Today’s children are harder to entertain than ever before. Our youngsters have entertainment on demand — through gaming consoles, mobile phones, on-demand TV and tablets. At a time when kids are perpetually glued to small screens, finding ways of making their birthday parties exciting for all concerned is harder than ever before.
1. A party bus
There are now several types of party bus available for hire. Instead of booking a traditional soft play venue, bring the venue to your front door. There are now buses that have been converted to soft play zones, featuring music, food and supervision. There are also disco buses for slightly older children. Children can eat, drink and dance in the bus as it makes its way along a predetermined route.
2. Bring Mother Nature into your home
Most children are fascinated by wildlife, and in particular creepy crawlies. Specialist party companies can bring spiders, snakes, insects and other exotic wildlife to your child’s party — giving the kids a unique opportunity to hold them. There is also an educational elements to these events, as most of the hosts are experts. The children also get to ask questions, as well as take away a few souvenirs.
3. Storybook character parties
A lot of children in the UK now get the chance to dress up for World Book Day. Take this idea and turn it into a birthday party themed on your child’s favourite book or movie. For example, you might want to organise a Harry Potter party, and assign each child a character. Plan food and activities around the theme, and you can immerse all of the children in a fantasy world of fun for a few hours — relatively cheaply.
4. Chocolate parties
You’ll need to host this one in the kitchen, and give the kids protective clothing, but a chocolate party is always a massive hit. Melt some chocolate, and allow the kids to use mould, cutters and a variety of toppings to create their own confectionary. The moulds set very quickly in the fridge, during which time you can serve food. Of course, you’ll need your steam mop and cleaning equipment close at hand for this one, but the kids will love it.
5. A backyard carnival
You can bring all the fun of the carnival into your home with the minimum of fuss and expense. Divide your back garden into zones, and devote each one to an exciting activity. Among the games you can organise include mini golf, outdoor ten-pin bowling, gymnastics, ring toss, sand play and painting. Set up some makeshift food stalls, from which you can serve everything from popcorn to candy floss.
6. Scavenger hunt
Organising a scavenger hunt is a great way of getting some enjoyment out of party planning. Give your hunt a theme — pirates and princesses always works well — and start working backwards from the final discovery. Devise clues that lead to “treasure”, and the next clue in the hunt. Each stage of the process should result in a prize for the team who cracks the clue first, and there should be a grand prize for the team who complete the hunt first.
7. A home cinema
Whether you use a projector or a large TV, you can wow children by setting up a cinema in your home. Issue tickets, rather than invitations, and take them at the door when your guests arrive. Give everyone some play money, which they can use to “buy” popcorn, drinks and sweets from a kiosk you’ve set up in advance. Arrange comfortable chairs in front of the screen, and darken the room when the movie starts. Because you’re entertaining kids, you’ll probably need to schedule an old-fashioned intermission to facilitate trips to the toilet.
You don’t need to venture outside your own home to create a birthday party your child will never forget.
