Parties with Pizzazz! Themes and Activities for Your Child's Birthday

AquaMermaid

No matter the age or stage, plan a celebration that’s just right for your child — and a fun experience for their guests! These theme ideas add a little something extra to your child’s birthday party.

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Cruising on the Seas

Bring the beach to you with an ocean theme.

Decorate kiddie pools to resemble the ocean and the beach for a cute spot for little ones to play. Add beachball toss games and party favor sand buckets. Hire a mermaid to visit your party for an extra special guest.
Set up a scavenger hunt for your pirate and his crew to find an awesome treasure. Serve a “shark-cuterie” board with cured meats, cheese, bread cut into sharks and shells, Goldfish and shark gummies. Chill blue Jell-O in clear cups and add Swedish fish for a fun treat.
Spend an unforgettable night at Georgia Aquarium with Sleep Under the Sea to see aquatic animals, enjoy guided tours and more.

Party Animals

Have a roarin’ good time with furry friends.

Dress up in your best cowboy or cowgirl attire to celebrate a little one’s first rodeo. Create a western theme with bandanas, black-and-white cows and hay bales. Play farm bingo, barnyard bean bag toss (find a board on amazon.com), or feed sack races. Keep the theme going with pin-the-tail-on-the-goat or animal charades.
For an at-home experience with goats, pigs, rabbits and more, try Cricket’s Mobile Petting Zoo or Little Red Barn Mobile Petting Farm. Prefer to go to the animals? Play with barnyard friends, hop on a hayride, and make art with a party at The Art Barn. Visit Raisin’s Ranch to meet pygmy goats, lambs, mini donkeys, rabbits, chickens and ponies.
Hold your child’s next birthday party at Zoo Atlanta. You’ll get great views of the animals, and it includes pizza, drinks and a treat. You can even add extras, like face painting or rides!

Hit the Road

Vroom, vroom! Put the pedal to the metal with an energetic drive.

At a TinyTowne birthday party, kids as young as 1 can pilot their own Toddler Cars.
Drive bumper cars at Fun Spot America, or head to Andretti Indoor Karting & Games for electric go-kart races. The Buford location features Mini Mario karts for ages 4-7.
Rent a MONSTER JAM RC Racing inflatable from Bounce House Atlanta for a racing track with realistic engine sounds that keeps the at-home action exciting.

Sweet Sips

Dress up for a special occasion with a tea party.

For little ones who might have a difficult time sitting still during tea, invite guests to bring a doll or stuffed animal to attend the tea party with them. Have dance breaks to help manage energy.
Get help hosting a wonderful tea party at home with My Fairy Godmother Parties’ Pop-Up Tea Party.
Reserve a Children’s Afternoon Tea experience with The Ginger Room for a beautiful tea tower, or visit Dr. Bombay’s Underwater Tea Party for a high tea with a delicious assortment of sandwiches, quiche and baked delights.

Get Messy

Explore the senses with these tactile ideas.

Younger kids will love exploring sensory stations. Set up areas with an inflatable pool ball pit, sand box, play dough table and finger-painting easels. Set up a bubble machine and bubble-blowing toys to create a bubble playground.
Book a foam party. Foam Palooza brings the foam cannon, music and even a special glow foam option, and Atlanta Foam Parties brings a professional foam machine and party music straight to your door.
Play with slime! Have a birthday party at Sloomoo Institute or The Slime Factory. Guests can create their own slime concoction!

Little Engineers

Build skills with a party focused on edutainment.

Encourage creativity and fun with building stations using old cardboard and other Makerspace materials. Guests might build houses, towers or whatever their imagination desires! For an edible project, serve mini toothpick buildings with apples, marshmallows or cheese cubes.
Choose a rocket building, robotics or roller coaster party theme — in your own backyard — with The STEAM Generation. Science Creations’ birthday parties include captivating elements with magic tricks, chemical reactions, slime making and more.
Hold a birthday party at LEGO Discovery Center for a private LEGO model building lesson, a VR experience and more.

Backyard Bonanza

Fall weather makes for a cool party venue based on the outdoors.

For your little partier, build a campfire with old paper towel rolls and colored tissue paper to create a fake flame. Set up an easy scavenger hunt for nature items young children will be able to find.
Create a cool atmosphere in your backyard with solar-powered lights or glow sticks. As an activity, have kids decorate their own tin lanterns from old tin cans for a unique party favor. Turn the party into a glamping sleepover with help from Southern Charm Sleepovers or Sweet Dream Sleepovers.
Have guests make their own meals over the campfire. Roast hot dogs on a stick over the fire or make nachos in a bag. Create a make-your-own s’mores bar with milk and white chocolate bars, marshmallows, graham crackers, chocolate chip cookies, Oreos and rice crispy treats.

Out of This World

It’s an intergalactic delight with a space-themed party.

Grab gorgeous space-themed décor, like planet shaped paper plates, astronaut cake toppers and more from Bonjour Fête. Stick glow-in-the-dark stars around for an extra special touch. Play some space-themed tunes and encourage attendees to show off their moonwalking skills with a dance floor.
Shoot for the stars with your snacks! Sticks of purple, blue and white rock candy can double as décor and a take-home party favor. Cut your finger foods, such as sandwiches or brownies, into stars using a shaped cookie cutter. As an activity, have kids decorate their own space cookies for a delicious treat.
Book a party with Sky Kids for black lights, neon decorations, an aerial sling, moon and star cupcakes and more. Blast off with Sandy Creek Nature Center’s planetarium parties; for ages 6-12.

Dance, Dance, Dance

Make music and movement the focal point of your party.

Host a birthday party with The Music Class for a bash filled with fun, excitement and joy. Jason’s Music Party offers an interactive, live music show for kids ages 1-7 with sing-a-longs, dancing and more.
Decorate your home to resemble a groovy disco, ask guests to wear ‘70s attire, and play disco hits on your speakers for a blast from the past. Or turn your basement into a dance club by setting the room in black light. Ask guests to wear neon or white for a special dancing experience.
For tweens, set up a karaoke machine to get attendees to jam to tons of different tunes, or book a private karaoke room experience at Mics Karaoke or Karaoke Melody for a musical night out. For Swifties, ask attendees to wear outfits resembling her different eras and watch “The Eras Tour” on Disney+.

All Aboard

Party like a conductor with a train-themed bash.

Hold a “chugga-chugga-two-two” birthday party and set up a train play area for your little one and his guests. Use toys your child already has or consider buying classic wooden train sets from Melissa & Doug.
Rent a Trackless Train from K&M Kidz World Party Rentals for a special party experience.
Host a birthday party at Southeastern Railway Museum for a chance to ride the Historic and Park trains. Go a bit farther and take a real train trip and experience the beauty of North Georgia with a four-hour, round-trip journey along the Toccoa River with Blue Ridge Scenic Railway.

-Emily Webb and Mary Williams