Candy Cane Games

Candy cane games for a Christmas party, all played with wrapped canes: press Pick 3 new games.

Candy Cane Games

How Many Canes Long Is the Table?1. Hold up one wrapped cane beside the party table. 2. Each child guesses how many canes, laid end to end, will reach from one end of the table to the other. 3. Lay the canes down together and count aloud. 4. The closest guess picks the next thing to measure: the door, the sofa, a grown-up lying down. Every cane stays wrapped, so each child takes one home to eat. Ages: 5 and up. Players: 2 to 16. Time: 6 min. Props: a dozen or more wrapped candy canes.
Two-Color Cane Sort Relay1. Mix wrapped canes of two colors in one bin: red-striped and green-striped. 2. Each team owns a color and has a jar at its starting line. 3. One walker at a time goes to the bin, takes one cane of the team color and brings it back to the jar. 4. The first team with ten in its jar wins. An adult stands beside each line. Every cane stays wrapped, so each child takes one home to eat. Ages: 5 and up. Players: 4 to 20. Time: 8 min. Props: wrapped candy canes in two colors, a bin and two jars.
Ribbon-Color Cane Hunt1. Tie a short ribbon to every wrapped cane, in as many colors as there are children, three canes to a color. 2. An adult hides them around one room, each with a little showing. 3. Give each child a ribbon color. They may pick up only their own. 4. A child who finds another color leaves it and says nothing. Every cane stays wrapped, so each child takes one home to eat. Ages: 5 and up. Players: 2 to 12. Time: 10 min. Props: wrapped candy canes and ribbon in several colors.

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How it works

These games to play with candy canes use the hook: to lift, link, tow, hang and pass. Every cane stays in its wrapper, nothing is held in the mouth, and each game says which canes may be eaten afterward.

Read the full guide

Four kinds of candy cane game

The All games menu keeps one kind: Hook and pass games, Relays and moving games, Candy cane hunts or Table games and one jar guess. Relays are walked, with an adult beside each line.

For the youngest guests

More filters, the last entry of that menu, sorts by head count, by minutes and by the youngest player. Age 5 keeps the games with no reading.

Tips

Buy twice as many canes as children: canes that touch the floor move to the craft box.

Questions and answers

How do you play the candy cane game?

There are many, and most use the hook. In Hanging Chain of Canes, one child holds a wrapped cane up and teammates hang more from it, hook to hook, until the chain slips.

What is an easy candy cane party game for small children?

Dig in the Paper Snow for Canes: wrapped canes are buried in a tub of shredded paper, two children dig at a time, and everyone ends with the same number.

Do the children eat the candy canes?

Not during a game. Every cane stays wrapped while it is played with. Afterward each child takes a clean one home, and canes that touched the floor are kept for crafts.

How many candy canes does a party need?

Most games here use a dozen or fewer, and the same canes serve several games. The ribbon hunt needs three for each child, and the jar guess needs a jar of mini canes.

All 32 games

Hook and pass games 8

Balance Beam of Canes on a Ruler 1. One child holds a ruler level on one finger of each hand. 2. Two others take turns hanging a wrapped cane on the ruler, one on each side. 3. The ruler must stay level enough that nothing slides off. 4. Count the canes hanging when the first one falls, then swap jobs. Canes that touched the floor go in the craft box, and each child gets a fresh one to eat. Ages: 6 and up. Players: 3 to 9. Time: 6 min. Props: a ruler and a dozen wrapped candy canes.
Hanging Chain of Canes 1. One child holds a wrapped cane up by its straight end. 2. Teammates take turns hanging one more cane from the lowest hook, hook to hook. 3. The chain grows downward until it slips. 4. Count the canes in the longest chain that hung for three seconds. Canes that touched the floor go in the craft box, and each child gets a fresh one to eat. Ages: 5 and up. Players: 2 to 12. Time: 6 min. Props: a dozen wrapped candy canes.
Hook Ten Pipe Cleaner Loops 1. Twist ten pipe cleaners into loops and scatter them on a tray. 2. Each child holds one wrapped cane by its straight end. 3. Using only the hook, lift the loops off the tray one at a time and drop them in a cup. 4. Time each turn, or race two trays side by side. Every cane stays wrapped, so each child takes one home to eat. Ages: 5 and up. Players: 2 to 12. Time: 6 min. Props: a wrapped candy cane each, ten pipe cleaners, a tray and a cup.

