Hanukkah Holiday Party Ideas

One thing I remember growing up was the Hanukkah Party we would have every year.  My step mother is Jewish and even though the rest of us were not – it was her holiday she still celebrated and we shared that with her. She would call this party the Hanukkah Harry Party – Hanukkah Harry is  a fictional character, basically the Jewish version of Santa Claus.  So with that I got to learn and experience two holidays every year, which I think made me kinda lucky.

Now I did not get gifts on Hanukkah, but we always had a Menorah up and I would watch and listen while she lit the candles and said her prayers each night. I can even remember them – well part of them. So being I write a lot about Christmas Parties – I thought it would be nice to give you some ideas for a Hanukkah Party that kids and adults of all faiths can enjoy.  Without getting into religious views and all of that – I think there is nothing wrong with sharing with others a different holiday experience, It is good for kids to see the different ways one celebrates the Holidays.

So on that note I dedicate this post to my Step Mother for allowing me to have that experience and give me memories I cherish. So I will talk about some of the things we did and also some other ideas to help you plan your party.

First you must invite your guests to your party and believe it or not Hanukkah Party Invitations are hard to find.  I was able to find  one that I thought was really adorable which is  the one you see pictured to your right – Dreidel Hanukkah Party Invitation (no longer available – sorry) and you can personalize it with all your party information. Then I also found a small selection available on Amazon you can see them here:  Hanukkah Party Invitations.

Of course any Hanukkah Party should also have some great Hanukkah Party Supplies.  The basic colors behind all the decor is usually Blue, White and Silver. You can really add in any colors you want, but these colors are the main color palette. I think the Hanukkah Star Tinsel Wreath would be a great decoration on the front door to welcome your guests to the party.

Here are some other fun Hanukkah Party Decorations I found on Amazon:

A great way to get everyone involved in the celebration is to share with your guests some of your holiday traditions. Show them how you light the candles on your Menorah and explain how your holiday is celebrated.  You can also read a fun book called The Great Hanukkah Party which is geared toward the kids.  You can find a large variety of Hanukkah Books on Amazon for all age groups and a lot of fun stories all having to do with this holiday. So depending on the age of your audience and the type of story you want to share – you will find it. I think a nice story is a great way to engage the kids and get them excited about the Holiday Theme.

Before I get into games and activities you can do at your party I must first talk about the food.  While you may have your own special recipes I am going to tell you what we had at our Hanukkah Party. My Step Mother always made Potato Latkes – these were my very favorite. The part that I did not like was being one of the ones who had to help grate all those potatoes.  She had her own special recipe and would fry them up as we sat and took in the aroma of what was to come. My mouth waters thinking about it. They were so good and even better dipped into some sour cream – YUM.

Some of the other food items I can remember being at our Hanukkah Party were Bagels – lots of Bagels and being we lived in NY which made them even better. There would of course be Lox to put on them  and many other flavored Cream Cheeses to go with them. There would also be Herring in Cream Sauce, White Fish, Sablefish, Matzos  and other food I cannot remember that all went with the Holiday Theme. I just remember it all being so delicious.  If this is your holiday then I am sure you have some great Traditional Recipes you can share with your guests to give them the taste of your holiday. Of course you can also find some great Hanukkah Holiday Cookbooks to help inspire you with new ideas as well if needed.

So now lets talk about some games you can play at the party and you must know what the number one game is right? The Dreidel Game of course. First you will need some Dreidels and then you will need to know How to Play the Dreidel Game.  So here is How you Play courtesy  mazornet.com :

What You Need:
1 Dreidel
A bunch of small items to act as counters. Raisins, M&M’s, Chocolate Coins (Gelt), Peppermint Candies etc…

Game Play:
· Divide the counters equally among the players.
· Every player contributes one counter into a central pile. This becomes the “pot.”
· Players spin the dreidel in turn and contribute or collect items from the pot based upon which letter faces up when the dreidel stops its spin.

– Nun – Nisht – the player collects nothing from the pot.
– Gimmel – Gantz – the player gets it all.
– Hey – Halb – The player collects half of the pot.
– Shin – Shtel – The player sets one of his own items into the pot.

The player who gains the most items wins.

There is a Great book called The Everything Kids’ Hanukkah Book that contains Games, crafts, trivia, songs, and traditions that is a great resource for finding some ideas for the party. I have also found that DLTK offers a large selection of FREE Printable Hanukkah Party Pages you can print and use at the party also. They have everything from Hanukkah Coloring Pages, Puzzles, Word Searches, Printable Hanukkah Crafts, Printable Dreidels and more and yes it is all FREE. Now who doesn’t love FREE? You can also print some out these out and send them home as part of your party favor too.

Here are some other fun Hanukkah Party Games I found on Amazon:

There are so many ideas for some Hanukkah Party Crafts too. Remember that if you decide to have a craft at the party it will also become part of the party favor they can take home. Remember the link I gave you above to DLTK they have lots of fun FREE Printable Crafts available. I have also found this great FREE Printable Dreidel Template you can use as well.

Here are some Hanukkah Crafts and Activities I found on Amazon that would also be fun:

One more fun game that I have to mention is the Pin the Flame on the Menorah Game – This is played just as you would the Pin the Tail on the Donkey – but instead you Pin the Flame on the Candle. I think the kids would love this.  You could also easily make your own using some Poster board. Just draw your Menorah, color it in and make some cut out flames the kids will use to stick on. Very easy to do and the kids may love to help with this project too.

So I think I have given you a lot of ideas for Hanukkah Party Decorations, Food, Games and Activities. I think I was able to discover lots of fun things you can use at your Holiday Party. So now the last thing we need to finish it all up is your Hanukkah Party Favors.  When we had our Hanukkah Party my step mother would make sure everyone went home with a Dreidel and a nice bag of Chocolate Gelt and that was just perfect, but here are some more ideas for you.

One of my favorites are these Chocolate Covered Rice Krispy Treats in 4 fun Hanukkah designs. They come in a Menorah, Dreidel, Star of David and Gelt Design. These are available to purchase on my website:  The Party Animal. Let me start by saying these are HUGE weighing in at 4-5 ounces each and they come individuality wrapped and on a stick.  They are made fresh to order and delicious. Did I mention HUGE? You can also mix and match the designs and they make a great table decoration your guests can pick from on the way out.

Now if you are creative Martha Stewart has these adorable Marshmallow Dreidels you can create. They are not that hard and they are absolutely adorable. You can use them as a party favor or just a fun treat at the party.

This is how easy they are to make :

1. Spray kitchen scissors with nonstick cooking spray; trim sides of marshmallow to make it square-shaped.
2. Dip marshmallow into a shallow bowl of nonpareils to coat.
3. Insert a wooden skewer; add nonpareil chocolate for tip.
4. Trim skewer.

You may also like these Dreidel Cupcakes I created that are Super Easy to do using the Dreidel Delight Roundabouts Cupcake Sleeves. I have a post showing you step by step directions on how you can create these cuties. Also available are Cupcake Sleeves to create Star of David Cupcakes as well. You can use these as a treat at your party or even send them home as an Edible Party Favor.

Now here are some fun Hanukkah Party Favors and Toys I found on Amazon that would be great for the kids:

So there you have it my post filled with so many great ideas for your Hanukkah Holiday Party. If you have some fun games or activities you have done that you would like to share just Contact Us and we would be happy to share it right here or just Comment Below – I would love to hear from you.

I would also like to know why there are so many ways you can spell Hanukkah – Anyone?