10 Best New Year’s Eve Party Themes

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One of the best ways to celebrate New Year’s Eve is with an awesome party and every great party needs a theme. That’s why we’ve put together this list of the 10 best New Year’s Eve party themes for you to choose from. There’s something for everyone too! We’ll even take you through the best ideas for food, drinks, games, entertainment, decorations and outfits. So let’s get started!

10 Best New Year’s Eve Party Themes

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1. Secret Agent

The Secret Agent theme is a classic New Year’s Eve party idea. There are so many different things you can do to keep your guests entertained well past midnight, plus everyone loves a black tie event. Here are some of the best ideas you can try.

Games and Entertainment

This event definitely calls for some great entertainment. If you’re going for a secret agent theme, then you can go for classic casino games to keep your guests entertained. Have roulette wheels and poker tables dotted around your venue so your guests are free to get involved when then fancy.

A live band works really well for this theme too. Go for a classic brass or jazz band to keep it authentic. If you want to keep things cheaper though, then you can always make your own playlist instead. Head over to our guide on creating the party party playlist for more tips.

Food Menu

You can either go for a formal sit-down meal or lighter snacks to keep your guests refreshed. Canapes work really well for a sophisticated secret agent themed party. Here are a few ideas to get you started.

Bruscetta
Deviled eggs
Chicken satay skewers
Mini goat’s cheese and red onion tarts
Crab cakes
Halloumi and chorizo skewers
Smoked salmon and cream cheese toasts

Take a look at our ultimate party food guide for some more advice.

Drink Ideas

No secret agent themed party would be complete without some martinis! Here’s a classic recipe to get you started.

Vesper Martini: Shake three measures of gin, one measure of vodka and half a measure of Kina Lillet with ice, strain into a chilled martini glass and garnish with a thin slice of lemon peel.

Don’t forget to offer some other drink options too. Sparkling wine suits this theme perfectly, but offer a selection of alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks if you can. Head over to our post on the 10 best party drinks for some more great recipes.

Decorations

Keep the decorations simple and sophisticated. Don’t overdo it or it can run the risk of looking a bit tacky. Here are some decoration ideas to get you started

Casino chips
Roulette wheels
Secret agent character cut-outs
Posters from popular spy films
Black and white drapes

Fancy Dress

Complete your special agent party theme with a black tie dress code or get creative and dress as one of the characters. You don’t just have to stick to 007, dress as Q, M or Moneypenny or even one of the infamous villains like Goldfinger or Oddjob!

Fun.com is a online huge party supply store that has loads of great costumes to choose from!

Take a look at our detailed secret agent party theme guide for more ideas!

2. Pre-Historic Party

Pre-historic themes are super popular and sure to go down really well with your guests. It’s a great theme idea if you want to make the most of the fancy dress and decorations. Here are some of the best Pre-Historic theme New Year’s Eve party ideas.

Games and Entertainment

This party theme is great for outdoor venues, so if you’ve got plenty of space, then the sky is the limit with the games and entertainment! Take a look at these posts for some great ideas.

Food Menu

Go for a Flintstones theme and BBQ some chicken drumsticks and thighs, pork ribs and turkey legs. But don’t forget to offer some vegetarian and vegan options too! Take a look at our ultimate party food guide for some more ideas!

Drink Ideas

Make sure you offer the classic drinks like beer, wine, some cocktails and non-alcoholic options like juice and fizzy drinks. Here’s a quick cocktail recipe to get you started.

Pre-Historic Punch: Mix 1 litre of pineapple juice, 1 litre of orange juice, 2 litres of lemonade and 750 ml of rum in a pitcher with ice.

Head over to our post on the 10 best party drinks for some more great recipes.

Decorations

Make your own dinosaur bones and fossils using salt dough or clay. They look really authentic and you can dot them anywhere around your venue.
DIY beware signs placed at various points in your venue are a great way to decorate your dinosaur party. Velociraptor and Tyranosaurus warning signs are perfect. Add a silhouette on the sign to go with the text for an added touch!
If you’ve got a paved path leading to your front door or in your backyard, then draw some chalk dinosaur prints. They’re a super easy and cheap way to decorate the outside of your party and look great too!
Recreate the prehistoric jungle setting using DIY palm trees and plants, and add some brightly coloured paper flowers.

Fancy Dress

There’s plenty of room for creative costumes with this New Year’s Eve party theme, from cavemen to dinosaurs, think outside of the box! Fun.com is a online huge party supply store that has loads of great costumes to choose from.

3. Fiesta

This colourful and vibrant party theme is a great way to kick off the New Year. It’s a great theme choice that offers some great ideas for food, drinks and decorations. Let’s take a look at some awesome fiesta theme New Year’s Eve party ideas.

