Take advantage of the warm days and starry nights to host a perfect event with these summer birthday party ideas that guests will enjoy, treasure, and remember for years to come.
Light My Fire
Create a campfire fête by planning a picnic filled with favorite summertime eats and treats. Like old-school classics? Go for skewers of seafood, meats, and veggies, accompanied by an array of summer salads. If a vegan feast makes your dreams and desires smolder, go wild and sacrifice roasted Portobello mushrooms and skewers of summer vegetables drizzled with olive oil and lemon juice. Add the traditional birthday cake and the best warm-weather libations like iced tea, lemonade, mint juleps, sangria, and mojitos.
How to Keep Them on the Farm
Gather a group of friends to make the most of the long and pleasant days and celebrate the natal day with a visit to a local fruit farm. Enjoy the time together by swimming or boating on a lake, singalongs, hay-ride, animal petting, train-tractor rides, fruit picking, and then finishing up with a picnic and party.
Karaoke Under the Stars
Reserve a club’s patio or balcony, hold a backyard or rooftop event, and rock that mic ’til it drops. Add libations and a song list with titles like “Birthday,” from Katy Perry; “Older,” from They Might Be Giants (oh, they are!); “Birthday,” by The Beatles; “My Next Thirty Years,” from Tim McGraw. The wonderful Stevie Wonder gifts us with “Happy Birthday”; “Good to Be Alive” from the excellent Andy Grammer. Add a cake and candles, and you’ve created a night of music and magic.
Hey Dude, it’s summertime, and the living is easy
Especially when you spend it at a dude ranch. From horseback rides to a campfire singalong, conduct your group of revelers and birthday celebrators hiking to a scenic spot. It’s a beautiful way to mark the passing of the earth going around the sun once again. Then you add your libation of choice, from homemade lemonade to champagne. End with a festive sweet treat birthday cake and artisan hand-cranked ice cream.
You’re a Star
Plan a nighttime party that celebrates the celestial. Get a telescope, maps of the heavenly bodies, and libations, perhaps cosmonaut cocktails, and you have set in motion a star-watching party. Consider naming a star after the birthday honoree with an organization such as the Online Star Register and present the official certificate and gift at the party.
Wet and Wonderful
What better way to commemorate the voyage from the womb into this world than through using the element of water? Gather your nearest and dearest for a boat cruise on a local lake, river, or ocean. Try a convoy of kayaks, or speed swimming in the pool. Being in the water is a terrific highlight of summer and a fantastic activity for any group gathering.
You’ve Got Game
Gaming is excellent for all age ranges, and playing games in the fresh air gives you room to roam. Play classic birthday games like Pin the Tail on the Donkey for the Littles or Never Have I Ever, How’s Yours?, or Mafia for the Growns. To up the ante, create your own board game where contestants answer questions about the birthday guest. And a piñata is best enjoyed outdoors where there is to really swing and maximize the fun of whacking something without attracting public scandal, and then, when the treats rain out, the joy grows exponentially.
Good to Grow
A birthday is a celebration of life. One unique way to celebrate that will leave a lasting impression is to gather your group of party-goers together for a tree-planting ceremony to honor the birthday honoree. You can donate to an organization that plants trees, such as The Gifted Tree or Grow Trees so that your tree can thrive in a location far away, or you can have a planting ceremony in your yard like Friends of Trees; as the individual grows and thrives, so does the tree.
A natal day is a perfect occasion to acknowledge, nurture, and celebrate the people in your life. With a bit of creativity and planning, you can make the event as unique as the birthday honoree, commemorate this day your way.

Author: The Party Hound
Our favorite imaginary dog, 'The Partyhound', didn't write this blog post, as you probably guessed. We like to think he's a smart pooch, but he's not that smart!! 'The Partyhound' simply represents one or more of Partyhound Media's creative staff of researchers, journalists, writers, photographers, and cinematographers. These are actual real live people who are excited to share their thoughts with you. If you'd like to learn more about joining our staff, please throw us a bone! Email: ted@partyhound.com.