Show all 32 games (29 more)

Hook and pass games, continued

Hook-to-Hook Wish Pull 1. Two children each hold a wrapped cane by the straight end and link the hooks. 2. On three, both pull gently and steadily, with no jerking. 3. One hook will snap inside its wrapper. The child whose hook is whole makes a wish. 4. The broken canes, still wrapped, are saved as stirrers for cocoa. Ages: 5 and up. Players: 2 to 12. Time: 4 min. Props: a wrapped candy cane each.
Paper Plate Rings Onto a Cane Stand 1. Push three wrapped canes upright into a ball of play dough, hooks up. 2. Cut the middles out of paper plates to make rings. 3. From three steps back, each child tosses three rings. 4. A ring that settles over a cane scores a point. Every cane stays wrapped, so each child takes one home to eat. Ages: 5 and up. Players: 2 to 12. Time: 8 min. Props: three wrapped candy canes, play dough and paper plate rings.
Spin the Cane, the Hook Chooses 1. Sit around a smooth table with one wrapped cane lying flat in the middle. 2. One child spins it. When it stops, the hook points at somebody. 3. That child names something to do with winter that nobody has said yet, then spins. 4. Stuck? The circle helps, and the game goes on. Every cane stays wrapped, so each child takes one home to eat. Ages: 5 and up. Players: 3 to 12. Time: 6 min. Props: one wrapped candy cane and a smooth table.
Stocking Lift by the Loop 1. Lay five small stockings on the floor with their hanging loops standing up. 2. A child hooks one loop with a wrapped cane, lifts the stocking and carries it to a basket. 3. No hands on the stocking. 4. Five stockings in the basket ends the turn. Canes that touched the floor go in the craft box, and each child gets a fresh one to eat. Ages: 5 and up. Players: 2 to 12. Time: 6 min. Props: a wrapped candy cane, five small stockings and a basket.
Through the Wreath, Underarm 1. Hang a small wreath in a doorway on a string, at the height of a child's chest. 2. From two steps back, each child tosses three wrapped canes underarm, aiming through the middle. 3. A cane that goes through scores two, and one that catches on the wreath by its hook scores five. 4. Nobody stands behind the wreath during a throw. Canes that touched the floor go in the craft box, and each child gets a fresh one to eat. Ages: 5 and up. Players: 2 to 12. Time: 8 min. Props: a small wreath on a string and three wrapped candy canes.

Relays and moving games 8

Cane on a Flat Palm Relay 1. Each walker lays a wrapped cane across one open palm. 2. Fingers stay flat: no gripping. 3. Walk to the far wall and back, then tip the cane onto the next walker's palm. 4. A dropped cane goes back on the palm where it fell. An adult stands beside each line. Canes that touched the floor go in the craft box, and each child gets a fresh one to eat. Ages: 5 and up. Players: 4 to 20. Time: 6 min. Props: one wrapped candy cane for each team.
Herd the Paper Snowball With a Cane 1. Crumple a sheet of white paper into a snowball for each team. 2. Each walker pushes the snowball along the floor with the hook of a wrapped cane, around a chair and back. 3. No kicking and no hands. 4. Pass the cane on. An adult stands beside each line. Canes that touched the floor go in the craft box, and each child gets a fresh one to eat. Ages: 5 and up. Players: 4 to 20. Time: 8 min. Props: a wrapped candy cane and a paper ball for each team.
Hook One, Carry It to the Stocking 1. Stand a mug of wrapped canes at one end of the room, hooks out, and hang a stocking at the other. 2. Each walker holds one cane and uses its hook to lift a second cane from the mug. 3. They carry it, hook on hook, to the stocking and drop it in. 4. If it falls, hook it up again from the floor. An adult stands beside each line. Canes that touched the floor go in the craft box, and each child gets a fresh one to eat. Ages: 6 and up. Players: 4 to 20. Time: 8 min. Props: a mug of wrapped candy canes and a stocking for each team.
Linked Canes Pair Walk 1. Pairs stand side by side. Each child holds a wrapped cane by its straight end, and the two hooks are linked. 2. On go, the pair walks around a chair and back without the hooks coming apart. 3. If they unlink, the pair stops, links up and carries on. 4. The next pair goes when they return. An adult stands beside each line. Every cane stays wrapped, so each child takes one home to eat. Ages: 5 and up. Players: 4 to 20. Time: 8 min. Props: a wrapped candy cane each and a chair.
Slide a Cane to the Tape Target 1. Mark a start line on a smooth floor, and three tape lines across the far end worth 1, 3 and 5. 2. Each child kneels at the start and slides a wrapped cane along the floor with one push. 3. It scores the line it stops nearest to, and nothing if it goes past the last line. 4. Three slides each, then add up. Canes that touched the floor go in the craft box, and each child gets a fresh one to eat. Ages: 5 and up. Players: 2 to 16. Time: 8 min. Props: tape and three wrapped candy canes.
Tow the Toy Sled With a Cane Hook 1. Tie a loop of string to a small box or a toy sled and put a soft toy in it. 2. Each walker hooks the loop with a wrapped cane and tows the sled to a line and back. 3. If the passenger falls out, stop and put it back. 4. Hand the cane to the next walker. An adult stands beside each line. Canes that touched the floor go in the craft box, and each child gets a fresh one to eat. Ages: 5 and up. Players: 4 to 20. Time: 8 min. Props: a wrapped candy cane, a small box on a string and a soft toy for each team.
Two-Color Cane Sort Relay 1. Mix wrapped canes of two colors in one bin: red-striped and green-striped. 2. Each team owns a color and has a jar at its starting line. 3. One walker at a time goes to the bin, takes one cane of the team color and brings it back to the jar. 4. The first team with ten in its jar wins. An adult stands beside each line. Every cane stays wrapped, so each child takes one home to eat. Ages: 5 and up. Players: 4 to 20. Time: 8 min. Props: wrapped candy canes in two colors, a bin and two jars.
Under the Cane Garland 1. Two adults hold a string with wrapped canes hanging from it. 2. Children walk under it one by one without touching a cane. Bending the knees is fine, and hands stay off the floor. 3. After each round the adults lower the string a little. 4. A child who touches a cane cheers for the rest. Every cane stays wrapped, so each child takes one home to eat. Ages: 5 and up. Players: 4 to 20. Time: 8 min. Props: a string hung with wrapped candy canes.

