22+ Ideas for a Fun, Family-Friendly New Year’s Eve

When I was a kid, nothing made me feel cooler than being included in grown-up stuff. On New Year’s Eve, getting to hang out with the adults and stay up late made me feel special, included and a lot more grown-up than I actually was. And now my wife and I try to do the same thing with our own kids.
Inspired? Create and share by tagging @HallmarkStores.
Ringing in the new year as a family is a great opportunity to create traditions, make memories and help your kids feel like they’re just as much a part of the celebration as you are. With just a little bit of thought and planning, it can become one of your family’s favorite days of the year. And good news—we’ve handled a lot of that “thought and planning” part for you right here.
Family New Year’s Eve theme ideas
- Get a little fancy. Have everyone put on their dressiest clothes, dust off the good dishes and celebrate like you’re at a fancy soirée from the comfort of your own home. As for food, feel free to go as upscale or kid-friendly as you want. Who says you can’t eat chicken nuggets on fine china?
- Celebrate the year that was. Print out photos of fun family memories from the previous year and hang them up to remind yourselves of good times from the year gone by. Spend the evening telling stories and watching videos (if you have them) of favorite moments together as a family.
- New Year’s slumber party. Whether you’re planning on making it to midnight or tapping out earlier in the evening, it’s a great chance to put on your comfiest PJs (bonus points if they’re matching) and get cozy for the evening.
- DIY it. If you don’t have time or the extra money to buy a bunch of decorations for your New Year’s Eve party, do it yourself and get everyone involved! Make crafts, print coloring pages for your kids to help decorate the space, and spend the evening being creative and making things together—like these DIY décor ideas, but in gold and silver for a New Year’s Eve twist. Or if you’re up for a little messiness, you could even make your own confetti.
- Kids’ choice! Know who never, ever struggles with having an opinion? My kids. If you’re having trouble landing on a theme, just let your kids pick a favorite movie, character or anything else. At my house, we’d probably end up celebrating a construction site-themed New Year’s Eve, but what’s wrong with that?

Ideas to make New Year’s resolutions fun for your family
- Walk down memory lane. Before anyone writes down any resolutions for the new year, start by talking about favorite memories from the year that’s ending. This is a great time to pull out your phones and look through photos and videos of favorite family memories.
- Make meaningful resolutions. A great way to help kids think about resolutions is to focus less on what they want to change about themselves and more on what they can do to make the world better. Help them focus on simple things like kindness. (This free kindness journal could be a good start.)
- Make predictions. This has always been a favorite with my family, and it’s a fun alternative or addition to making resolutions. Write down some fun guesses about what will happen in the new year and store them somewhere you’ll be able to find next New Year’s Eve. Have each person make at least one prediction for each member of their family and anything else they want. When you pull them out to read next year, you’ll be in for a whole lot of laughs.
- Hopes and dreams. Another meaningful alternative to New Year’s resolutions is to write what you hope, wish or dream instead—for yourself, but especially for the other people in your family and for the world. This is a great way to get kids thinking about others and to hear some of their thoughts about the people they care about.

Family activity ideas for New Year’s Eve
- Game ’til you drop. Break out your favorite board games, card games, video games or any other kind of game your family loves.
- Movie night! Pop some popcorn, get cozy on the couch together and take turns picking favorite movies or shows to watch as a family.
- Make a family time capsule. Have each member of the family pick an item or two that’s meaningful to them from the past year and create a time capsule to open next New Year’s Eve. Have everyone write a note to their future self, seal it up and hide it somewhere out of sight (but make sure you can find it when you’re ready next year!).
- Get crafty. If your family is artistically inclined, a New Year’s Eve celebration can be the perfect opportunity to spend time being creative together. If this becomes an annual tradition, looking at New Year’s crafts over the years will become a meaningful way to spend time together.

Fun food and drink ideas for New Year’s Eve
- Hot cocoa bar. Assemble all your favorite hot cocoa toppings and mix-ins (and maybe a few you’ve never tried!) to pull together a world-class hot cocoa bar. Or, try these hot cocoa bombs for a fun variation.
- Apple cider. That’s right, we’re giving you two steamy beverage ideas. Sorry not sorry. If it’s chilly where you are on New Year’s Eve, you’ll thank us for this delicious cider recipe.
- Chips and dips. The beauty of this is there’s no wrong answer and so many possible combinations. Salsa or queso? Spinach artichoke dip or guac? Sweet or savory? And, honestly, who says you have to choose?
- Build a menu together. To help everyone feel involved, let each member of your family pick one thing to put on your menu—no restrictions. This is a fun way to get the kids involved, and it’s pretty much guaranteed to be a meal you’ve never had before.
- Family party mix. Use the same basic concept as building a menu together but use it to make a fun party mix that you’ll be grabbing handfuls of as the night winds down. Start with a reliable base—Chex mix or something similar—and then let each person pick out something they love to mix in.

