Don’t let planning a birthday party for your winter-born child give you the chills. Just because the weather outside is frightful doesn’t mean your indoor birthday bash can’t be cheery and cozy.
Amy Suardi, writer and founder of Frugal Mama, is a genius at finding low-cost ways to entertain. Among her many winter birthday party ideas for kids, she finds that the classic slumber party to be one of the easiest and most inexpensive parties to have. She suggests keeping the guest list limited to five and planning a full evening to include dinner, a movie and cookie decorating or crafts.
Chris Nease, founding editor and party stylist of Celebrations At Home, likes to embrace the season by creating a cozy party that’s all about warming up. One of her favorite party ideas is to make it a camping theme by setting up a tent in the middle of the living room and making s’mores with hot cocoa. She also likes going tropical (nothing wrong with a little sunshine in the wintertime!) with a luau theme, complete with leis, hula skirts and coconuts.
With the help of our experts, we’ve compiled a list of fun winter birthday party ideas that will chase the cold weather blues away.
1. Swim and slumber party
Having kids sleep over at the house is fun, but even better is having a sleepover in a hotel where you don’t have to clean up afterward. Reserve a suite or two at a suite-style hotel, where you can find rooms for under $100. Make it a swimming party while you’re at it. It may be cold outside, but most suite-style hotels have indoor pools and meeting facilities, perfect for a winter pool party bash. Need a theme to go with it? Take our experts’ suggestions and combine them to make it a luau-swim-slumber party.
2. Wonderland party
Keep kids entertained for hours with a winter-wonderland-themed party. Decorate the party room with hanging snowflakes, cotton-lined floors, white balloons, white mini-lights and bowls of sugar plums (candies). Make gingerbread houses by gluing together graham crackers and decorating them with different colored icings and candies. And while the glue is drying on the houses, head over to the cookie decorating bar, where kids can shape cookies to cook and decorate — or just have them fancy up pre-made ones.
3. Lego party
Many craft stores offer Lego-building parties, but you can throw a bash with this theme at home for a fraction of the cost. Purchase small inexpensive Lego kits for the kids to construct or set up plastic buckets with a variety of Legos (you can buy large assortments for cheap on eBay) for kids who like to create their own masterpieces. Create the party theme with Lego cardboard cut-outs, a Lego-shaped birthday cake and a game of hide-the-Lego, and then send the kids home with cool, Lego-filled goody bags. Definitely one of the easiest birthday party ideas for winter!
4. Chef party
A party where the kids create their own meal is fun and easy, plus you can adapt this theme to accommodate kids of all ages. Make it a pizza party with already-prepared dough divided up into small balls. Set out bowls of grated cheese, sauce and assorted toppings — then leave the rest of the work to the kids. Use extra dough for dessert pizzas topped with Nutella and ice cream. Make invitations that look like menus and give everyone their own chef hat, apron and wooden spoon for party favors.
5. Ice skating party
Why freeze outdoors when you can have fun on the ice indoors? Take the party to an indoor rink for an ice-skating lesson. Hire one of the teachers at the rink or from a skating club to teach beginners the basics and pros some new tricks. To keep costs down, Suardi suggests purchasing tickets and lessons on your own, rather than paying for a party package — save the celebrating with the cake for home. Truly, one of the easiest winter birthday party ideas for kids — and on theme!
6. Trampoline park party
Fact: All kids (and most adults) love jumping on trampolines. And during the winter months when it’s too chilly to be outside for long periods of time, an indoor trampoline park is one of the best winter birthday party ideas. Let kids bounce around and get their energy out before hanging out together in a party room for pizza and cake. Fun!
7. Rock-climbing party
Let kids climb the walls all they want at a rock-climbing gym. You can usually find one in most large cities and it’s a perfect party place for energetic kids. They offer a variety of climbing structures to choose from, so they’re great for children of all ages. If everyone’s new to the sport, then go for the party package, which typically includes instructions and all the gear to keep them vertical for hours.
8 Theater or puppet party
There are always plenty of holiday plays and puppet show performances during the winter season. Take the partygoers out for a show and then afterward, hit the town for dessert or set up an ice cream sundae bar at home. Make invitations look like a playbill and include autograph books with pens for goody bags — they’ll be useful after the show.
9. Hockey game party
If your child wants an action-packed party, take the kids to a hockey game. Buy group tickets for a pro-level game or look for birthday party packages on the team’s website. Sticking to a budget? Look for games played by local minor, junior or college teams, or check nearby rinks to see if you can catch local league games — they’re almost always free to watch and some rinks are even housed in “fun centers” with other activities inside, like laser tag, mini rides and arcade games. Or allow the kids to join the sport by visiting your local roller or ice rink for a hockey birthday party package. Pack up sporty goody bags filled with hockey T-shirts and water bottles.
10. Mall hunt and movie party
Not only are shopping malls full of holiday activities during the winter, but many have a movie theater inside. Plan a birthday party scavenger hunt in the mall that includes lunch and one of the new winter movies. And if you head home for cake, consider playing birthday party games or incorporating fun indoor activities.
Planning your child’s birthday party in the winter is not as challenging as it might seem, even if everyone’s stuck indoors. Embrace the winter season by incorporating it into the party’s theme or take advantage of the public winter events. Your child no longer has to be jealous of kids born in the summer who get to have pool parties and outdoor celebrations. With a little planning, your child’s birthday bash will turn out to be an epic smash.
*Article originally written by Ilene Jacobs.