The best company holiday party ideas are the ones that get people off their phones and into the room together. After more than thirty years of New York holiday and Christmas parties, from 25 people in a private dining room to 2,000 in a Chelsea ballroom, we have seen what works and what quietly empties the room by nine o’clock. Here are fifteen corporate holiday party ideas that work, whether it is a gala for a thousand or an office Christmas party for thirty, and what each one needs.
Still choosing a room? Start with the NYC holiday party venues we have played, because the venue decides which of these ideas will fit.
Company holiday party ideas at a glance
| Idea | Best for |
|---|---|
| Speeches first, then dancing | Any company with a program |
| A mix for the whole company | Mixed ages and backgrounds |
| A decade or theme night | Teams who like a dress code |
| LED dance floor | Large rooms and ballrooms |
| Silent disco | Offices and noise limits |
| Live musicians, then a DJ | Cocktail hour into a party |
| Karaoke with a host | Small teams and big ones |
| Branded photo booth | Every party |
| 360 video booth | Parties that live on social media |
| Arcade and sports games | Guests who do not dance |
| The Big piano | A photo moment with a twist |
| A contest judged by cheers | Competitive teams |
| A staff talent show | Creative, musical companies |
| A surprise flash mob | Teams who can rehearse |
| Lighting and your logo | Making a plain room feel like yours |
Holiday party ideas that get people dancing
1. Speeches first, then open the dance floor
The order of the night matters more than any single idea. Speeches in the middle of a dance floor stop it cold, and people rarely get back up. Run it in three parts instead: cocktail music while guests arrive, speeches and toasts on good wireless microphones, then the dancing. That is how the night ran for a long-established Japanese company at Bryant Park Grill, and the final two hours were a packed floor.
2. A music mix built for the whole company
A company party is not a nightclub. The room has interns and partners, several generations and often several countries, and the music has to reach all of them. For a law firm’s 600-guest party at the Hilton, that meant pop, Motown, disco, salsa, merengue, reggae and soca in one night. Tell your DJ who is in the room, not just what you like.
3. A decade or theme night
Christmas party themes do not have to mean decorations. Pick a decade, or a pairing like Motown and disco, put it on the invitation as a dress code, and let the music carry the theme. One Carnegie Hall holiday party asked for an even mix of Motown, disco and current pop, and the organizer told us the whole room danced, which had not happened at their events before.
4. An LED dance floor
An empty dance floor is hard to walk onto. A lit one is not. Our LED dance stages give the room a centerpiece that pulls people in, and they work especially well in a big ballroom where a plain floor can feel lost.
5. A silent disco
Holding the party in the office, or in a space with neighbors and a noise limit? A silent disco puts the music in wireless LED headphones, so guests can dance as loud as they like while the room stays quiet. The headphones also let each guest dance to their choice of music.
6. Live musicians for cocktail hour, then a DJ
Start the night with live music, a jazz trio or a Latin or Caribbean group while guests arrive, then hand over to the DJ when it is time to dance. For extra energy on the dance floor, pair the DJ with a live percussionist playing along.
Holiday party activities that get everyone involved
7. Karaoke with a real host
Karaoke is the most reliable holiday party activity for adults we know, but only with a host who can get it started. At a real estate law firm’s party at Zuma, we turned the screen toward the table, and two songs later all 25 guests were singing, the reluctant owner included. A good karaoke host picks songs for the shy ones and plays dance music between singers. See our karaoke DJ parties.
8. A photo booth with your logo on the prints
A photo booth is the one thing guests take home. Ours come with an attendant, a prop box and instant prints plus digital copies, and we can design the prints around your company logo. At a hedge fund’s party at the Hunt & Fish Club, guests drew on the screen and picked their own backdrops.
9. A 360 video booth
For a company that lives on social media, a spinning 360 video booth turns every guest into a short clip they will want to post. It needs a little more floor space than a standard booth, so plan the room around it.
10. Arcade and sports games
Not everyone dances, and they should not have to stand at the bar all night. Sports games like Pop-A-Shot basketball, ping pong, air hockey, foosball and skee-ball give them something to do, and at almost every event we do, nearly every guest plays at least one. Set up a leaderboard and it becomes a tournament.
11. The Big piano
The walk-on floor piano from the Tom Hanks film “Big” is always the talk of the party. Guests play it with their feet, or switch it to player piano mode and it plays on its own. See the Big piano rental.
12. A contest judged by the loudest cheer
An ugly holiday sweater or best-dressed contest is more fun when the room picks the winner. At a pharmaceutical company’s 1,200-guest party at Gotham Hall, the costume contest winner was picked by the noise of the crowd. It works for any contest, and it gets the whole room shouting together.
13. A staff talent show, then karaoke
At its summer party, one worldwide PR firm has employees form a band while others compete in an American Idol style contest, and then we DJ and host karaoke for the rest of the night. The same firm has booked us for its holiday party six years running. The format works just as well in December: a talent show gives the performers a goal and everyone else a reason to stay.
14. A surprise flash mob
If your team likes a project, a flash mob is the moment everyone talks about in January. At one grant-making foundation’s office party, the staff choreographed a flash mob to Michael Jackson’s “Thriller.” Give your DJ the track and the cue, and they will make the drop look spontaneous.
15. Lighting in your colors, and your logo on the screens
A plain event space or conference floor changes completely with themed lighting in your company colors. If the room has screens, put your holiday logo on them between songs or karaoke performances, the way corporate clients often do at the Fishbowl.
Office holiday party ideas for a small team
A small office Christmas party can be the best one of the year. Three ideas that work for a team of 20 to 50:
- Karaoke in the office. We ran one foundation’s in-office holiday party for five years, with karaoke, a DJ and a photo booth. No venue needed.
- A photo booth. Most booths need only about an 8 by 8 foot space and a power outlet.
- A silent disco. Dancing without disturbing the rest of the building.
Tip: pick two or three of these, not all fifteen. A party with a clear shape, drinks, speeches, then dancing with one or two activities on the side, beats a room full of stations nobody has time to try.
Frequently asked questions
What are good company holiday party ideas?
The ideas that work best get people involved: karaoke with a real host, a photo booth with your logo on the prints, arcade and sports games for guests who do not dance, and a music mix built for everyone in the room. Run the night in three parts, cocktails, then speeches, then dancing, and the rest follows.
How do you make a company holiday party fun?
Keep the speeches before the dancing, not in the middle of it, and give non-dancers something to do. A karaoke host, a photo booth or a few sports games give every guest a way to join in, and a DJ who reads the room keeps the energy up without forcing it.
What activities work for adults at a holiday or Christmas party?
Karaoke, a photo booth or 360 video booth, arcade games like Pop-A-Shot and air hockey, the walk-on Big piano, and a contest judged by the loudest cheer. For offices with noise limits, a silent disco lets everyone dance in headphones.
What are good office holiday party ideas for a small team?
Karaoke in the office, a photo booth that fits in about an 8 by 8 foot space, or a silent disco. A small team often has the most fun: at a 25-guest party at Zuma, every guest sang at least once.
Can we have a DJ, karaoke and a photo booth at the same party?
Yes. Our karaoke hosts also DJ between singers, and each photo booth has its own attendant, so they run side by side. At a hedge fund’s holiday party at the Hunt and Fish Club we ran the DJ, karaoke, lighting, screens and a photo booth together.
Planning your company holiday party?
See how we run the night on our corporate holiday party DJs page, or tell us your date, venue and headcount and we will suggest the ideas that fit.