Family New Year’s Eve countdown ideas
- Countdown to the countdown. Build anticipation as the night goes along by opening small surprises or treats every hour on the hour. These could be in boxes, bags or even balloons family members can take turns popping.
- Light it up. Something about glowing, flashing lights can make any moment magical for kids. So when the new year hits, do it up big—bring on the sparklers, glow sticks and anything else that will light up the night and the new year.
- Do midnight up right. When the clock strikes twelve and it’s officially the new year, find a way to make it feel big. There are so many options for this—a dance party, a fun song to sing as a family or even a big balloon drop, if you’ve got the lung capacity.
- Celebrate the New Year a few hours early. If you’ve got little kids, staying up all the way until midnight may not be your best bet. There are ways around this, though—find a New Year’s countdown online to watch before their bedtime, or even tune in to a countdown stream from another part of the world. It’s always twelve o’clock somewhere.
With these family New Year’s Eve ideas, you can turn your celebration into a meaningful one that your family will remember, and you’ll make New Year’s Eve a day your kids will look forward to year after year. Happy New Year!
Shop New Year's
See allYou may also like
See more-
Kids Free Black History Month Coloring Pages to Celebrate with the Family or in the Classroom
There are so many way to celebrate Black History Month. And we absolutely love the ones that can be done as a family ...
-
Spring History of Teacher Appreciation Week
People in the United States started celebrating National Teacher Day in 1953 when Eleanor Roosevelt persuaded Cong...
-
Spring History of Nurses Day
In 1953, an official with the U.S. Department of Health, Education and Welfare proposed that President Dwight D. E...
-
Valentine's Day Share Some Puppy Love with the Littles This Valentine’s Day
Tell them you love them through stories that come to life. Find this sweet singing pup and his companion book in your...
-
Thank You 100+ Inspiring Gratitude Quotes to Keep or Share
Being thankful is something we naturally think of around Thanksgiving—but anytime is a good time for some inspiring g...
-
Christmas Capturing Every Memory with Keepsake Ornaments: 50 Years and Counting
What if our Christmas trees connected us to family and friends each moment we gathered around them? What if every orn...
-
Valentine's Day Valentine’s Day Gift Ideas Perfect for Each Zodiac Sign
We all know someone who’s a little obsessed with astrology. They love to check their daily horoscope, ask everyone th...
-
Valentine's Day Cute and Colorful DIY Kids' Valentine Box Ideas
Ever look at kids’ valentine box ideas and wonder why they get to have all the fun? SAME. So we rounded up some suppl...
-
Valentine's Day DIY Camera Valentine Box
Hardly anyone uses film anymore, but your little might recognize what this is if they have their own toy digital came...
-
Valentine's Day DIY Rainbow Valentine Box
This design is for that child who when asked what their favorite color is exclaims, “the rainbow!” (They may or may n...
-
Valentine's Day DIY Roller Skate Valentine Box
Have you noticed that there’s a big roller skate revival happening? It’s kind of amazing. If your kid needs a valenti...
-
Valentine's Day DIY Dinosaur Valentine Box
A box of love notes shaped like a little stegosaurus? Um, ADORABLE. And yes, ours is in the classic Valentine’s Day s...
-
Valentine's Day Valentine's Day Party Ideas: Setup, Sips, Snacks and More
We all know that when it comes to love, we should be showing our people we care in lots of little ways every day. But...
-
Valentine's Day Free Relationship Conversation Cards to Stir Up All the Feels
Having positive, meaningful conversations is one of the best things about the relationships in our lives. Whether it’...
-
Valentine's Day Chocolate Cherry Cake Truffles
There’s something deeply satisfying about one-bite desserts. Maybe it’s the fun of eating with your fingers. Maybe it...
-
Valentine's Day The Sweetest Cherry Vodka Sour Cocktail
If you’re the sort of person who loves going all out on Valentine’s Day AND you also love a good theme party, then th...
-
Gifting How to Plan a Gift Scavenger Hunt
If you want to make unwrapping a present even more fun, there’s nothing better than a gift scavenger hunt. Send partn...
-
Gift Wrapping Easy Gift Wrap Hacks That Are All Pretty and No Pressure
We’ve all been there: You think you have what you need to wrap that gift at home, but turns out you’re woefully short...
-
Care & Concern What to Write When Trying to Reconcile With a Loved One
Being estranged from someone hurts, plain and simple. And in today’s society, it’s increasingly common. According to ...
-
Congratulations How to Give a Toast from the Heart
At some point in your life, you’ll need to give a toast. You might get advance notice as a Maid of Honor or host o...