Throwing a birthday party for a loved one can be a very fun experience, but have you ever considered making the entire event a surprise? Surprise parties are usually thrown when there is a big birthday coming up, and there are typically a lot of guests who will be invited. For example, you might throw a surprise party for a 50th birthday or even an engagement.
Surprise parties are a lot of fun, but they can be hard to plan, especially if you have a loved one who gets easily suspicious. In this guide, we are going to give you some of our best tips to help you thrown the ultimate surprise party for a loved one. Read on to get these tips.
Start with a Theme
First things first, you should consider the theme of the party. Some occasions are easy to choose a theme for, such as an engagement party. However, birthday parties can be a bit trickier as you need to think about what your loved one would like. Some of the most popular themes can include a beach theme, a movie theme, or even a casino theme. For big birthdays, you can also make the theme about the person whose birthday it is. For example, include photos of them and events from their life. Think big for the ultimate surprise.
How Much Can You Take On?
Throwing a surprise party isn’t easy as you have so many things that you need to work on. You’ll need to find the perfect venue, entertainment and make sure that all of the right guests are invited. This can be tricky if you are planning a surprise as you’ll need to do it in private so that your loved one doesn’t see what you are going. In this case, it might be useful to find a party planner who can help you out. A party planner will be able to sort everything out without your loved one finding out, and they will have contacts within the party planning industry. Just remember that you will need to pay them so your budget will be stretched a bit more.
Go Big with Entertainment
Often, with surprise parties, things can be very exciting at the beginning of the night and then die down shortly after. The big surprise is often the best part of the night, but this doesn’t have to be the case. When you are planning the ultimate surprise party for your loved one, you should consider going big with the entertainment. Is there a particular band or singer that they like? Or is there a style of music that they would like to be played at the event? If you are going for an unusual theme, then the entertainment should match this. For example, a circus-themed event would have performers such as jugglers.
Don’t Forget Catering.
The venue that you choose to hold the surprise party can usually dictate the kind of catering that you will have. For example, if you choose a hall for the party, you will need to hire an external caterer to supply any food or beverages. Or, if you host the party in a bar or hotel, you will have options there for food and drink. Catering is very important, especially if you have a theme. Consider choosing a menu that matches the theme. For example, for a beach theme, you could have barbecue food. Or, for a 20s theme, you could have themed cocktails. While it might be cheaper to make the food yourself, it will be difficult when it comes to a surprise party.
Inviting Guests
It goes without saying that you need to give your guests enough notice for them to be able to make it. There are a few options that you have when it comes to sending invites, but as this is a surprise party, you need to be very careful. Printed invites can be expensive, and if you need to go back and forth from the post office or sit writing them out, you could spoil the surprise. Often, social media can be the best option for surprise parties, as you can keep messages private. You can also send some emails, as long as your loved one doesn’t have access to the same account. Make it very clear from the get-go that this is a surprise party. For anyone who is bad at keeping secrets, you might want to leave their invite to the last minute!
Plan the Surprise Carefully
Finally, you should make sure that you plan the actual surprise carefully. You don’t want your loved one getting suspicious in the lead up to the event. You will need to have a decoy to get them out of the house and to show that you haven’t forgotten about their birthday or occasion. Consider telling them that you are going to dinner with friends or something that fits the venue. You must make sure that everyone is there before you get there; otherwise, the surprise will be underwhelming. If you can, use your creativity and plan something really exciting. For example, you could create a treasure hunt or use a scratch card that reveals the destination. The more exciting the surprise, the better the party will be.
Get Planning Now!
If you have an event coming up in the next year, then you should get planning now. Venues can book up quickly, and you will want to make sure that you can secure the right place. Figure out your total budget before you make any bookings in order to get everything that you want. Try to keep it as secret as possible to avoid anyone spoiling the big day. Hopefully, your loved one will love what you have done and will appreciate all of the efforts that have gone into this. Don’t forget to have some fun!