Games and Entertainment

Here are some of the best Fiesta themed party games and entertainment ideas!

Live Mariachi band
Professional Flamenco dancers
Chilli eating contest
Limbo
Pinata

Food Menu

If you’re going for a fiesta themed party, you need to make the most of Mexico’s best recipes. This theme best suits buffet style food, so set up various stations for tacos, fajitas and burritos with different ingredients and let the guests make there own. Enchiladas, empanadas and nachos are also perfect too because they’re really easy to make in large batches. Take a look at our ultimate party food guide for some more ideas!

Drink Ideas

A good fiesta theme party always has some tequila based cocktails too. Here are a few of the best ones to get you started! But make sure you serve some good non-alcoholic options too, like mocktails, juice and fizzy drinks. Head over to our post on the 10 best party drinks for some more great recipes.

Margarita
Tequila Sunrise
Tequila Paloma
Vampiro
Long Island Iced Tea

Decorations

Keep the decor as bright and colourful as possible. Decorate your venue with brightly coloured paper fans, bold pattered table runners, aper streamers and banners and over-the-top floral centerpieces.

Fancy Dress

Why not head over to our detailed fiesta theme party guide for some more great ideas!

4. Masquerade Party

Masquerade parties are a great way to start the New Year. They’re super popular because everyone loves the mysterious vibe and great outfits. Here are some masquerade theme New Year’s Eve party ideas to get you started.

Games and Entertainment

If you’re hosting a more casual masquerade party at home, then go for some classic party games like charades, Pictionary and Cards Against Humanity.

But if you’re going for a large New Year’s Eve party at a more formal venue, then hiring some professional entertainment is a great way to impress. Take a look at our post on the 20 best party entertainment ideas that’ll wow your guests.

Food Menu

This party theme suits a formal sit-down meal or casual buffet equally well. So if you’re not sure what the best option is for your New Year’s Eve party, then take a look at our ultimate party food guide to help you decide.

Drink Menu

You’ll want to make sure you serve a good variety of drinks to keep all your guests happy. Cocktails and mocktails are always a popular choice, so take a look at the 10 best party drinks for some recipes. Here’s a really easy and quick cocktail idea to get you started.

Old Fashioned Recipe

2 Teaspoons of Sugar Syrup
1-2 Dashes of Angostura Bitters
60ml Whisky
Orange Slice
Maraschino Cherry

Add the sugar and bitters to a small glass and mix until the sugar dissolves. Fill the glass with ice and stir in the whisky. Garnish with the orange slice and maraschino cherry.

Decorations

You’ll want to decorate your venue with lavish drapes and furniture if you have the space to help tie in with the theme. A statement entrance using a flower garland is a great way to introduce the theme at the start of your New Year’s Eve party too. Choose deep and rich colours like purples and reds to help keep in theme.

Fancy Dress

Of course, one of the most important things with a masquerade party is the fancy dress. You can either make your own outfit or purchase one online. Fun.com is a online huge party supply store that has loads of great costumes to choose from.

5. 80's Theme Party

Take a trip back to the 80’s and choose this classic New Year’s Eve party theme to kick off the New Year in style. It doesn’t matter what age group your guests are made up off, everyone loves the eighties. So let’s take a look at some 80’s theme New Year’s Eve party ideas!

Games and Entertainment

The 80’s was all about the music, so make sure you really think about this when you’re organising your party.

It’s up to you whether you choose a professional DJ to keep your guests on the dance floor, or make your own party playlist. Take a look at our ultimate party playlist tips for some help! You can even choose a live tribute band if you want to go all out, or hire a juke box or karaoke machine to get your guests involved.

Food Menu

This kind of party is usually best suited to buffet style food. The 80’s isn’t particularly renowned for its food, so this gives you plenty of flexibility to choose the menu you want to. Head over to our complete party food guide for ideas on what to serve, where to get it, plus how to estimate how much food you’ll need.

Drinks Menu

Make sure you serve a variety of alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks to keep everyone happy, and take a look at the 10 best party drink recipes. But here’s are some popular cocktail ideas to keep you going.

Electric lemonade
Blue Lagoon
Frozen Blue Hawaiian
Buck’s Fizz
Long Island Iced Tea
Fuzzy Navel
Tequila Sunrise
Mudslide

Decorations

Keep bright neon colours in mind when decorating your 80’s themed party. Inflatable guitar, Rubik’s cubes, popular 80’s magazines and board games are fun decorations to scatter around your venue! You could also place some posters of 80’s icons on the wall to decorate your party.

Fancy Dress

There are plenty of 80’s fancy dress ideas to choose from, here are some to get you started!