Candy cane hunts 8

Cane Tags Point the Way 1. An adult writes six tags, each a clue to a place in the house, and ties one to each of six wrapped canes. 2. The first cane is handed over. Its tag leads to the second cane, and so on. 3. Children read the clues together and walk as one group. 4. The sixth cane sits with a bowl holding a cane for everyone. Every cane stays wrapped, so each child takes one home to eat. Ages: 6 and up. Players: 2 to 10. Time: 15 min. Props: wrapped candy canes with clue tags.
Count the Tree Canes With Your Eyes 1. An adult hangs wrapped canes all over the tree, some deep in the branches, and keeps the count secret. 2. Children walk around the tree with their hands behind their backs. 3. Each tells the adult a number. 4. Count them off the tree together. The closest guess hands the canes out. Every cane stays wrapped, so each child takes one home to eat. Ages: 5 and up. Players: 2 to 20. Time: 8 min. Props: wrapped candy canes on a tree.
Dig in the Paper Snow for Canes 1. Fill a tub with shredded white paper and bury wrapped canes in it, at least two for each child. 2. Two children at a time dig with their hands for twenty seconds. 3. They may keep two and must bury any extras again. 4. Everyone ends with the same number. Every cane stays wrapped, so each child takes one home to eat. Ages: 5 and up. Players: 2 to 16. Time: 8 min. Props: a tub of shredded paper and wrapped candy canes.
Jingle Louder for the Gold-Ribbon Cane 1. One child waits outside while an adult hides a wrapped cane with a gold ribbon. 2. The others each hold a jingle bell. 3. The seeker comes in. The group jingles softly when the seeker is far away and louder as they get near. 4. Found it? The seeker chooses who goes out next. Every cane stays wrapped, so each child takes one home to eat. Ages: 5 and up. Players: 4 to 16. Time: 10 min. Props: one wrapped candy cane with a gold ribbon and jingle bells.
One Cane Is Different 1. Lay twelve wrapped canes in a row. Eleven match, and one differs in a small way: a green stripe, a bow tied on the other side, the hook facing left. 2. Children look for ten seconds with their hands on their knees. 3. Each whispers to the adult which cane it is and why. 4. Mix the row and hide a new difference. Every cane stays wrapped, so each child takes one home to eat. Ages: 5 and up. Players: 2 to 12. Time: 6 min. Props: twelve wrapped candy canes and a ribbon.
Put the Five Canes Back Where They Hung 1. Hang five wrapped canes in plain sight around the room: on a door handle, a lamp, a picture frame. 2. Children study the room for one minute, then wait outside. 3. An adult collects the canes and hands them to the children as they come back. 4. Working together, they hang each cane where it was. One point for every right place. Every cane stays wrapped, so each child takes one home to eat. Ages: 6 and up. Players: 2 to 10. Time: 8 min. Props: five wrapped candy canes.
Ribbon-Color Cane Hunt 1. Tie a short ribbon to every wrapped cane, in as many colors as there are children, three canes to a color. 2. An adult hides them around one room, each with a little showing. 3. Give each child a ribbon color. They may pick up only their own. 4. A child who finds another color leaves it and says nothing. Every cane stays wrapped, so each child takes one home to eat. Ages: 5 and up. Players: 2 to 12. Time: 10 min. Props: wrapped candy canes and ribbon in several colors.
Seen It? Sit on the Rug 1. Children wait outside while an adult places one wrapped cane where it can be seen without moving anything. 2. They come in and look with their eyes only. 3. A child who spots it says nothing and sits down on the rug. 4. The last child standing gets hints from the others. The first to sit hides it next. Every cane stays wrapped, so each child takes one home to eat. Ages: 5 and up. Players: 3 to 16. Time: 8 min. Props: one wrapped candy cane.

