Birthday

Ultimate Guide to Hosting the Perfect 21st Birthday Party

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21st birthday party

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There’s no better way to celebrate a 21st birthday than with a great party with all your friends and family! It’s a massive occasion, so why not celebrate it in style. 

But planning a 21st birthday party can be pretty hard work. There’s plenty to think about and you’ve got to get it all sorted within budget. 

Hopefully you’ve started thinking about everything in advance, but don’t worry if you’ve left it a bit late. There’s still time to get everything sorted before the big day! 

 

When planning a 21st birthday party, start by setting a strict budget and tracking your spending. Then move on to the guest list, picking the date and time and booking a venue. 

Once this is done, you can move on to the fun stuff like the theme, food, drinks, decorations, music and entertainment!

We’ll go through all this and give you loads of fun ideas to make your party a night to remember. So let’s get started planning your ultimate 21st birthday party! 

Take a look at this ultimate party supply pack to get all the essentials for your event. I was surprised at how cheap I could find this one on Amazon. 

Contents

  • Setting the budget
  • Finalising the guest list
  • Best times and days
  • Finding a venue
  • Best 21st birthday themes
  • Party food
  • Party drinks
  • Decorations & supplies
  • Entertainment ideas
  • Order of events
  • Unique ideas

Set a Budget

The first thing you need to do when planning any party, is set a strict budget. The amount you are able to spend will dictate pretty much everything else involved in planning your 21st birthday party.

It doesn’t matter if you’ve not got much to spend, just make sure you have an exact figure, then write it down and stick to it like glue. 
 
Once you’ve decided the amount you want to spend, you’ll need to track everything to make sure you don’t go over budget.

Using an excel document is the easiest way to do this. Simply use the formulas to track how much you’ve spent and how much money you’ve got left. This way, you shouldn’t have a problem with overspending.
 
If you want some advice on planning your party without overspending, check out our quick tips to help plan a party on a budget.

Finalise the Guest List

The next thing you’ll need to decide, is the guest list. This will mostly be dictated by your budget because the bigger your guest list, the more you’ll need to spend on food and a larger venue.
 
You’ll need to think carefully about how many people to invite to your party.

Try and cost out the amount your party food will cost per person to give you a rough idea. Then look at the price differences for a variety of venue sizes in your area to help you decide how many guests to invite. If you need more advice, check out our.
 
After you’ve decided a rough number of how many guests to invite, you’ll need to decide exactly who’s getting an invite. 
 
First figure out who your essential guests are, then decide if you’re inviting both friends and family, and if so, how many of each? You’ll need to decide if children are allowed at your party too. 
 
Start building your guest list around your essential guests by looking at your circle of friends and your family relations. Try to make sure no one is missed out.

Choose the Best Date and Time

Once you’ve decided you guest list, you can start thinking about when you want to host your 21st birthday party.It’s good to get a few dates in mind first before contacting any venues so you can give them some concrete information to go on. 
 
You’ll probably have a weekend in mind for when you want your party to be, either the one before or after your 21st birthday. Hosting it the weekend after, if your birthday is midweek is usually better. This way you’ll actually be 21 so can drink at the party if it’s the legal age in your country! 
 
But which day is best? Saturday is usually better than Friday because your guests won’t have to rush back from work to get ready in time for the party.
 

Once you’ve picked a day, then you can narrow it down to a time slot. Aim for your party to last 3-4 hours, and pick a slot that suits you best. Usually, starting between 8-9pm is ideal.

It’ll give you time to serve food, enjoy some entertainment and get on the dance floor without it getting too late in the night. 

And if you’re not done dancing when the party draws to a close, you can always continue your birthday celebrations at a bar or club. 

Find the Perfect Venue

Picking the right venue is one of the most important things to decide when planning a 21st birthday party. 
 
You’ll first need to decide if you are hosting at home or hiring a venue. If you’re on a tight budget, consider hosting at home. But if you have a huge guest list and money to burn, hire out the perfect venue. 

Hosting a 21st Birthday Party at Home

Check out these some tips to hosting a great 21st birthday party at home. 

Get Rid of Any Clutter

The first thing you need to do to maximise your party space is get rid of all the clutter. Furniture or ornaments that don’t serve a purpose at your baby shower need to go elsewhere. Moving clutter either upstairs or in a garage is a great way to help host a party in a small space.

Re-Arrange the Furniture 

Stackable chairs are a great space saver. You can have them upstairs to keep your main party space free, and bring them out if more of your guests want to sit down. 

If your living room is square-shaped, rather than rectangular, it’s best to have all of your furniture on the edge of the room and your food and drinks tables in the middle to maximise the space. 

Your guests are likely to congregate around tables, so dot them around to spread people out. You can have a few different small tables to ensure your guests can move between them without creating a queue. 

But if your space is narrower instead, it can be a good idea to have one long table in the centre with all your food and drink. Then you can place chairs around the edge. This will create a flow around the area that prevents congestion when your guests are moving about. 

If you don’t have enough room for many chairs, you can always throw down some pillows and blankets. It’s a good space saver because more people can usually fit on a blanket than a bench and it’ll take up less room. 

Have Plenty of Bins

Make sure there are enough bins at various places in your house. Number one, it’ll make the cleaning up process a lot quicker.

