34 Fun Thanksgiving Games to Play with the Family in 2025
Who's ready to pin the feather on the turkey!?
Thanksgiving is here! And while you'll likely have your hands full cooking (and cleaning), be sure to take a little time for fun! After all, it's not often you have your friends and family under one roof, so make the most of the time and partake in a few Thanksgiving games.
The nice thing about Thanksgiving games is that many can be retrofitted from the classics. Mad-Libs, for example, are a wonderful way for everyone to express what they’re grateful for, while an old-fashioned scavenger hunt can be themed around family memories. And if you’re feeling crafty, many of these games can be made for free with items you already have around the house! All it takes for Thanksgiving bowling, you see, is a few plastic drinking cups and some construction paper, while the yam or sweet potato race puts the ingredients of the big meal to double use!
Whether you’re celebrating with just adults or including the kids, this fun and funny set of Thanksgiving games for 2025 is great for large groups and is sure to liven up your holiday. There are indoor games and outdoor games, as well as games that encourage creativity and games that get everyone up and moving.
Looking for more ways to make the most of your time together during Thanksgiving? Add these to your agenda:
Go on a Country Scavenger Hunt
If you're lucky enough to spend Thanksgiving in the countryside, you can download this scavenger hunt, which features everything from barns to cowboy boots to chickens, and start your search right away. If not, use this printable game to help while away time on the drive to your Turkey Day destination. You can divide into teams (think left-side passengers, right-side passengers) and make it a rule that you can only check off items that you encounter on your team's side of the road.
RELATED: 32 Creative Scavenger Hunt Ideas for Kids and Families
Make a Family Time Capsule
Thanksgiving is the perfect time to collect items that allow us all to savor the present while contemplating what items resonate with our future selves—or future generations.
Get the tutorial at Camp Country Living.
Tell Stories With Stones
Encourage your kids to craft a one-of-a-kind fairy tales with this easy backyard activity. After finding 20 to 25 smooth stones, you'll use paint pens to draw on a range of icons, then mix and match stones to dream up stories that rock (heh heh).
Get the tutorial at Camp Country Living.
Color in Our Magazine Cover!
We know there's a whole lot of creativity out there beyond the confines of the Country Living office, so we thought we'd open up the cover to the budding creative talent to be found across the country. That's right! If you're 16 or under, download the cover template, then try your hand at designing your very own magazine cover. Have the whole family vote for their favorite—winner gets a Country Living subscription!
RELATED: Learn What Makes a Great Cover And Yours Could Appear in Our Magazine!
Play Spin-the-Pie
Let guests spin to unveil six slices of life (Family, Friends, Travel, Home, Pets, Work), each of which is intended to conjure a memory for which they’re grateful. To make, segment the center of a paper plate into six sections; write prompts in each. Cut a smaller round from colorful craft paper; remove one “slice” for category window. Attach wheel to plate with a gold brad. Attach jute rope to rim with hot-glue. Add stenciled letters. (For Thanksgiving, try “Lattice Give Thanks...”)
Set Up a Ladder Toss Outside
A ladder toss game is a classic crowdpleaser. (Here, we used vintage house numbers to give it one-of-a-kind charm.) Not up for the the DIY effort?
Make Your Own Tree Slab Tic-Tac-Toe
Ditch your devices the next time you head on a family camping trip and focus on the fun to be had in the world around you with this kid-friendly craft.
To make: Pick up a round wood slab and four leather strips. On the slab, form a grid (pictured at left) with the strips and secure each end with an upholstery tack. Once in the woods, gather two five-piece groupings of found objects such as small rocks and pine cones to use as game pieces.
Give Apple Toss a Twirl
To set up your own apple toss game, start with apple bushels of varying sizes and choose points based on level of difficulty (the smaller the bushel, the higher the point value). Assign a certain number of apples to each player; whoever can "produce" the most points wins.
Play Checkers With Pumpkins
Almost anything can make checkers more festive? For this fall-inspired version, paint 32 squares on a large (roughly 30-inch) wood board with burnt orange craft paint. Use mini white and orange pumpkins as game pieces.
Give Family Feud a Thanksgiving Theme
This Family Feud game will find out who knows the holiday best! The tutorial includes questions and answers to make putting together this Thanksgiving game even easier.
Get the tutorial at Play Party Plan.
Put Up a Pumpkin Toss
This fall DIY idea will be fun at tailgates and indoor bashes all season long—and it'll be just as fun next year too.
Get the tutorial at Lolly Jane.
Compete in a Hand Turkey Race
Time everyone as they work to create a perfect hand turkey. The person who is fastest to complete it is the winner. Or, you can have all the adults draw, and have the kids be the judges of the best design!
Get the tutorial at Good Housekeeping.
Distract Your Toddler With Feed the Turkey
Keep your toddler busy while you get cooking in the kitchen with this easy-to-make and even easier-to-play pom-pom game.
Get the tutorial at Busy Toddler.
Act Out Thanksgiving Charades
Everyone can take part in this classic game with a Thanksgiving twist. It even comes with free printables, so all you have to do is play!
Get the tutorial at Play Party Plan.
Set Up a Family Photo Scavenger Hunt
Challenge the kids to a scavenger hunt to gather photos of family members and holiday-themed items throughout the day with tricky clues.
Get the tutorial at Party Game Ideas.
Try a Traffic Yam Race
Keep the kids busy by by taking a yam or sweet potato and seeing who, using only a spoon, can roll it to the finish line first. It's a lot harder than it sounds!
Get the tutorial at Play Party Plan.
Bring a Gratitude Game to the Table
Since Thanksgiving is the perfect time to reflect on what you're most grateful for, this gratitude game is right on theme. This twist on pick-up sticks can be recreated with your choosing of each category.
Get the tutorial at Teach Beside Me.
Challenge Guests to a Sack Race
The only game more classic than football on Thanksgiving might be an old-fashioned potato sack race. Standard rules apply, but you can invest in some Thanksgiving-themed sacks to make it more festive!
Answer "Would you Rather" Questions Around the Table
To play around the dinner table once everything is cleared, or to pass the time on your annual road trip to Grandma's, this game poses a series of questions, such as, "Would you rather spend Thanksgiving weekend without football or without shopping?" You'll leave knowing your family better than ever before.
Get the tutorial at Mom of 6.
RELATED: 275 Would You Rather Questions for a Fun Game Night with Friends
Race to Make a Turkey Leg Wrap
Turkey legs are probably on your dinner table at Thanksgiving, and now they can be a part of the fun, too. Players have one minute to wrap up their teammate in burlap and a chef's hat in this game.
Get the tutorial at Kid Friendly Things to Do.
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