Home for Christmas: Festive activities for your Christmas holiday vacation

The Christmas holiday vacation is a time for good cheer and reconnecting with the reason for the season. Make this time extra special with these activities for family and friends!

Home for Christmas: Festive activities for your Christmas holiday vacation

Make the Christmas holiday vacation something special with these festive family activities for a memorable cheer for the season.

1) Volunteer

Although volunteering is something that can and should be done all year round, more opportunities abound during the Christmas season because of the goodwill of many charities and organizations. The Christmas holiday vacation is a great time to let the family participate in outreach activities run by civic groups and churches who partner with hospitals, orphanages and other places in need.

It is also an opportunity for families to take the initiative and organize their own activities to help their community such as sponsoring and serving a meal in a soup kitchen or a celebration with the families of kasambahays or other workers in the neighborhood.

2) Make and Decorate

Decking the halls during the Christmas season can be more fun with some DIY decorations. Young kids can make ornaments as simple as paper cut-outs of stars, angels, and Christmas trees. Older kids and young adults can attempt projects as ambitious as Nativity Scenes, snowflakes, and small baubles with lights and sounds. Directions for these DIY ventures can be found online, in text format as well as video tutorials. A mix of homemade and store-bought Christmas ornaments can make a home both cheery and welcoming at this time of the year!

3) Bake Christmas treats

A classic Christmas bonding activity is baking cookies and making other Christmas themed treats. Kids will enjoy using cookie cutters and sugar icing in festive colors to decorate cookies in the shapes of Christmas stars, trees, and other motifs. Other tasty projects include Rice Krispie balls, gingerbread houses, and even peppermint-flavored chocolates. Best of all is what comes after, as the only thing more fun than making these goodies is eating them!

4) See the Christmas Lights

An inexpensive but memorable way to spend evenings during the holidays is to see the rest of the world already in the Christmas spirit. Many families like to visit malls, which are almost always decked out with large decorations worthy of pictures with the kids. Others may prefer to drive around the city to see the buildings, parks, and streets all lit up with gargantuan lanterns and installations.

Some places hold light shows or fireworks displays especially on weekends during the holidays. An extra special way to see the lights is to visit a lantern festival or parade, such as the annual festival in San Fernando or the Lantern Parade at the University of the Philippines’ Diliman campus. You can also catch in Cebu City the extraordinary Festival of Lights at The Terraces, Ayala Malls Cebu on November 15.

5) Take Family Pictures

Even in the age of digital photography and online albums, there is still something to be said about having framed pictures of the family, either arranged on standing frames or mounted on the walls. Since Christmas is a time for reunions and visits, it is the best opportunity to take a picture of the family’s different generations all together. Over time these photos will become a cherished record of the family’s growth, and become a way for the younger generations to see their elders as they were.

6) Go on Vacation

One way to spend the holidays, especially the days between Christmas Day and New Year’s Eve, is to go on vacation. This is different from simply traveling to visit relatives; this entails some actual rest and recreation in a getaway or resort. A vacation, however short, is a time to recuperate from the Christmas holiday rush and get some bonding time with immediate family. It need not involve a long trip out of town; for many families a staycation in a lovely hotel or AirBnB does wonders!

Make coming home for the holidays special by choosing the right residence such as Pine Crest in New Manila. This condominium development is perfect for students, young families, and retirees seeking a retreat in the middle of the big city. It is the perfect place to hold these fun Christmas holiday activities and make memories to hand down for years to come.