A Merry Guide to Hosting Christmas in 2024

With the holiday season coming up, you may be starting to get a little nervous about the festivities, especially if this is your first time hosting Christmas.

In this article from the Annals of Tourism Research, it’s said that “Culture, intimacy and identity are pathways to transformative social practices among hosts and guests.” This means that your role as host is not only fun but important! So bring oodles of pep and a notebook to learn how best to host your Christmas celebration.

If you're wondering “How can I be a good host at Christmas?”, you'll find answers here! One good way to start is by bringing the peace and love of the season to your own behavior throughout the day. Aside from that, read on to learn everything from how to food prep to what activities to plan for the big day. 

 Jump to Section

• Planning a Christmas Dinner
• Christmas Decoration Ideas
• Christmas Games and Activities
• Must Know Tips for Your First Time Hosting Christmas

Planning a Christmas Dinner

Menu Ideas for a Delicious Dinner

Your list might not include every dish on this list, but here are some ideas to get you going.

Shrimp is a classic Christmas Eve appetizer, at least in the Italian and Catholic traditions. There may be different traditions for other cultures, such as beef empanadas or crispy skillet latkes (latkes derive from the Jewish Hannukah holiday traditions).

Clearly, a main course is necessary – some people prefer turkey or goose, others prefer a ham. This will probably be the most difficult item to prepare and most of the time it has to be prepared on the day of the event for the best taste. There are some tips included below for the turkey plan, but more research may be necessary.

Popovers and cinnamon rolls also tend to be Christmas party food favorites. These bread-based dishes also cater to those with a sweet tooth as additional butter or jams can be spread on the insides of the popovers, while extra frosting can be applied to the cinnamon rolls. They can serve as a side dish like bread rolls, as appetizers or as desserts.

Cranberry sauce is another classic beloved Christmas side dish. While there are options between canned and homemade, smooth or lumpy, you can never go wrong by having at least two cranberry sauce options for your guests to choose from during the meal.

Some forms of potato are generally appreciated. As is a steamed or baked casserole's worth of vegetables like green beans or asparagus. Some people even make buttered Brussels sprouts. These all are accompaniments to the main course.

Christmas Dishes to Make in Advance

Certain appetizers, sides and desserts – like cranberry sauce or pies that can be stored in the fridge – make for fantastic ideas for dishes to prepare ahead of time.

Mixed nuts with spices or sugar applied to them can and should be made in advance – they take a lot of energy to prepare and time to cool and they are easily stored (they don't need to be refrigerated, nor do they go bad easily).

Fruit pies and pies centering on sugar, such as lemon cream and pumpkin, are easily stored in the fridge and time-consuming enough that you'll want them to be made in advance. 

Meat pies can also involve a lot of work and a heavy list of ingredients, meaning you'll want to double-check your shopping lists before you get to work – tip: if the recipe says “cloves”, buy “ground cloves” – for the most part, you don't want to work with full cloves as the taste won't be distributed properly and they have a crunchy texture.

Bread-based appetizers and side dishes are generally simple to make and they also store more easily than salads, mashed potatoes and cooked green beans (unless they are in a casserole – that is something you would definitely want to prepare in advance). Cookies fall under this category!

Christmas Appetizers and Sides

Items that are simple to assemble are magnificent for giving helpful and early-arrival guests something to do on the day of the big event.

Cheese and crackers is a classic! You can use almost any cheese, from warmed-up brie to a stiff cheddar. Most crackers are acceptable and it's helpful to have many types for a big crowd since many people have differing tastes – even in crackers. Don't forget to include some gluten-free options for your intolerant friends!

Creamy soups are bound to make people happy on cold December evenings. There are many to choose from, such as potato leek or tomato-based. These don't have to be an appetizer, they could also be considered a side dish. Gravy is more like a soup broth than a sauce anyway, right?

There are always a variety of salads you can include and these are easy to delegate to guests. Cutting vegetables and deli meats or hard-boiled eggs and tossing them with spoons and light dressings are fun and simple tasks! They are also difficult to get wrong, so no one can complain if your perfectly planned meal is slightly unusual.

