feedback.
You could even hold your own beer tasting by purchasing the beers, sending them out to your staff, and playing the role of sommelier yourself if you are trying to keep your end-of-year festivities on the cheap end. Your drink knowledge may not be up to par with that of a professional sommelier, but you will still have a great time.
Here are lists of online wine tasting and online beer tasting experiences.
11. Cocktail-Making
Cocktail-making is one of the best end of year virtual celebration event ideas. For this activity, you need a pair of standard glasses, measurement tools, a list of standard spirits and mixers, and a mixologist. You probably have an employee who understands cocktail making in your firm, meaning you do not have to hire a professional. If you are doing this activity virtually, you can ship a cocktail kit with all the fixings to every team member.
This activity is a great way to toast the past year!
Here is a list of virtual mixology classes.
12. Team Dinner
Teams can get together virtually for a meal, whether brunch, lunch, or dinner. You can give your team colleagues a gift card to a local eatery or provide them with food, like pizza, instead of holding a formal lunch meeting. Another option is to plan a virtual meal together and chat about the meal or other topics you like. You can share a celebratory toast when the dinner begins. Parties centered on a shared meal may provide a casual tone, perfect for mingling with new and old colleagues.
Check out this guide to doing online team meals.
13. Online Holiday Picture Booth
Seeing old photographs with the folks, you care about and relish all the good times you had together feels great. With a virtual holiday photo booth, you can give your guests a memorable end of year party.
Virtual photo booth tools create a memorable online picture experience for your employees. Guests can customize their photographs with various overlays, stickers, and backgrounds and then save or publish them. This activity works even better if you are having an “ugly sweater” party or themed costumes for a holiday celebration.
14. Painting Competition
This activity is for creative teams. To do a painting challenge, send the paints and a famous artwork you will all strive to replicate. You can try uncomplicated options like “Starry Night” by Van Gogh or “Impression, Sunrise” by Monet.
If your company wants to do something different this year, hosting a virtual paint night is a fantastic idea. This activity is a great way to unwind as a group and get into the spirit of the holidays.
You can send paints and brushes to your employees in advance or give them a gift card to shop for their own. You can hire a professional teacher or bring it on your own. The latter usually leads to the most humorous outcomes. You can vote at the end to determine who has the greatest and funniest creation.
Here is a list of online art classes.
15. Virtual Secret Santa
Gift exchanges emphasize the joy of celebrating the holidays at work. Secret Santas are a must at every Christmas gathering. You may have a Secret Santa gift exchange at the workplace by drawing names from a hat or utilizing a gift exchange generator, and each employee will send gifts to the allotted names. Team members will unwrap their gifts at the virtual end of year party.
Colleagues can send physical and digital products, such as gift cards and subscriptions to online services. You can also play virtual white elephant, a variant of Secret Santa in which teammates exchange bizarre and useless presents. At these gatherings, participants may “steal” a present from another.
Pro tip: If you want to keep the celebration more neutral and nondenominational, then you can host a similar gift exchange without referring to Santa or Christmas.
Check out this guide to virtual secret Santa.
16. Virtual Movie Night
Virtual movie nights might be a great way to unwind and bond with your team. The low-key nature of movie-watching makes it an excellent option for the more reserved members of your team. The chat feature of your virtual conference room is a great method to keep the group engaged without stopping the movie. You may want to plan a few short pauses or an intermission to allow every participant to mingle and settle down at different intervals.
Here is a list of team building movies.
17. Holiday Cooking Party
Holidays are a great time to get your staff engaged in the kitchen, and the scent of freshly made Christmas cookies is sure to perk up even the grumpiest of employees. You can gather your team to celebrate with a cook-along or baking party.
You should send participants a list of items to bring to your party. It is better to choose a dish that does not require special equipment or expertise in the kitchen so that every team member can participate. You can tell your staff to invite their family members to make the activity a fun and welcoming occasion for the whole family.
18. Holiday Playlist Party
The lifeblood of every fun get-together is the music, and this is particularly true for a celebratory holiday bash. You can involve your staff in the celebration by asking them to help make the much-anticipated holiday playlist. If your gathering is not holiday specific, then you can have teammates compile a list of the best or their favorite songs of the year.
If you are trying to bring together a big group of employees for a holiday celebration, then let every participant choose a song or ask for suggestions. You can combine your ideas using a service like Spotify or Soundcloud and make a playlist that you can listen to during the party and afterward. You can add interactivity by having guests guess who picked this song or use some of these selections to answer a pub quiz question.
19. Virtual holiday decoration
Bringing the whole workplace together to help with the office party decorations is a lot of fun. The decoration is a lovely way to get employees together and encourage them to talk about the holidays, express their joy, and get to know one another. You can throw a virtual Christmas decorating party to relive the fun.
Your employees will enjoy decorating their homes and Christmas trees with their colleagues, so encourage them to set out a space before the celebration. It would be best if you informed your team to buy their party supplies in advance or have some mailed to them. During the party, employees can decorate the homes and Christmas trees. Your guests can also take “before” and “after” pictures of their rooms.
Check out this list of office Christmas decorating ideas.
Conclusion
Having a traditional in-person workplace party is optional in today’s digital age. Instead, you may even think about combining different holiday celebration ideas. You could, for instance, kick things off with a trivia game, go on to a team dinner or cookoff, and wrap the event up with a movie.
The point of any work-related social gathering, whether a virtual happy hour or a night in front of the TV watching Netflix, is to bond with your colleagues. Virtual gatherings for celebration may be a great way to show employees how much you appreciate their efforts to help you reach your objectives and complete your projects.
Next, check out our list of virtual team events for the holidays, ideas for virtual New Year’s Eve, these virtual party games, and this list of virtual team building activities.
Grace He