Adult Birthday Party Ideas – 30+ Must See Parties
As adults, we all like to celebrate our birthdays, and with many milestones that occur throughout life, there are several opportunities for a great adult birthday party. With so many ideas and choices it can be hard to find just the right one, so we compiled over 30 must-see adult birthday party ideas.
From an elegant dinner party to a bar crawl, there is sure to be an idea for everyone, from a big themed party to an activity-based celebration. Here are our favorite adult parties to celebrate your special day.
Themed Birthday Party Ideas for Adults
A themed party is one of our favorite adult birthday party ideas. A theme ties your party together beautifully.
Cocktail Parties are very traditional and trendy party for adults. You can sample several cocktails at the party, and have one made just for the guest of honor with their favorite flavors and even have it named after them.
Wine Tasting is a great way to celebrate the birthday of a wine lover, allowing them to taste several wines and choose the one they like best. Many wineries will host both public and private tastings so your group can have the place to yourselves.
Host a Game Night with board games, party games, and even video games. For added variety have each person bring a game they like and you can all learn something new about your friends and play a game you’ve never tried before.
Personal Trivia is a great game where you make a trivia game about the guest of honor and see who knows the most about them. Include prizes to boost competition. Have people dress up to represent a trivia question and see who can answer all of them.
90s Theme with all the best foods, music, and clothing from the 90s. Everyone can wear their brightest neon outfits and play their top songs in the background. Create a trivia game or try the Scene It games to see who remembers the decade the best.
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Roaring Twenties or Great Gatsby is a fun birthday party theme for adults that encourages guests to dress up, serves elegant drinks, and fills the room with jazz. Get ideas online or in movies and then host a costume party for the best dressed, get everyone dancing, and enjoy old-fashioned drinks made by a hired bartender.
Host a Museum Night where people bring things that remind them of the birthday celebrator and set up items from their own home. Use clothing, artwork, gifts, photographs, and other items to place around the room like displays in a museum.
Childhood Favorites brings all the things that you loved most as a child back to enjoy with your friends now. Bring out the best games, TV shows, movies, food, and music. Everyone is sure to have fun and learn a little something about the guest of honor.
A reality TV party brings all your loved ones together dressed as their favorite reality TV personality and watch the shows together while enjoying drinks and snacks. You can watch one show, one episode of a few shows, or make a day of it and binge a whole season.
TV Themes requires all quests to dress as a character in a specific TV show or movie, and the food served as well as the decorations will align with the theme and be pulled from the show directly.
Spa Days are a great way to relax with friends and have some pampering. This can be done at home with DIY treatments or by having a professional come into the home, or by going to a spa and spending the day being pampered there.
Decades Party has the best of each decade from the life of the celebrator. Each person can represent a decade or stations can be set up around the venue with each area representing a different decade. Bring in as many personal photographs as possible to make them relatable and share memories with everyone in attendance.
Masquerade Ball is a traditional celebration that goes back decades and offers a fun way to meet all your friends and enjoy ball dancing, finger foods, elegant drinks, and see people dressed in their best, or rented costumes. As a part of the masquerade, the faces are covered at least partly with masks and their identities will not be revealed until the end of the night. This keeps the night exciting and fun, offering an adventure and a way to interact with people you normally may not.
A Hawaiian Luau party is great fun for summer adult party themes. Ask your guests to dress up in their best Hawaiian attire and enjoy a touch of the tropics!
A Mexican Fiesta is always a great fun event. Offer your party guests margaritas and tacos and it will be a happy birthday all around. If your budget allows, book a Mexican band for entertainment.
Throw a Dance Party. Go Back to your youth with a wild disco dance party! Hire a party venue geared for discos and you will be all set.
Activity-Based Party Ideas for Adults
Brunch is a relaxing and popular way to celebrate adult birthdays as everyone can have their own meal and enjoy mimosas and champagne drinks.
Escape Rooms allow you to gather your closest friends and solve all the puzzles and riddles in order to escape the room in a limited time.
Pool Parties bring people together to swim, play water-based games, and enjoy some tanning in between.
Axe Throwing has grown in popularity in recent years, and while similar to archery it offers an alternative activity that most people will enjoy. You can make it competitive, use it to relieve stress, or just enjoy the time with friends.
Take a Cruise with your nearest and dearest friends to enjoy the time to travel, relax, and see new places.
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Have a Costume Party where each person dresses up and you can all guess who each person is and even why they chose that costume. Or just enjoy seeing what everyone thinks up and take lots of pictures to remember later.
