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Thanksgiving Bucket List: 100+ Ideas for a Magical Celebration with Loved Ones

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Want to plan a Thanksgiving that you and everyone invited will love? My bucket list below is packed with activities, themes, decorations, food ideas, and so much more to give you inspiration.

You can get this list as a printable below. Use it to fill your celebration with lots of fun games, ideas, and things you can all do together, so that everyone is entertained and enjoys quality time together. Hopefully, with these ideas and a little imagination, you can celebrate in style this Thanksgiving!

list of 100 ideas for a thanksgiving bucket list split into sections of 10 ideas with black text and colored sections on a white background

Food-Related Events

Especially for Thanksgiving, food can bring friends and family together. You can theme your celebration based around some of these fun ideas.

  • Plan a Friendsgiving potluck.
  • Host a pie-baking competition for family and friends
  • Make homemade apple cider.
  • Host a brunch on Thanksgiving or Black Friday.
  • Have a family recipe swap with everyone bring their favorite food and the written recipe.
  • Host a fall-themed cocktail party.
  • Go apple picking.
  • Have a Thanksgiving-themed cookie decorating event.
  • Plan a Thanksgiving-themed trivia night.
  • Host a Turkey-shaped pancake breakfast with a pancake toppings bar.

Activities

Aside from food, there are so many other fun things you can do for your celebration.

  • Host a family game night.
  • Create a time capsule with family or friends.
  • Have a movie night with homemade popcorn.
  • Start a bonfire and make s’mores.
  • Take a group photo at your family gathering.
  • Create a Thanksgiving playlist.
  • Watch Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.
  • Go on a nature walk or day hike.
  • Sign up for a Turkey trot.
  • Organize a game of flag football with family or friends.

Gratitude and Giving Back

An important part of Thanksgiving is showing gratitude. If you want to give back in some way, here are some great ideas to try.

  • Write a personal gratitude list to remind yourself of the things you’re thankful for.
  • Have everyone share one good thing that happened this year.
  • Volunteer at a soup kitchen or homeless shelter.
  • Donate food to a food bank.
  • Send a care package to a family member, friend, or someone in need.
  • Host a charity drive.
  • Sponsor a family for Thanksgiving.
  • Participate in a neighborhood/community cleanup event.
  • Bake a pie for your neighbors.
  • Deliver meals to seniors.

Decorations

Make your home cozy, fun, and just that little bit special with some of these decoration ideas.

  • Carve and decorate pumpkins.
  • DIY a ‘Thankful’ banner.
  • Make a colorful leaf garland.
  • Make a fall table centerpiece with leaves, pine cones, and other seasonal items.
  • Create personalized place cards for your guests.
  • Make a Thanksgiving or fall-themed wreath for the door.
  • Use pumpkin spice or apple-scented candles.
  • Try fairy lights indoors to create a holiday mood.
  • Put together a fall flower arrangement.
  • Use fall-themed napkins.

Foods and Drinks to Have on Thanksgiving

Looking for ideas to put on the menu? Here’s plenty to get your guests excited!

  • Roast Turkey
  • Honey Glazed Ham
  • Stuffing/Dressing
  • Mashed Potatoes
  • Gravy
  • Cranberry Sauce
  • Green Bean Casserole
  • Sweet Potato Casserole with Marshmallows
  • Dinner Rolls
  • Cornbread
  • Mac and Cheese
  • Roast Vegetables
  • Creamed Corn
  • Deviled Eggs
  • Apple Pie
  • Pumpkin Pie
  • Pecan Pie
  • Sweet Potato Pie
  • Apple Cider
  • Wine

Board Games

Board games are a great way for the whole family to enjoy quality time without too much hassle. Try some of these if you want to have some games after food.

  • Scrabble
  • Monopoly
  • Pictionary
  • Trivial Pursuit
  • Apples to Apples
  • Sequence
  • Scattergories
  • Catan
  • Ticket to Ride
  • Codenames

Activities and Games for Kids

If you want to keep the kids entertained, these ideas can provide hours of fun, both before and during Thanksgiving.

  • Scavenger hunt
  • Talent show after food
  • Thanksgiving-themed coloring pages
  • Thanksgiving crafts
  • Thanksgiving or holiday-themed puzzles
  • Connect 4
  • Uno
  • Candy Land
  • Jenga
  • Chutes and Ladders

Thanksgiving Self-Care

Use these simple self-care suggestions to help you not be overwhelmed when hosting and to recharge after.

  • Delegate tasks to guests or plan Thanksgiving as a potluck.
  • Take short breaks throughout the day.
  • Listen to a calming playlist while cooking.
  • Prepare some of the dishes in advance.
  • Have a quiet and cozy room to retreat to.
  • Take a relaxing bath with fall-scented bath products after Thanksgiving.
  • Treat yourself to a spa day before or after Thanksgiving.
  • Have a good night’s sleep before.
  • Accept help when offered.
  • Unwind with your favorite movie or book after hosting.

Thanksgiving Movies and Shows

These movies and episode suggestions are perfect for Thanksgiving, and can be great suggestions for the whole family to watch together.

  • Planes, Trains, and Automobiles (1987)
  • A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving (1973)
  • Home for the Holidays (1995)
  • Dutch (1991)
  • Friends – “The One with All the Thanksgivings” (Season 5, Episode 8)
  • Friends – “The One with the Late Thanksgiving” (Season 10, Episode 8)
  • Gilmore Girls – “A Deep-Fried Korean Thanksgiving” (Season 3, Episode 9)
  • Superstore – “Black Friday” (Season 2, Episode 10)
  • Brooklyn Nine-Nine – “Mr. Santiago” (Season 4, Episode 7)
  • Modern Family – “Three Turkeys” (Season 6, Episode 8)

How did you celebrate? Did some of these ideas go down a treat at your get-together? Let me know in the comments below.

Oh, and don’t forget to save this list to a holidays or Thanksgiving board. That way, every when when it’s time to start planning, you can easily find this list once again.

graphic stating 100+ thanksgiving bucket list ideas in large text with an arrow pointing to a partially visible printable list of the ideas at the bottom

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