How to get into the holiday spirit at home

Heading into the final month of 2025, many people look forward to making the most out of what’s famously called the most wonderful time of the year. 

However, with much happening during this time of year, there are only so many hours in a day to participate in a lot of the (often pricey!) holiday festivities.

As a broke university student, finding ways to celebrate the holidays at home with minimal time and resources is especially helpful. 

Here are my suggestions on how to navigate one of the busiest times of the year from the comfort of your home. 

• Watching holiday media

Whether it’s a beloved holiday classic such as Home Alone or something more recent such as Spider-Man: No Way Home, watching holiday-themed media is an easy way to get into spirit. You could choose to do this alone or with friends. 

Whether it’s after a long day filled with errands or simply being bored and having nothing to do, watching holiday media is one of those activities that can be done anytime. From classic stop-motion movies about Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer to yearly Hallmark specials filmed in low-budget settings like Surrey, B.C., there’s plenty of flicks to enjoy. 

• Decorating your living spaces

This is one activity anyone can do indoors, and is also one of the best ways to get into the holiday spirit by surrounding yourself in the festive theme.

It can be something as simple as putting up a small Christmas tree from the dollar store if you don’t want to put in too much effort, which yours truly may or may not have been doing for years. 

However, this doesn’t mean you can’t go all out and put up an actual Christmas tree and decorate it with ornaments, tinsel, and a shining star on top. You could even go further and put up other decorations around your home, such as Christmas stockings, wreathes, and candy canes. 

One of the best parts about decorating your living spaces is the only person who would care about the decorations is yourself since you’re the one putting everything up. Well, that is assuming you’re not inviting anyone over. 

• Spending time with friends

If you are in the mood to invite people over, spending time with friends is another fun and simple activity to do during the holidays. Whether it’s playing video games together or just talking and catching up, most people are happy to have company over, especially during a time where many can feel lonely. 

Sometimes, spending time with people doesn’t even have to be in person, believe it or not. The times I’ve hung out with friends in online chats have been some of my favourite memories in what has been one of my roughest years ever. A lot of the activities you can do with friends in person are also available online. 

While there’s never a bad time to be with your friends in my opinion, one of the best times to be with them is during the holiday season.