Virtual Thanksgiving Party 2025: 8 Free Ideas for Total Success

A virtual Thanksgiving party, eh? The pilgrims never saw this coming!

Times are changing fast at the moment, and while a virtual Thanksgiving party may be different, it certainly shouldn't be worse. In fact, if you follow our guide, it doesn't even have to cost money!

At AhaSlides, we're looking to continue our centuries-old traditions however we can (which is why we also have an article on free virtual Christmas party ideas). Check out these 8 completely free online Thanksgiving activities for kids and adults alike.

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Quick Activity Guide

Choose the perfect activity for your virtual Thanksgiving party:

8 Free Ideas for a Virtual Thanksgiving Party in 2025

Full disclosure: Many of these free virtual Thanksgiving party ideas are made with AhaSlides. You can use AhaSlides' interactive presentation, quizzing and polling software to create your own online Thanksgiving activities for absolutely free.

Check out the ideas below and set the standard with your virtual Thanksgiving party!

Idea 1: PowerPoint Party

The old double Ps of Thanksgiving may have been 'pumpkin pie', but in today's age of online and hybrid gatherings, they now stand best for 'PowerPoint Party'.

Don't think PowerPoint can be as engaging as pumpkin pie? Well, that's a very old-world attitude. In the new world, PowerPoint parties are all the rage and have become a fantastic addition to any virtual holiday party.

Essentially, this activity involves your guests making a hilarious Thanksgiving presentation and then presenting it over Zoom, Teams, or Google Meet. The big points go to hilarious, insightful and creatively made presentations, with a vote at the end of each one.

How to Make It:

1. Tell each of your guests to come up with a simple presentation on Google Slides, AhaSlides, PowerPoint, or any other presentation software.
2. Set a time limit (5-10 minutes) and/or slide limit (8-12 slides) to ensure presentations don't go on forever.
3. When it's the day of your virtual Thanksgiving party, let each person present their PowerPoints in turn.
4. At the end of each presentation, have a 'scales' slide on which the audience can vote on different aspects of the presentation (funniest, most creative, best designed, etc.).
5. Write down the marks and award prizes to the best presentation in each category!

Idea 2: Thanksgiving Quiz

Who doesn't love a bit of turkey trivia for the holidays?

Virtual live quizzes soared in popularity during lockdown and have remained a staple of virtual gatherings ever since.

That's because quizzes actually work better online. The right software takes on all the admin roles; you can just concentrate on hosting a killer quiz for workmates, family or friends.

On AhaSlides, you'll find a template with 20 questions, playable for 100% free for up to 50 participants!

How to use it:

1. Sign up for free to AhaSlides.
2. Take the 'Thanksgiving Quiz' from the template library.
3. Share your unique room code with your players and they can play for free using their phones!

⭐ Want to create your own free quiz? Check out our guide on how to make an interactive quiz in minutes.

💡 Hosting a Hybrid Thanksgiving Party?

These activities work perfectly whether everyone joins remotely or you have some guests in-person and others on video. With AhaSlides, both in-person and remote participants join via their phones, ensuring equal participation regardless of location.

Idea 3: Who's Thankful?

We all know the pilgrims were thankful for corn, God and, to a much lesser extent, Native American heritage. But what are the guests of your virtual Thanksgiving party thankful for?

Well, Who's Thankful? Let's spread the gratitude through hilarious pictures. It's essentially Pictionary, but with another layer.

It starts by asking your guests to each draw something for which they're thankful before the day of your virtual Thanksgiving party. Reveal these at the party and pose two questions: Who's thankful? And what are they thankful for?

How to make it:

1. Gather one hand-drawn picture from each guest of your party (send them a reminder a few days before).
2. Upload that picture to an 'image' content slide on AhaSlides.
3. Create a 'multiple choice' slide afterwards with "Who's Thankful?" as the title and the names of your guests as the answers.
4. Create an 'open-ended' slide after that with "What are they Thankful for?" as the title.
5. Award 1 point to anyone who guessed the right artist and 1 point to anyone who guessed what the drawing represents.
6. Optionally, give a bonus point for the most hilarious answer to "What are they Thankful for?"

Idea 4: Homemade Cornucopia

The cornucopia, the traditional centrepiece of the Thanksgiving table, deserves a place in your virtual celebration too. Making a few budget cornucopias can go some way to keeping that tradition alive.

There are some great resources online, particularly this one, that detail how to make some super easy, kid-and-adult-friendly cornucopias out of food in the average household.

How to make it:

1. Get all of your guests to buy ice cream cones and Thanksgiving-based, or just orange, candy. (I know we said 'free virtual Thanksgiving party ideas', but we're sure your guests could fork out £2 each for this one).
2. On Thanksgiving Day, everyone takes their laptops into the kitchen.
3. Follow along together with the simple instructions on Daily DIY Life.
4. Show off your completed cornucopias on camera and vote for the most creative one!

💡 Pro Tip: This works brilliantly as a warm-up activity whilst everyone joins the call.

Idea 5: Give Thanks

We can always use more positivity and gratitude. This super simple activity for your virtual Thanksgiving party delivers both in abundance.

Regardless of who you're throwing your Thanksgiving bash for, there's likely to have been a few standout players of late. You know, the ones who keep positivity flowing and keep everyone as connected as possible.