Putting out some dips and raw vegetables can make for scrumptious pre-dinner snacks. Whether you're working with a chunky salsa, bean dip or something soft and creamy, your guests will enjoy an accompanying spread of baby carrots, broccoli or cauliflower, sugar snap peas and cut-up strips of bell peppers.

Mashed potatoes are a popular side dish and there are so many ways to make them! You could be like Monica and poll your guests before the event to figure out which is the best option, or you could simply go ahead and make your favorite.

On that note, yams (also known as sweet potatoes) with marshmallows on top are a fabulous holiday favorite. It's a warm dish that serves as a comfort food for many and the marshmallows help tempt even those with younger and picky palates into a taste.

Spiced or sugared nuts are a holiday favorite. These involve a small amount of spices or sugar and a massive amount of stirring power. They also work well as a dessert after they've been laid out to cool for a while or can work as bundles that you give out as party gift bags after the event — which also work as sweet and cute family gift ideas for Christmas.

How to Cook the Perfect Turkey

Perfect means different things to different people, so you'll have to take this advice with a grain of salt (unless you like less sodium in your meal). If you're really worried about it, try taking cooking classes near you. When you're hosting Christmas dinner, you may want everything to be “perfect”, but just remember that plans are fine to make, as long as you keep your expectations reasonable.

General wisdom says that each person might eat approximately one to one and a half pounds of meat. Use this metric and your guest list to decide how large of a bird to buy. If you're buying a frozen turkey, take into account that it may take up to 24 hours per five pounds for the fowl to thaw, so plan enough time before the bird has to go into the oven for it to properly unfreeze.

If you plan to brine your turkey ahead of time, which helps to give the skin that golden glow at the end of cooking that many desire, you'll want to leave it soaking in the brine in the refrigerator for around eight hours. The brine will involve about 3/4 cups of salt. That needs to be a big part of your time management as well. 

When deciding how long the preparation time will take between bringing and putting the turkey in the oven, consider if you will be stuffing and dressing the bird or only one of those options. 

The side dish of stuffing originated as something to go inside the turkey while it’s cooking and then be eaten separately but it’s delectable because it was cooked in the turkey's juices. 

Dressing a turkey might be a little outdated, but it’s a fun tradition as a child to help with.

As for the time it will take to cook, calculate around 20 minutes of cooking time per pound – which will also figure into when you need to begin the procedure of thawing, brining, prepping and cooking the turkey. 

The meat is cooking at the proper internal temperature when it has reached 165 degrees Fahrenheit, so you'll need a meat thermometer to properly measure this. 

In the meantime, as the fats and natural juices burn off into the pan around the turkey, use a baster to keep the rest of the turkey hydrated. You place the tip of the baster in the juices, squeeze the top to suck the juices, then squeeze again on top of the turkey to release the juices around the bird. 

Sometimes including slices of fresh fruit like lemons or apples beside the turkey adds exquisite flavor to the bird, if you're interested in experimenting. However, if you're going to experiment, do so at least a week in advance of your party unless your friends are open to taste-testing experiments as well.

Once the bird is finally cooked to your liking, give it about a half hour to cool on the counter before carving in for the main part of your feast. Don't forget to remove the dressing and stuffing before you divide up the dark and light parts of the turkey meat!

Christmas Desserts

Hosting Christmas dinner would be incomplete without a few well-timed and delectable desserts. A few options have already been mentioned in the previous sections about what to prepare in advance and menu ideas.

Dessert ideas not yet mentioned might include a coffee and hot chocolate bar – whether your guests are more interested in caffeine for their drive home or something sweet, they'll enjoy a cozy and warm drink to help their stomachs settle after being filled to bursting with your spectacular main meal.

Puff pastries and frosted Christmas cookies are also superb meal-finishers. You could fill a puff pastry with jam and warm brie for a fancy dessert. If you want a more crafty, homemade feel, set up a cookie decorating station for your friends. You can bake the cookies ahead of time and then set up your friends and family with filled frosting bags, sprinkles and a variety of candy.

