42 Best Thanksgiving Games to Keep the Whole Family Entertained
Besides the food, these activities for kids and adults will keep everyone smiling on Turkey Day.
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Hosting a Thanksgiving that your family will remember for years to come includes more than just serving up an amazing meal. (Though, that’s still a major part of it.) What will really leave you and your loved ones with lasting memories will be the experience you have while spending time with each other.
That’s why Thanksgiving games are the perfect way to make Turkey Day tons more fun, especially if you have kids. We’ve rounded up a combination of festive crafts, engaging activities and challenging trivia that will keep the entire family entertained.
While bingo and scavenger hunts will almost certainly ensure a day full of fun for large groups or teams, there are also games like word search, “I spy” and Thanksgiving riddles that are still fun to play even with one or two people.
If your family happens to be partial to minute-to-win-it games, we have a few of those, too. Just don’t forget to give out special prizes to the winners. If you need inspiration, our Thanksgiving gifts can help with that.
Thanksgiving Heads Up
Now this idea won't cost you a thing and can be played while you're eating dinner to keep the conversation, erm, light. Write down Thanksgiving words on pieces of paper, and then everyone sticks one to their head. Others have to give them clues to try to figure out what their card says.
Printable Thanksgiving Cootie Catcher / Joke Teller
Just like the ones you use to make in junior high school except with a festive twist. Once kids pick an icon, you'll open up the flap to reveal a joke!
Turkey Leg Wrap Game
Teams of two will have one minute to wrap a member of the fam in brown burlap and place a chef hat on their head to resemble a turkey leg. The team to complete the look the fastest wins.
Anyone who's a fan of word searches will love this festive edition. Get everyone at your party to find the Thanksgiving-related words hidden in the puzzle grid. You can even make it a competition by setting a time limit.
Thanksgiving Mad-Libs
With this sweet printable, your guests will be able to write down everything they are thankful for. When everyone is done, go around the table and read 'em out loud.
Family Tree
A game and a family history lesson all in one. See who can complete the family tree the fastest to win a special prize.
For a quick game that is sure to be a conversation starter, you could pull out this book for a few rounds of the "Would You Rather" game. All of the questions are related to Thanksgiving and Thanksgiving dinner.
Sack Race
This classic game is perfect for all ages and can be played indoors or outdoors. All you need is a few sacks. You can even split your family up into teams and see who is the first to get all of their members across the finish line.
If you find it difficult to keep your family off of their phones during the holidays, why not make a game out of it? This selfie scavenger hunt will allow participants to rack up points by snagging photos with the items listed. It comes in a set of 12 so your number of players will be limited.
RELATED: Best Scavenger Hunt Ideas to Use
See who can create the goofiest turkey out of these stickers, from top hats to glasses and more!
Handprint Leaf Turkey
As one of the easiest Thanksgiving kids crafts, all you need to do to make this handprint leaf turkey is to trace your hand, gather leaves and glue everything together! This craft proves that fun can also be simple.
You can create your very own escape room experience from the comfort of your home. Using printable instructions found in this kit, you and your family can gather clues to discover everything on a mom's to-do list before time runs out.
If you need a quick game, try out this trivia sheet that’s full of Thanksgiving riddles.
RELATED: Thanksgiving Riddles You'll Love
Thanksgiving Party Scratch Off Cards
Have your guests earn these scratch-off cards throughout the day with other games and see who gets the winning card. The winner can be rewarded with a grand prize!
Get your friends and family all playing together with a Thanksgiving-themed charades game. Each card has to do with the holiday, and is good for all ages.
Have the kids look for pumpkin pie slices, apples, Pilgrims’ hats and more with this “I Spy” game.
Keep the guests guessing the Thanksgiving word or phrase without using the keywords listed on the card — a party favorite!
Pumpkin Tic-Tac-Toe
Play a fall-inspired game with pumpkins! With just a few materials needed, see who will be the tic-tac-toe champion on Thanksgiving.
Pair off in teams for this challenging game of trivia. It's designed to mock the style of the popular game show Family Feud. Survey says this game will be a hit!
RELATED: Best Thanksgiving Trivia Questions to Break Out on Turkey Day
Time for a brain game! See who can unscramble the most words in this printable all about Thanksgiving. It comes with 25 cards, which should be enough for your whole crew!
Marisa (she/her) has covered all things parenting, from the postpartum period through the empty nest, for Good Housekeeping since 2018; previously, she wrote about parents and families at Parents and Working Mother. She lives with her toy-collecting husband and daughter in Brooklyn, where she can be found helping out her team at bar trivia or posting about movies on Twitter and Bluesky.
Cameron (she/her) is a staff writer for Good Housekeeping, where she covers everything from holidays to food. She is a graduate of Syracuse University, where she received a B.A. in magazine journalism. In her spare-time she can be found scrolling TikTok for the latest cleaning hacks and restaurant openings, binge-watching seasons of Project Runway or online shopping.
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