Backcomb your hair or tie it up with over-the-top scrunchies. Go for blue eyeshadow and frosted pink lipstick to complete the look.
Go for a classic shellsuit.
Choose a black t-shirt and leggings if you want to keep it simple, and accessorise it with plenty of neon jewellery, leg warmers and wristbands.
Dress as a famous 80’s musician like Bowie, Slash, Freddie Mercury or Madonna. Or even dress as a character from the a classic 80’s film like Ghostbusters or Rocky!

Fun.com is a online huge party supply store that has loads of great costumes to choose from!

Take a look at our detailed 80’s theme party guide for loads more ideas and tips.

6. Medieval

Why not go for a medieval theme for your New Year’s Eve party? It’s a popular idea but a bit more unique than the classic themes. So let’s jump right in and talk about the best Medieval New Year’s Eve party ideas!

Games and Entertainment

If you’ve got plenty of space, then the sky is the limit with the games and entertainment! Take a look at these posts for some great ideas.

Food Menu

A classic medieval banquet is the best thing you can do for food with this theme. The medieval diet was mainly centred around meat, cheese and vegetables, so make sure you keep this in mind, here are the best ideas.

Roasted meats
Garlic potatoes
Vegetable medley
Soups
Cheese and crackers

Drink Menu

Beer and wines are the classic choices for a medieval theme party. Make sure you include a variety or different beers, ciders and wines as well as some non-alcoholic options too. Extra points for using giant wooden beer kegs, tankards and chalices! Take a look at our 10 best party drink ideas for more inspiration.

Decorations

Go for rich colours like purples, reds and gold to tie in with the medieval theme. Drapes and rugs are a good idea too, the extra fabric adds a more luxurious feel to the decor. Pennant flag banners are a great idea too!

Fancy Dress

The classic fancy dress ideas for a medieval theme New Year’s Eve party are Kings, Queens, knights and jokers.

Fun.com is a online huge party supply store that has loads of great costumes to choose from.

7. Karaoke Party

Karaoke parties are the ultimate way for guests to get involved and have fun with the party entertainment. Karaoke machines are really easy to set up at home, you just need some basic equipment. Head over to our list of the top 20 karaoke machines which includes the best party karaoke machine options. It’s great for any age group and can be set up at home or in a hired venue. Take a look at our for some advice.

Games and Entertainment

Of course, the karaoke is the main focus of the entertainment, but it can be good to include some themed games to keep things more interesting.

Guess the Song: The singer gets to choose a song to perform and then the rest of the players have to guess the artist and song name.

Mix it Up: Put pieces of paper with different song titles and pieces of paper with famous singers on in separate bowls, mix each bowl up and then get a player to choose a piece of paper from each. They then have to perform the song in the style of the famous singer.

Don’t Forget the Lyrics: Write some famous songs on separate pieces of paper and then choose a section of the song and write the lyrics from a few lines but skip a few words out. Mix the pieces of paper up and then get each player to pick a piece of paper and say the missing lyrics.

Food Menu

Karaoke parties are less about the party food, so there are plenty of different options you can choose from. You can either make the food yourself, hire a caterer, have a buffet or a formal sit-down meal. Take a look at our complete party food guide to help you decide.

Drink Menu

Again, it doesn’t matter too much what drinks you serve at a karaoke party. Just remember to choose a good selection to keep everyone happy. Take a look at our list of the 10 best party drinks for some recipe ideas. You can also serve some shots too, it’s great if people need a bit of Dutch courage! Have a look at our 10 best party shot recipes to get you started!

Decorations

There are plenty of decoration ideas for a karaoke theme New Year’s Eve party, so here are some of our favourites!

Glitter balls
Vintage records
Disco lights
Musical note cut-outs
Blow-up musical instruments

Fancy Dress

This party theme doesn’t necessarily need any fancy dress, but that doesn’t mean you can give it a dress code, so be creative! If you don’t want to go for fancy dress, then at least let your guests know whether it’s a casual, smart or black-tie dress code!

We’ve created a whole guide dedicated to how to host the best karaoke party. It’ll take you through all the essential kit you’ll need, game ideas and tell you the best karaoke machines and how to set them up!

8. Pirate Theme

Pirate parties aren’t just for kids! Your guests will love this party theme because it let’s them let their hair down and have fun with the fancy dress! So here are the best pirate theme New Year’s Eve party ideas.

Games and Entertainment

Go for some classic party games if you’re hosting a casual New Year’s Eve party, or hire some professional entertainment if you want to go all out. Folk bands, character impersonators, and live-action stunt shows are all great ideas!