Paint Night is a very popular activity for a party, and by following the direction of the guide each person will take home their own painting, and many serve wine or other beverages. You can even follow with supper.
Flower Arranging classes get you learning a new skill and spending time with friends or family. At the end of the class, you take home your arrangement as a representation of the birthday celebration.
Take a Cooking Class to learn a new dish or to brush up on techniques. Many people find joy in both cooking and in consuming delicious foods, and trying new things is a great way to celebrate the passing of another year.
Bar Crawls can still be fun into adulthood and can even be a recreation of ones you had in the past, perhaps on prior birthdays, and sees guests enjoy one drink at each bar until they either finish for the night or find a location they want to stay at for the rest of the night. Use a designated driver or for added fun hire a party bus, or take a bicycle bar craw.
Rage Rooms allow adults to go into a space that has no windows and just one door, and throw or break items. The items range from plates and cups to printers and even chairs. It is a way to relieve stress and express frustrations, and many people feel better when they leave.
Host a slumber party for your best friends complete with blanket fort movies and pajamas. Some people will move the mattresses from the bedrooms into the living rooms to all sleep there, others will use guest rooms for guests, or use blow-up mattresses. You can enjoy ordering supper, sharing secrets, and watching your favorite movie just like you used to. This short walk back in time can bring out nostalgia and memories that you may have forgotten.
Archery ranges offer a place to learn or practice archery skills. They will have the equipment needed and each person can rent the right pieces. It can be just from or it may be a bit competitive with winners choosing the location for lunch, or winning bragging rights.
Host a murder mystery party at a local venue. Many places are set up especially to do this with a themed dinner and murder mystery event.
Throw a Casino night either at your place or your local casino. Play poker and blackjack with your friends followed by drinks and dinner.
Afternoon tea is always a civilized way to celebrate an adult birthday party. Host in your house or go to a venue for high tea. Either way, mini sandwiches, scones, and birthday cake make for a great afternoon!
Food and Drink Birthday Party Ideas for Adults
Make Your Own Cocktail Party by having a bartender meet with your group and help each person make their own personal cocktail that will reflect their preferences and taste. Try each other’s drinks and take home the recipes that you like best.
Make Your Own Pizza complete with dough making and throwing, add your own toppings, and share with friends or keep it to yourself. Hiring a professional to teach you how to get the best results can bring new skills while also enjoying a fun experience and a great meal.
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Jewelry Making is a fun way to spend time with friends, and you can make your own ideal piece of jewelry that you will have for years to come. Each guest will also be able to take their piece home as a memento or leave it with the birthday person as a gift.
Host a potluck to share your best dishes with friends and keep the cost of the party low. Enjoy all the offerings and include a recipe swap for an added aspect of fun.
Whiskey tasting can help attendees try several different whiskeys and find their new favorite. They can be private, or you can attend a public event as a group, and you will even get to hear about the process of how the whiskey is developed and what flavors are present in each. It can be a learning experience as well as a time to sit back and enjoy the flavors.
Travelling Meal is a party where you have your appetizers at one restaurant, the main course at another, dessert at a third (or fourth depending on how many courses you will enjoy), and your after-dinner drinks at yet another. They can be planned with reservations and set times for each place, some will offer a special menu or cook for your group specifically, or you can set out to the first and see where you end up when the evening is over.
Smores and other campfire foods can be cooked over a bonfire, or take the weekend to go camping and eat campfire foods over the weekend. There can be roasted hot dogs, toasted marshmallows, tinfoil-wrapped meals, calzones, and much more.
Go out for an elegant meal at a fancy restaurant. Dressing up and sitting in a high-end restaurant can bring about a positive experience full of delicious foods, calm surroundings, and a relaxing meal. When hosting a larger group be sure to contact the restaurant in advance so they can prepare.
Wine and Cheese pairings are taught at some wineries and a Wine Tasting party is a great adult birthday idea. They will share with you the best ways to determine which wine goes best with which cheeses, and you get to enjoy each pairing throughout the evening.
Throw a backyard barbecue with beer, burgers, and a great music playlist your guests will have a blast!
Organize a fancy dinner party at your house with your closest friends.
Best Adult Birthday Party Ideas Final Note
Planning a birthday party for an adult can be difficult in knowing what they like to do, but once you find a theme that fits them it can be a fun experience. Whether it’s a big milestone birthday like a 21st or 40th, or another year, a birthday is always a reason to celebrate and there are so many adult birthday party ideas!
There are no limits to what you can plan and there will be something for everyone. Parties should have food and friends, and as long as those are present it’s sure to be a hit.