Leave your laptop at home. Make a no-screens rule for the ultimate relaxing weekend. Ask your friends to bring cocktail ingredients. Host a mixology contest and subtly suggest that everyone prepare you-themed bevs (Sarah Spritzer, anyone?).
Play classic slumber party games, like truth or dare and spin the bottle. Chow down on delish, sugary snacks, like gummy worms and ice cream. Warn everyone that whoever falls asleep first is definitely getting drawn on!
Ask everyone to show up in the right attire. Light wash jeans, scrunchies, and windbreakers are a must! Play games that were huge in the early ’90s. Twister and Operation, anyone?
Or, if you have one close by, visit a bathhouse instead. They’ll make you feel completely centered!
Camp out somewhere you’d like to explore the next day for even more fun. Sleep by the lake, for example, and then rent a boat the next morning. If you want to get outdoors but aren’t big on dirt and grime, go glamping instead. Enjoy luxury tents, heating, and a nice warm bed. Make a backup plan for stormy weather. You might book a cabin instead of sleeping in a tent, or you could just plan some spooky rainy-day activities.
As the birthday honoree, tell your friends that you’ll be choosing a song for everyone in the room to try. Or, break off into duos and have a friendly competition.
Wear a sash and crown so everyone knows you’re the birthday honoree. Find a theme night that could take your celebrations to the next level. Are you a Taylor Swift fan? In big cities, they have T-Swift dance nights all the time!
Compete to see who can wear the most fan gear for your game day. Spend the game trying to make it on the dance cam.
Compete in a game of capture the flag. Play a big game of kick the can. Try out a giant round of hide and seek tag.
Make shirts for your friends to wear around the park (Carla’s Birthday Crew, maybe?) For an extra silly twist, get your face painted with your friends and wear it around all day.
Enjoy sweet, casual chat for a lowkey birthday celebration. For a special twist, bring wine glasses for everyone. Ask your friends to use their glasses to scoop up their piece of cake. Then, you can all eat from your glasses! Before you dig in to your gorgeous spread, make sure to snap a quick pic to remember the day by. Keep an eye on the weather. If it’s going to be cold or rainy, you might want to move your picnic inside or under an awning.
Choose a fun winery location and turn your tour into an overnight. Book a local Airbnb for even more birthday fun. Wear a sash and crown around the winery so everyone knows you’re celebrating a special day.
For a twist, go for a tea party instead. Ask your friends to don spring colors and fancy hats, meet in the afternoon, and enjoy delish finger foods, tea, and sweet treats instead.
If it’s a nice day, opt for a rooftop brunch—even better!
Make sure you get a pic or video so you have the memory forever. Remember that if you want to solo dive, you’ll have to take a class first.
Set a quarter limit for your guests and have a little competition: who can earn the most tokens? If the arcade has laser tag as well, that’s a no-brainer. Make sure to stop by with your friends after you’ve cashed in your winnings! If you’re in a busier city, you may even have an arcade bar close by. That way, you can enjoy some delish drinks while you hit the machines!
Bring along some cake for the midway point. This will keep things celebratory and at the same time, restore your energy reserves! If you want, consider renting the place out with a giant group of friends. Then, you’ll be able to have group games across the whole venue.
Bye bye thirty: This one will be a play on Bye Bye Birdie. As such, make sure everyone is dressed in classic 1960s attire. 13 Going on 30: For the perfect movie theme, assign all of your pals a character from the movie to dress as. Make sure to play the soundtrack on loop. You can even find Jenna’s dress online! Thirty Dancing: You probably know this one already. For a twist on Dirty Dancing, groove the night away in costume.
Make sure you include 30 clues (it’s only right!) Consider making the clues “you” themed in honor of the big day.
Come up with your own characters/storylines so everything plays out exactly as you want it to. If you want, give the evening a theme, too! Who said that murder mystery couldn’t also be fantasy-themed?
If you’re a real free spirit, spin the globe and choose a spot at random. [18] X Research source
California Pizza Kitchen gives out free birthday treats Dairy Queen offers a birthday blizzard Sephora gifts birthday guests a sample-sized product
Train for a 5k or 10k run. Try out a triathlon for the first time. Run your age (30 miles!) if you’re a running enthusiast. If you live in a big city, you may be able to find a niche race that suits your interests—swimming, rollerblading, you name it.
Buy yourself a sweet treat. Don’t worry about your health today, just make sure that whatever it is, you seriously enjoy it. Remember that leather jacket you’ve been eyeing, the one that’s just a little expensive? Buy it as a little birthday gift.
Visit your childhood hometown, including your high school, middle school, and elementary school. Take a trip to your childhood summer camp campus. Swing by your childhood vacation spot. Eat at that restaurant you would beg your parents to visit—and get every dish that looks good.
By spending the day in the great outdoors, you’ll feel relaxed and at peace on your big day. Hopefully that’ll set the tone for your whole year, too!
The final stop, of course, needs to be for birthday cake. Take photos at every checkpoint so you remember your whole day.
Look online for organizations that work for causes you’re passionate about. Even if you just choose to volunteer for a couple hours in the morning before heading off to your other plans, doing good on your special day is sure to fill your heart.