Food Menu

A seafood menu is perfect for a pirate theme party. Buffet style food is the better option for this casual New Year’s Eve party. Don’t forget to offer some variety too though, it doesn’t all have to be seafood! Here are some ideas that you can try.

Crab cakes
Scallops
Prawns with sweet chilli sauce
Salmon pate and toast
Calamari

Drink Menu

No pirate theme New Year’s Eve party would be complete without some rum based cocktails. Here’s a list of the 5 best rum based cocktail ideas!

Daiquiri
Mojito
Hurricane
Dark ‘n’ Stormy
Cuba Libre

Don’t forget to check out our list of the 10 best party drinks for some great alcoholic and non-alcoholic options.

Decorations

There are plenty of decoration options you can go for with a pirate theme New Year’s Eve party. Here are 5 of our favourites.

Message in a bottle
Pirate flags
Treasure chests
Wooden barrels
Pirates beware signs

Fancy Dress

One of the best things about a pirate theme party is the costumes. You can go for a DIY approach or hop online to find some great value options. Head over to HalloweenCostumes.com for the best value pirate costumes.

9. Roaring 20's

The classic 1920’s party theme has really grown in popularity over the last few years so it’s sure to go down well for New Year’s Eve. It’s perfect for a formal event or party and gives your guests the chance to get all dressed up and in character. Here are some of the best roaring twenties New Year’s Eve party ideas.

Games and Entertainment

If you want to go all out, then hire some entertainment like a jazz band, professional dancers or a vintage car! But if you want some more casual games, here are some popular 1920’s game ideas.

Dominoes
Yahtzee
Poker
Blackjack
Murder Mystery
Silent movie
Photobooth

Food Menu

Canapes work really well for a twenties theme party to keep things sophisticated. You can either hire a caterer to make things easy and hassle free, or you can cut the costs by sorting the party food yourself. If you need help deciding, check out our ultimate guide to party food for advice on choosing the best option for your party.

Drink Menu

Here are some classic cocktails made famous in the 1920’s for some inspiration!

Sidecar
The Last Word
French 75
Mary Pickford
Grasshopper
Brandy Alexander

Don’t forget to check out our list of the 10 best party drinks for some great alcoholic and non-alcoholic options.

Decorations

There are plenty of decoration options you can go for with a roaring 20’s theme New Year’s Eve party. Here are 6 of our favourites.

Feather centerpieces
Gold tassle chandeliers
Prohibition signs and posters
Candlebras
FBI most wanted posters with guest’s pictures
Gramophones

Fancy Dress

Feel free to make your own DIY versions and use this list for some inspiration. But if you want a professional looking costume, then head over to this party supply store for some great 1920’s costumes. Here are some costume ideas to get you started!

Take a look at our roaring twenties theme party guide for loads more ideas and tips!

10. Arabian Nights

An Arabian Nights theme is perfect for a New Year’s Eve party. It’s a more unique idea that your friends will definitely want to copy next year and there’s loads you can do with the decorations, food and drinks! So here are some great Arabian Nights theme New Year’s Eve party ideas!

Games and Entertainment

A traditional percussion band will add an authentic touch to your Arabian Nights themed event and help keep your guests entertained.

Food Menu

Take advantage of the amazing food the Arabian culture has to offer when thinking about your catering. Moroccan cuisine features some brilliant options that are perfect for batch catering such as tagines and koftas, whilst lebanese street food can also be a great choice for an Arabian Nights themed party. You could even have some Turkish delight waiting on each table for when your guests arrive. If you need more advice and ideas, take a look at the party food tips you need to know!

Drink Menu

Make large batches of Middle Eastern mint lemonade to keep your guests refreshed. It’s super easy to make, just blend 1 litre of water, 200g of caster sugar, 250ml of lemon juice, 25ml of orange juice and about 25 mint leaves and serve with ice.

Don’t forget to check out our list of the 10 best party drinks for some great alcoholic and non-alcoholic options.

Decorations

There are plenty of decoration options you can go for with a Arabian Nights theme New Year’s Eve party. Here are some tips and ideas.

Think purples, reds, burnt orange and gold.
Kit out your venue with Moroccan Kobba lanterns.
Lavish drapes and Persian rugs will also add to the feel of the theme.
Throw in some floor seating complete with cushions and throws to complete the look!

Fancy Dress

This theme is less about fancy dress and more about the decorations, food and drink, so don’t worry about the outfits. Just let your guests know the dress code so they know whether to go for casual clothes or more formal attire.

Take a look at our Arabian Nights Theme party guide for loads more ideas and tips!

Take a look at our ultimate New Year’s Eve party planning guide for everything you need to know! It’s full of great advice to help you organise everything with the stress!

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