Spending time with friends can be so rewarding and help you to unwind during your free time. Unfortunately, we’re not always able to be with our friends. Sometimes, those we are closest to are old friends who have spread out across the country and the world while others might move away or travel for work often. Right now, we’re living in strange times as most of us are unable to see our friends (and even our families) because of stay-at-home orders to keep us safe from the spread of COVID-19. We’ve jumped on the Zoom bandwagon and started having regular virtual happy hours to help us cope and give us a fun way to socialize while still social distancing.  But, if you’re getting bored of staring at your friends on a screen night after night, try adding some excitement to your happy hour by each working on a paint with diamonds kit or playing a group game. Here are some other ideas to take your virtual happy hours to the next level.  

1. Start a Book Club

Creating a virtual book club is the perfect way to get your friends together for a purpose. Not that you need a reason to hang with your friends, but gathering together to discuss a book gives your happy hour a new purpose and gives you something to do while you’re bored in the house. Get your friends to decide on a book that everyone is interested in. Then, plan to have a weekly club meeting to discuss the predetermined section of the book that everyone was asked to read for the week. This is a cool way to share something new with your friends and delve deeper into a book’s meaning. Each week, you can ask everyone to share a part of that week’s chapters that particularly spoke to them, whether it was heart-warming, funny or insightful.

2. Play a Game

Thanks to modern technology, there are so many different ways to play games with your friends over a virtual happy hour. One of our favorite game kits is from Jackbox TV, which includes games like Fibbage, a game of lies and deceit, and Quiplash, a word game that requires players to come up with answers to make their friends laugh. You can download this game package and get everyone involved simply by sharing your screen over Zoom or Google Hangouts Meet. To make things interesting, add your own drinking rules to the game, or play a good old-fashioned traditional drinking game like Never Have I Ever or Two Truths and a Lie.

3. Make It a Themed Happy Hour

Because of the current stay-at-home orders, most of us probably haven’t gotten out of our pajamas in several days. Don’t worry! We’re not judging you. We’ve basically only been changing from our day pajamas to our night pajamas at this point, which is why we wanted to find a way to get our friends out of their favorite food-stained sweats and into something with a bit more pizzazz. Come up with a hilarious theme for your happy hour, like your favorite Disney princess, beach party or even black-tie event, and then spend some time getting all dolled up. The theme gives you and your friends a reason to get ready for something and adds a purpose to your happy hour. 

4. Do Something Creative

Many of us have been exploring our creative sides while stuck at home. Why not do it with friends? Even if you can’t physically collaborate on a project together, you can hope on a video call and give each other inspiration as you work on your paint with diamonds kit or latest freehand drawing. Sometimes, when completing an artist endeavor, it helps to have someone else around to chat with at the same time. Get the girls together for a crafting night and let your inner artist shine. When your projects are all complete, host a virtual art show opening by displaying each of your completed works.

5. Take a Virtual Tour of a Destination

When your ability to travel is limited, sometimes our inner travel bug kicks it up a notch. If you’ve been itching to visit a new place but can’t right now, you and your friends can check out a virtual tour of some of the most beautiful destinations. Of course, this isn’t quite the same as actually taking a trip there, but it can help with your daydreaming creativity and may be a good way to research and plan for a future trip with your friends. Ask everyone to name a virtual destination they would like to see and work your way through the list.

6. Stream a Live Concert

Many musicians have taken to the internet to provide fans with a show even when concerts are suspended indefinitely. Rapper Post Malone hosted a Nirvana tribute stream as a fundraiser for the World Health Organization with drummer Travis Barker and two other musicians. And, many other artists are doing the same. Research your favorite musicians to see if they’re planning a virtual concert anytime soon and then get your friends together on Zoom and screenshare the stream.

7. Watch a Movie Together

Sometimes, we just miss the simple things in life, like hanging out on the couch watching a good movie with some friends. Well, even when we can’t be together, we can still watch and enjoy a movie using Netflix Party. This Google Chrome extension can be downloaded on your laptop and allows you to stream a movie at the exact same time as your friends while also providing a group chat option so you can comment on the movie as you watch together in real-time.

Kick Up Your Virtual Happy Hour a Notch

Hosting virtual happy hours is a great way to stay in touch with your friends and socialize for a little while, but making the same small touch while sipping wine can get boring. Try some of these tips to make your next virtual happy hour hilarious and exciting.