Adult Birthday Party Themes and Ideas
- Is it a milestone birthday? You know 21st, 30th, 40th, 50th, etc. If so, visit our Milestone Birthday Planning Guide and plan from there.
- Does the birthday person have an overwhelming passion, interest or hobby? If they do, consider creating a birthday theme party around that passion. The links below are to our most popular birthday theme parties.
custom invitations and birthday party favors
Personalized Banners |
Custom Caricature Invitations |
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Custom Candy Bars |
Custom Lollipops |
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At the Front Door – Start with either a sign or a life-size cut-out of the birthday boy or girl with a speech bubble It's a great way to greet guests as they arrive! The cut-out can be themed or just based on a photograph.
the location
When picking a location for your birthday celebration you really have four choices.
1. Home – Inside. Most people are comfortable with this approach. You know your house; you can decorate when you want (or when you have the time), and you “set the rules” for the party.
2. Home – Outside. Same address but a whole different decorating approach and vibe to the party. Some of the best options for personalization (always a great idea for a milestone birthday party) work great outside. Custom banners, cutouts, personalized CDs and bottle labels really work well outside. Lots of fun, but make sure you have options if the weather doesn’t cooperate.
3. Restaurant/Party Room. Your headaches go away. But will you have privacy? Will you have enough time? Does it fit your budget? This is a good way to surprise someone. Ask the birthday boy or girl out to dinner for their 50th birthday, and they walk in to a table full of guests. Nice!
4. The Movable Feast. Often referred to as the pub crawl, this can be great fun, and friends can come and go as they see fit. One of the best parties I ever attended went to a club for cocktails, a restaurant for appetizers, a different restaurant for dinner, a ball game, followed by a tavern for a nightcap. Takes some planning and cooperation from the places you visit, but you can “customize” an evening for the guest of honor by going to their favorite places.
the menu
This really depends on the type of birthday theme party you are planning and how much work you want to do. You can have a formal dinner or just put some snacks out around the room. A popular standby is a potluck approach. If you are having a big crowd this is a good way to go.
If you have a roomful of people, you might find good conversation are enough to keep everyone entertained. With smaller groups (that don’t know each other), you might need an icebreaker to get things started. If you have all couples, we have some suggestions here.
Don’t forget it’s a birthday party, so sharing a story about the guest of honor can be fun or playing a little “Do you remember?” where people give different, and often hilarious, versions of the same event.
theme birthday party favors
Do your best to give out a memorable party favor - personalized candy bars are very popular. Loot bags are fun, too! A little bit of candy and other assorted goodies put in something easy to carry. It’s always fun to use something that fits your theme as well. For example if you are hosting a Luau or a beach party, use some plastic beach pails as your “bag”.
fun fact
What is the least common birth date? May 22nd. What is the most common birth date? October 5th.