Well, it's time to pay them back. A simple word cloud can show those people just how much they're appreciated by their colleagues, family or friends.

How to make it:

1. Create a word cloud slide on AhaSlides with the title "Who are you most thankful for?"
2. Get everyone to put forward the names of one or more people for whom they are super thankful.
3. Names that are mentioned the most will appear in larger text at the centre. Names get smaller and less close to the centre the less they are mentioned.
4. Take a screenshot to share with everyone afterwards as a keepsake!

💡 For work teams: This activity works beautifully as a team recognition moment, celebrating colleagues who've gone above and beyond.

Idea 6: Scavenger Hunt

Ah the humble scavenger hunt, a staple of many North American households during Thanksgiving.

Out of all the virtual Thanksgiving ideas here, this is one of the best to adapt from the offline world. It involves nothing more than a scavenger list and some eagle-eyed partygoers.

We've already dealt with 50% of this activity for you! Check out the scavenger hunt list below!

How to make it:

1. Show the scavenger hunt list to your partygoers (you can download it here)
2. When you say 'Go', everyone begins scouring their house for the items on the list.
3. Items don't have to be the exact items on the list; close approximations are more than acceptable (i.e., a belt tied around a baseball cap in place of a genuine pilgrim hat).
4. The first person back with a close enough approximation of each item wins!

💡 Pro tip: Have everyone keep their cameras on so you can see the hilarious scrambling in real-time. The entertainment value is almost better than the game itself!

Idea 7: Monster Turkey

Great for teaching English and great for virtual Thanksgiving parties; Monster Turkey has it all.

This one involves using a free whiteboard tool to draw 'monster turkeys'. These are turkeys with numerous limbs that are determined by the roll of a dice.

This one is perfect to keep kids entertained, but also a winner amongst (preferably tipsy) adults looking to stay vaguely traditional for the online holidays!

How to make it:

1. Go to Draw Chat and click on "Start New Whiteboard".
2. Copy your personal whiteboard link at the bottom of the page and share it with your partygoers.
3. Make a list of turkey features (heads, legs, beaks, wings, tail feathers, etc.)
4. Type /roll into the chat in the bottom-right of Draw Chat to roll the virtual dice.
5. Write the resulting numbers before each turkey feature (e.g., "3 legs", "2 heads", "5 wings").
6. Assign someone to draw the monster turkey with the specified number of features.
7. Repeat this process for all your partygoers and take a vote on whose was the best!

💡 Alternative: Can't access Draw Chat? Use any collaborative whiteboard tool like Google Jamboard, Miro, or even the whiteboard feature in Zoom.

Idea 8: Charades

Charades is just one of the old-style parlour games that has enjoyed a resurgence recently, thanks to virtual gatherings like online Thanksgiving parties.

With hundreds of years of history, there's enough tradition in Thanksgiving to come up with a long list of charades that you can play over Zoom or any video platform.

In fact, we've done that for you! Check out the charade ideas in our downloadable list and add as many others as you can think of.

How to use it:

1. Give each person at your virtual Thanksgiving party between 3 and 5 words to perform from the list (download the list here)
2. Record how long it takes for them to act out their word set and get a correct guess for each word.
3. The person with the fastest cumulative time wins!

💡 Pro tip: Have everyone write their times in the chat so there's no confusion about who's winning. The competitive spirit makes this even more fun!

Make Your Virtual Thanksgiving Memorable!

AhaSlides helps you create fully interactive quizzes, polls, and presentations for any occasion—whether you're hosting a virtual Thanksgiving party, running team meetings, or celebrating other holidays throughout the year.

Why choose AhaSlides for your Virtual Thanksgiving party?

✅ Free for up to 50 participants - Perfect for most family and team gatherings
✅ No downloads required - Participants join via their phones using a simple code
✅ Works for hybrid events - In-person and remote guests participate equally
✅ Ready-made templates - Get started in minutes with our Thanksgiving quiz and activity templates
✅ Real-time interaction - See responses appear live on screen for maximum engagement

Start creating for free and discover why thousands of hosts choose AhaSlides for engaging virtual gatherings that bring people together, no matter where they are.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I host a virtual Thanksgiving party for free?

Use free video conferencing tools (Zoom, Google Meet, Microsoft Teams) and free activity platforms like AhaSlides. The activities in this guide require no paid subscriptions and work with groups of up to 50 people on AhaSlides' free plan.

What are the best virtual Thanksgiving activities for kids?

Monster Turkey, Homemade Cornucopia, and Scavenger Hunt work brilliantly for children. They're hands-on, creative, and keep kids engaged throughout the activity.

Can these activities work for hybrid Thanksgiving parties?

Absolutely! All these activities work whether everyone is remote or you have a mix of in-person and virtual participants. With AhaSlides, everyone participates via their phones, ensuring equal engagement regardless of location.

How long should a virtual Thanksgiving party last?

Plan for 60-90 minutes for most groups. This gives you time for 3-4 activities with breaks between, plus informal catch-up time before and after structured activities.

What if my family isn't tech-savvy?

Choose simpler activities like Give Thanks (word cloud), Thanksgiving Quiz, or Scavenger Hunt. These require minimal technical knowledge—participants just need to open a link and type or click. Send clear instructions before the party so everyone feels prepared.

Happy Thanksgiving! 🦃🍂