Table games and one jar guess 8

How Many Canes Long Is the Table? 1. Hold up one wrapped cane beside the party table. 2. Each child guesses how many canes, laid end to end, will reach from one end of the table to the other. 3. Lay the canes down together and count aloud. 4. The closest guess picks the next thing to measure: the door, the sofa, a grown-up lying down. Every cane stays wrapped, so each child takes one home to eat. Ages: 5 and up. Players: 2 to 16. Time: 6 min. Props: a dozen or more wrapped candy canes.
Mini Canes in a Jar, One Guess Each 1. An adult counts wrapped mini canes into a clear jar and writes the number on a hidden card. 2. Set the jar on the table with a sheet for names and guesses. 3. Every child writes one guess, or tells an adult who writes it. 4. Read the count before the party ends. The closest guess shares the jar around the table. Ages: 5 and up. Players: 2 to 30. Time: 4 min. Props: a jar of wrapped mini candy canes and a guess sheet.
Pom-Pom Hockey With Cane Sticks 1. Mark a goal at each end of a table with two cups. 2. Two children each hold a wrapped cane by the straight end, as a hockey stick. 3. Drop a pom-pom in the middle. Push it with the hook only, and keep the other hand behind your back. 4. First to three goals stays on. Every cane stays wrapped, so each child takes one home to eat. Ages: 5 and up. Players: 2 to 12. Time: 8 min. Props: two wrapped candy canes, a pom-pom and four cups.
Roll for Stripes on a Paper Cane 1. Draw the outline of a candy cane on paper for each child, divided into twelve stripes. 2. Children take turns rolling a die. 3. Color that many stripes red, leaving a white stripe between any two red ones where you can. 4. The first cane fully striped wins, and everyone finishes theirs. A wrapped cane is taped to each drawing to take home. Ages: 5 and up. Players: 2 to 10. Time: 10 min. Props: paper, red crayons, one die and a wrapped candy cane each.
Spell It in Canes 1. Give each team a pile of wrapped canes. 2. The adult calls a short word, such as JOY, ICE or SLED. 3. Teams lay canes on the table to shape the letters. The hooks make good curves. 4. The first word the adult can read wins the round. Every cane stays wrapped, so each child takes one home to eat. Ages: 6 and up. Players: 4 to 16. Time: 8 min. Props: about fifteen wrapped candy canes for each team.
Three in a Row With Canes and Bows 1. Make a grid of nine squares on the table with four strips of tape. 2. One child plays wrapped canes, and the other plays gift bows. 3. Take turns placing one piece in an empty square. 4. Three in a row wins, and the loser starts the next game. Every cane stays wrapped, so each child takes one home to eat. Ages: 5 and up. Players: 2 to 8. Time: 5 min. Props: tape, five wrapped candy canes and five gift bows.
Twist a Cane From Two Pipe Cleaners 1. Give each child one red pipe cleaner and one white, and lay a wrapped candy cane on the table as the model. 2. Show the move once: hold the two together, twist them into a striped rope and bend the top into a hook. 3. On go, everyone twists. 4. The first finished cane that hangs on a finger wins. The pipe cleaner canes go on the tree, and the real ones go home. Ages: 5 and up. Players: 2 to 20. Time: 6 min. Props: a red and a white pipe cleaner each and one wrapped candy cane as the model.
Which Cup Hides the Cane? 1. Set three cups upside down and put a wrapped mini cane under one while the children watch. 2. Slide the cups around each other slowly, five swaps. 3. Each child points to a cup. 4. Lift it. Children take turns being the one who slides the cups. Every cane stays wrapped, so each child takes one home to eat. Ages: 5 and up. Players: 2 to 10. Time: 5 min. Props: three cups and one wrapped mini candy cane.

How this list was compiled: Written by the Game Night Generator editors on 2026-10-03 for a children's Christmas party, in our own words. Every game uses candy canes that stay in their wrappers, and each entry says which canes may be eaten afterward. No game is a race to eat, nothing is held in the mouth, and an adult stands beside every relay line. Ages, player ranges and times are our estimates. No facts are stated, so nothing was checked against an outside source. Licence: own work