Monday 28 December 2026 · 4 games · Free
Día de los Santos Inocentes party games for 28 December 2026
Spain and Latin America have their own April Fools' Day, and it falls on 28 December. Here is how the tradition works, four games to play with a group and a short list of pranks that stay kind.
What is the Día de los Santos Inocentes?
28 December, a Monday in 2026, is the Día de los Santos Inocentes. The name comes from the feast of the Holy Innocents in the church calendar, which falls on that date.
In Spain and in many Latin American countries it is the day for pranks and harmless jokes called inocentadas. The person who falls for one is called an inocente. In Mexico a common reply is the rhyme "Inocente palomita que te dejaste engañar".
Newspapers, radio and television in Spain often publish a made-up story that day. A well-known custom is to stick a paper figure, a monigote, on someone's back without them noticing. Customs vary by region and family.
It is a lighter cousin of April Fools' Day. The games below keep the spirit of the day and drop everything that could hurt.
Four games for 28 December
Monigote tag
Everyone draws a small paper figure, a monigote, and writes a silly harmless name on it, such as Captain Spoon or Señor Biscuit.
Each guest secretly sticks their monigote on someone else's back. Use removable tape and keep it away from skin and hair. Pins are not needed.
Walk around and chat. Try to stick your figure on a new person, and try to notice yours without touching your own back. Do not ask others to check for you.
After 10 minutes everyone reveals their back. The person who carried a monigote longest without noticing wins the title Inocente of the Year. Everyone laughs together and nobody is singled out.
Two truths and an inocentada
Each player writes three statements about themselves: two true ones and one inocentada, a harmless invented story that sounds believable.
Read them out one at a time. The group asks one question each and then votes on which one is the inocentada.
Players who guess right score a point. The author scores a point for each person fooled.
Keep statements light: hobbies, travel, food, odd skills. Nothing about health, money or relationships.
Impostor: who is the inocente?
Open our Impostor party pack. Everyone sees the same word except one player, who sees nothing.
Each person gives a one-word clue. The impostor bluffs.
Vote on who is the impostor. The group wins if it guesses right. If not, the impostor is the inocente of the round.
Play three rounds. The person caught most often in the impostor role wears the monigote for the next round.
Hidden Roles: the inocentada night
Open Hidden Roles Night. The phone deals a secret role to each player.
Play the round as the app explains. Talk, bluff and watch for suspicious answers.
Add a house rule for the day: at the reveal, everyone says "¡Inocente!" to the player who was fooled, with a smile.
Swap roles for a second round so the same person is not always fooled.
Kind inocentadas: the rule and a short list
The rule of the day: a prank must make everyone laugh, including the person it is played on. No humiliation, no food tampering, no fake emergencies, nothing about health, money or breakups. If someone does not enjoy it, stop and say so at once.
Stick a monigote on a friend's back, then reveal it with a laugh.
Put a sign on the fridge that says the milk is now called Señor Leche. Nothing real is changed.
Swap the order of a shared playlist so the first song is a silly one.
Send a group message with a made-up headline that is obviously a joke, such as "The office plant has been promoted". Say it is an inocentada within the hour.
Hide a harmless item, like a rubber duck, in a place where the person will find it later and smile.
Announce a rule that only lasts until dinner, such as everyone must greet the host in a funny voice.
Going alone to a 28 December party
A game with simple rules gives everyone something to do, and talking comes naturally.
Offer to draw monigotes or to read the statements aloud. Both are small jobs that include you at once.
Ask people how their family celebrates the day. Everyone has a story about a joke.
Bring paper, a pen and tape. People talk to whoever brings the supplies.
More for this party
Looking for a winter event to join alone? Comealone.app lists events you can go to by yourself.
Questions
When is the Día de los Santos Inocentes in 2026?
Monday 28 December 2026. It is the same date every year.
What is a monigote?
A paper figure that is stuck on someone's back without them noticing, a custom linked to this day in Spain. It is a harmless joke, and the person is told in the end.
Are these pranks safe?
They are designed to be. The page has one rule: no humiliation, no food tampering, no fake emergencies, nothing about health, money or breakups. If a guest does not enjoy a joke, stop.
Sources
Facts about the tradition come from the pages below. Customs vary by region and family.