Sorbet is also a delightful palate cleanser and also a sweet end to your Christmas meal.

If you like savory treats better, you could craft soft pretzels (or soft pretzel bites) and pair them with sweet and savory sauces like honey mustard and caramel. 

Christmas Decoration Ideas

Decorating Your Home for Christmas

How you decorate your home for the holidays all depends on your sense of style. Are you a simple elegance decorator? This style involves some garlands hung on banisters and a tree as the centerpiece, decorated with light amounts of tinsel and a balanced number of green, red, gold and silver baubles or simple ornaments.

If instead, you lean towards the all-in, uber fun, Santa's workshop or National Lampoon-esque overly gaudy style, that involves more diversity of decoration. For starters and a cozy home feeling, you could make your own decorations – such as wreaths and candles, as well as using various crafts to make ornaments for the tree or art to hang on the walls. 

If you need some crafting inspiration or just want to boost your skills before the holidays, you can try taking an art class near you. There are loads of DIY Christmas decoration ideas for you to try, so let that creativity fly!  

Other ideas include dancing statues of Santa (sometimes they play one song, sometimes there are options you can shuffle through), a snowman-shaped calendar that counts down from the beginning of December until Christmas (like an advent calendar without chocolate), string lights in the shape of snowman or reindeer faces and any props related to your favorite Christmas films, such as leg-shaped lamps.

Table Decorations for a Merry Christmas Dinner

Simple is more often the way to go for table decoration, since the decorating everyone will care most about is the fun feast of dishes soon to be placed in front of them! 

For an “elegant” event, use a solid white, gold, or green tablecloth with red candles. For a more fun effect, your tablecloth could have a Christmas-themed pattern such as leaping reindeer, evergreen trees, snowmen or a green and red plaid. Then add candles of any color you choose, as long as the smell won't collide uncomfortably with the food you're preparing.

Christmas Games and Activities

Whether you're hosting for family and hoping to avoid discussions around touchy topics or you're hosting for your friends, you'll want to include some games and activities to keep your guests occupied while they're waiting for dinner (or to work it off, afterward). 

Fun Christmas games can include simple and classic ideas like Charades and Pictionary, but there are countless board games and card games that can also make for fabulous after-dinner activities. 

Then again, you can always play a fun game of pin the tail on the reindeer and similar homemade Christmas activities. Another fantastic group activity is painting something Christmas-themed together as a group or on individual canvases but at the same time. Here are some Christmas painting ideas to give you a head start!

Must Know Tips for Your First Time Hosting Christmas

Tip #1: Checklists and Budgets

Having clear checklists and a budget for each stage of the process is incredibly important. If your friend group wants a low-key event with simple snacks and standard beverages with a few balloons for decorations, you might be safer in your ability to “wing” it. 

For those whose family and friends expect silver candles and the scent of a roasted goose wafting through the air, you will need detailed ingredient lists, decoration purchasing or creation lists, a plan for your money spending on this event and plenty of advance time to prepare desserts and sides ahead of time, craft, purchase and decorate.

Tip #2: Stock the Bathroom

If you want to party the night away with your guests, you'll want to stock up ahead of time in case of minor emergencies. Band-aids, of course, but also regular supplies like toilet paper, clean hand towels, lots of soap and paper towels are all items you'll want on hand during the big night.

Tip #3: Beverages (Like Booze)

Every one of your guests likes to drink something different. Sometimes you'll want a variety of alcohols or Christmas cocktails on hand for your friends to enjoy (or to help you put up with your family) but you may want some non-booze beverages available for anyone practicing Dry December or for the children who tag along with their parents.

So, what is the answer to “What do I need when hosting Christmas?” and similar questions? A deep breath, to begin with. The second item would be a long checklist to help you plan weeks, maybe even a month, in advance. Then, customize it to your particular friend group or family party.

For even more fun Christmas ideas, check out other experiences happening on Classpop!