Funny Secret Santa Themes for Student Holiday Parties

Read these tips in this article to choose a topic that you are passionate about for your Christmas celebration.

How to Choose an Amusing Theme

Choosing the right topic is a tricky business. You have to make everyone pleased with it and fit everyone’s personality. 

Here is a guide on how to do it:

1. Choose something special. Avoid overused topics and opt for something inclusive. Think about how others can participate. Ask people to invest in the spirit of the party, and prepare some hilarious costumes. You can also ask your guests to bring something relevant to the theme of the party with them from home. This way, everyone will feel involved in the preparation process.
2. Set the budget. Most students face financial difficulties. So, organizing a party can be a challenge on a tight budget. Used and handmade items and borrowed items can help you organize a great gathering. Preparation for the party shouldn't be expensive. The focus of the party is on fun.
3. Know your audience. In case you have a close-knit community with some inside jokes and traditions, you should take them into account when thinking about creating a funny theme. A group of students who have recently met and don’t know each other well might prefer lighthearted humor and regular topics.

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Here are some topics that might be exciting for everyone:

1. Summer Christmas. To organize this topic, decorate the space brightly, using vivid colours. Use summer-themed accents like sunglasses, beach balls, and colorful flowers. Set up a table in a picnic style with refreshing snacks, and add festive touches like red and green napkins to combine summer and winter topics. Create a playlist that blends classic Christmas tunes with upbeat summer hits to keep the energy lively. Set up a cozy corner with bright summer decorations for memorable photos.
2. Retro Holidays. To organize this party, choose your favorite decade — the 80s, 90s, or early 2000s — and explore the trends of that time. Use special clothes, decorations, retro candles, and mugs from that era. You could also print some pictures of how people celebrated Christmas back then.
3. Pajama and Cocoa Night. Create a cozy party for students with cute pajamas, warm blankets, and mugs with tasty cocoa with marshmallows. You can suggest to students a funny exchange with some cute accessories: socks, scented candles, small blankets, chocolate gift sets, mini board or card games. Select calm music and create a cozy atmosphere with gentle light.
4. DIY Party. Turn the party into a craft-and-share event when everyone brings a handmade decoration, snack, or gift. This way, nobody will spend a lot of money on this event and will be able to express their creativity. 
5. Winter Wellness. Decorate the space of a yoga studio in a style and think about activities such as meditation, simple yoga moves, and talks about mental health support. You can be inspired by videos on YouTube and choose simple but effective practices. Remember to wear sportswear for fitness and get a festive appearance. Cook food based on fitness recipes and make healthy smoothies. This theme promotes inclusion by valuing mental well-being.

Here are some ideas for things that students can bring:

• String lantern
• Clay ornaments
• Christmas wreaths
• Decorated sugar cookies
• Mini cupcakes
• Hand-painted mugs
• Customized notebooks
• Handmade jewelry

6. Around the World Christmas. This topic needs preparation and active participation from everyone. Distribute the countries among the participants to avoid repetition, and start preparing some weeks in advance. People can dress in themed outfits and cook a special dish from that culture. This party is both entertaining and promotes cultural discovery.
7. Holiday Movie Marathon. In advance, ask students about their film preferences and choose several movies that they all enjoy. Ask guests to dress up as their favorite characters from those movies, making sure that no two characters are the same to create a variety of costume choices. You could even prepare meals that are associated with the movies or decorate the space with items related to the films.

With such topics, students are sure to have fun and will remember this event for a long time. Surely, Secret Santa's gifts should be related to these topics, so the theme of the party and the gift itself must be in a similar style.

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Funny Secret Santa Ideas

For students who wish to have extra fun, some entertaining topics are more suitable. You can focus on preparing funny gifts rather than the ambience of the party venue itself. Encouraging everyone to think creatively and show their humour is essential.

Here are some playful ideas for the Secret Santa gift exchange:

1. Wrap a tiny gift with an absurd number of layers. Unwrapping the gift makes everyone laugh, and you can even film it while the recipient is trying to get to the gift. Be sure that the tiny present is valuable and useful so that it's worth the effort of unwrapping. 

2. Disguise a gift. Hide a useful gift in the packaging of something unexpected — a cereal box, an old bag, or a detergent container. The gift recipient will be revealed to find a great gift inside.

3. Prepare a creative kit. Create a mini "survival kit" for specific situations, which can include highlighters, notebooks, and stress relief balls, connected to exams. The "Winter Kit", with herbal tea, gloves, and chocolate, is both useful and thoughtfully prepared, while the All-Nighter kit, with instant coffee and energy bars, as well as post-it notes and eye patches, might come in handy to students who know how to stay up late.

4. Think about the puzzle. In order to get a gift, students should first solve a puzzle with an image of it. When they finish the puzzle, they will receive a well-earned gift. They can think about not only the image but also some clues leading to the prize.

These ideas will amuse people and will make them remember this unusual gift exchange forever.

How to organize a Secret Santa gift exchange?

Organizing a Secret Santa gift exchange for students is simple and fun. First, set a reasonable budget and a date so everyone knows the limits and the deadline. Vote for the topic of this exchange that appeals to everyone, or suggest relying on the imagination and let students make up their own funny idea for the exchange.

Each participant is randomly assigned another person to give a gift to, with the recipient remaining a secret until the exchange. The simplest way to organize this is by using a free online Secret Santa tool, like MySanta app, which usually lets everyone create wishlists to provide gift inspiration. On the exchange day, gather everyone in a common space, take photos, and record a video of the gift exchange process.

Try our MySanta app

You can create wishlists, add exclusions, and communicate with your gifree secretly. Moreover, there is an option to track gifts and ensure that everyone buys a present on time.

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Conclusion

Organizing a student Secret Santa holiday party with a fun theme is all about creativity and laughter. Choosing a theme that suits your group's personality and budget makes sure that everyone feels involved and engaged. Including a playful Secret Santa exchange adds an extra layer of fun and allows students to showcase their sense of humour. These parties could become a great annual tradition.

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