One of the most significants events on the Islamic calendar, Eid Al Fitr is a three-day holiday celebrated by Muslims worldwide that marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan. Also known as the ‘Festival of Breaking the Fast’, Eid Al Fitr celebrates the accomplishment of the dawn-to-sunset fasting during Ramadan.
Eid Al Fitr is a specifically joyous holiday where Muslims wear new clothes, visit friends and family, enjoy special Eid food and sweets, and exchange gifts as part of the Eid tradition. In addition, the first day is marked by Salat Al Eid or Eid prayer at the mosque. Muslims also give Zakat Al Fitr (charity in the form of food) during Eid Al Fitr. Every Muslim is required to pay Zakat Al Fitr at the conclusion of the month of Ramadan and before Eid prayer as a token of thankfulness to God for having enabled him or her to observe the obligatory fast.
Clean and decorate the house
Cleaning the house is one of the most important things families do before Eid begins as they expect to welcome guests. Although guests won’t be visiting this Eid, you will be spending the holiday at home so it might as well be clean. On the night before Eid or even on the morning of the first day Eid, bring the family together to clean the house. Give each person a task or an area to clean to make sure the everything and everywhere is covered.
And decorate! Bring the family together and create DIY Eid banners as well as paper crescents, stars and lanterns to hang inside and outside your home. Bring the Eid spirit to your home as well as your neighbourhood with these decorations. If you’ve had Ramadan decorations, you can use some as your Eid decorations. Get some more ideas on how to decorate your home for Eid here.
Bake Eid cookies
Although there are no guests this Eid, Eid cookies still serve a purpose. Family at home still want some special cookies and biscuits for Eid such as maamoul, kahk, petit four or betefour, ghorayba and more. This year, bake Eid cookies with the family. You can also make regular cookies or cupcakes with icing that say ‘Eid Mubarak’ and shape the cookies like lanterns, crescents or stars. Get creative!
Eid Mubarak greeting cards
Wishing family, friends and other loved ones Eid Mubarak is essential in Eid. It is followed by many wishes and prayers specific to each individual such as marriage, children, career or education development, wealth, health and more. Although you won’t be seeing those closest to you this Eid, you can still wish them, not just over the phone, by text or on social media, but with Eid greeting cards for loved ones, especially for the ones at home with you. Making greeting cards is a fun activity for the whole family and in addition to making Eid decorations, it can be another opportunity to get artsy and crafty.
You can also find many e-cards online, which you can send to loved ones near or far.
Exchange Eid gifts
Once the gifts and cards are ready, call everyone together on the first day of Eid (maybe during tea time?) and exchange greetings, greeting cards and gifts. Make sure some Eid cookies are available too.
Or how about a Eid scavenger hunt?
Pick a day and time during Eid to have an indoor scavenger hunt. Hide the Eid gifts, Eid favour bags or boxes, or even the kids’ Eideya (Eid money) and let them go find them in the scavenger hunt. Type up a list of gifts or things that need to be found and give everyone a list. The things can be inside your home or even outdoors around the yard. Put a time limit on how long they have to locate the hidden gifts. You can put some things in the form of clues, so everyone has to figure out what the gift is. If you’re feeling extra generous or giving, have a small prize for the winner/s.
Do some charity work!
Donating food, clothes, and money to charity before Eid Al Fitr begins is a requirement for Muslims. It’s called Zakat Al Fitr, which is about QAR15, or it may come in any form such as rice, barley and dates to be given to less fortunate families so that they can feast and celebrate Eid as well.
If you don’t want to do it independently, get in touch with any of the local charity organisations such as Qatar Charity, Qatar Red Crescent (QRC) Society, Sheikh Eid Bin Mohammad Al Thani Charitable Foundation (Eid Charity), Wahab and more to see how you and your family can contribute.
Make sure to take the necessary health and safety precautions by wearing masks and gloves.
Play games!
From word games to card games to board games, there are so many one can choose from, whether to play solo or with others.
Whether on your phone, computer, newspaper or book, word games and crossword puzzles can be found anywhere. Play crosswords, word search, Scrabble or trivia quizzes and games. Look online for word games and crossword puzzles.
Card games are still alive and a great way to stay entertained. Play Uno, Hearts, Spades and more. Some card games can be played on your phone. Card games are actually popular during get-togethers in Eid.
Board games are an excellent way to have fun with a group of people. There are so many options to choose from such as Pictionary, Charades, Monopoly, Connect, Twister and much more. The great thing about board games is that you are able to interact with everyone while playing.
You can find board games at Family Food Center (FFC), Lulu, Carrefour, Monoprix, Virgin Megastore, Daiso, Ansar Gallery, Ramez, Al Rawnaq, Saqr, and many other the places.
Enjoy a Eid meal at home from one of Qatar’s leading hotels
This year, we won’t be able to enjoy the Eid experience of dining outside at one of our favourite hotels or restaurants. However, Qatar’s leading hotels and restaurants have prepared special Eid offers for you and your loved ones to celebrate and have a joyous Eid Al Fitr in Qatar at home.
Check out what some of Qatar’s most luxurious hotels have to offer for Eid on Marhaba.
Or maybe have a hotel staycation
Don’t want to stay at home? Enjoy a staycation at one of Qatar’s leading hotels. Your home away from home awaits…
Other fun ideas to keep you entertained at home during Eid:
- Cook a meal together
- Have an indoor picnic
- Hold a movie night
- Throw a karaoke party
- Indulge in a spa night
- Go mad with a water balloon fight!
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