Plus it’ll stop more people getting up and moving around creating congestion if there is a bin near them. Having a lot of people moving about is what makes your area seem smaller. When people are sat down and settled, you’re likely to feel the effects of a small space a lot less. 

Stagger the Arrival Time

Another thing you can do that’ll help you host a baby shower in a small space, is to stagger the arrival time. Having a large window for your guests to arrive, stops a massive influx of people at one time.

This will make it seem like the area is larger, because trying to cram everyone in at once will highlight a small space even more. 

Hiring a Venue

If you’re hiring a venue, there’s some things you need to consider to make sure you pick the best one. There are plenty of options that might be suitable, including restaurants, function rooms, bars and clubs. So here are some things to think about to help you decide. 
 

Venue Size 

The size, and ultimately the cost, of your venue will mostly depend on how many guests you’re inviting.

Venue Location

Try and choose a central location that’s convenient for the majority of guests. You might have your eye on a venue that’s quite far away, but some guests might be put off if they will struggle to get home after the party without paying a fortune for transport.

If you’re planning on going out afterwards, make sure your venue isn’t too far from any clubs or bars. Ideally, you want a short taxi ride or direct public transport. 
 

Inside or Outside 

If you’re hosting a winter anniversary party, it’s probably best to go with the safe option and host inside. But if you want to celebrate the occasion outdoors, check that the venue has a plan B in case the weather doesn’t go your way.  

Catering

Some venues offer catering, but others just leave you to it. Think about the kind of food you want to serve at your anniversary party and if the venue fits in with your plans.

Check the Licence 

 
Check the alcohol licence on your venue before booking. Some venues can’t serve any alcohol drinks after midnight, so if you’re planning on keeping the party going until the early hours then this is something to think about.
 

Any Extras

Some venues offer additional services which might sway your decision, for example a bar, decorations or some entertainment. Try and consider the whole package when choosing a venue to make sure you get a good deal.

Overall Cost 

This depends on how luxurious your venue is, how many guests it caters for, and if there are any extras included. Make sure you are strict with yourself when choosing the venue and remember our advice about sticking to your budget! 

adult birthday party

21st Birthday Party Themes

Every great party needs a theme, especially one as significant as a 21st birthday party! Take a look at our top 20 party themes for adults for some great ideas! 
 
If you don’t want to go for a full on theme, then you’ll at least need to choose a colour scheme for your decorations and party supplies.

Gold, silver and black are classic colours for a 21st birthday party. But if you want to be a bit different and still keep a classy vibe, then pastel colours work great too.

Party Food

Providing great food for your guests is essential for a 21st birthday party.
 

You’ll first need to think about what time your party is. If you’re hosting later into the night, you’ll only need to provide some light snacks to keep your guests happy.

But if you’re party starts between 7-8pm, then your guests will probably be expecting something more substantial. 

If you’re hosting earlier in the evening but don’t want to spend too much on the party food, make sure your guests are aware so they can eat beforehand if they want to.
 
The next thing you need to consider, is if you’re going for DIY party food or hiring a professional. Check out our party food guide to help you decide. It’s full of great tips and ideas and info on how much food you’ll need per guest. 

21st Birthday Cake

Every birthday party needs a cake too! If you’re planning on having a cake, you should try and get some plans in place early on to avoid having to rush later on.

Hiring a professional in your area to decorate a show stopping cake is great idea to make your party special.  Or if you fancy yourself as a bit of a star baker, why not make the cake yourself to keep the costs down. 

Birthday Party Drinks

If your venue has a bar, then you won’t need to think too much about the drinks. Just remember to drink responsibly and make sure you and your guests don’t go too wild! Make all your guests aware of public transport in the area too so everyone can get home if they’ve had any alcohol. 
 
Of course Champagne is a classic 21st birthday drink. But you need to make sure there’s plenty of variety with the drinks menu. Try and include some popular alcoholic drinks like beer, wine and spirits with mixers but also think about offering your guests some cocktails too! 

It’s essential to have some non-alcoholic options too. Don’t be boring and just offer fizzy drinks and juice, but be creative and try making some mocktails! Here are some great drink recipes to help get you started. If you need some more ideas, check out our list of the 10 best party drink recipes! 

Long Island Iced Tea

  • Rum 17.5ml
  • Vodka 17.5ml
  • Gin 17.5ml
  • Tequila 17.5ml
  • Orange Liqueur 17.5ml
  • Sugar Syrup 17.5 ml
  • Lemon Juice 17.5ml
  • Lime Juice 17.5ml
  • Cola
The Long Island Iced Tea is very easy to make but definitely packs a punch! Shake the lemon, lime, sugar and alcohol with ice. Then pour into a chilled glass filled with crushed ice and top with cola.

Lemon and Basil Spritzer (non-alcoholic)

Ingredients:

  • Soda/ lemonade 250ml
  • Basil leaves
  • Sugar syrup 25ml 
  • Juice from 1/2 Lemon 

Cut the lemon into quarters, add a few basil leaves and the sugar syrup and then muddle in a chilled glass. Fill the glass with ice and top with soda or lemonade. 

Party Shots

Why not include some shots to get the party started? Here are two great shot recipes that are perfect for a 21st birthday party. Take a look at the 10 best shot recipes for more ideas! 

Mad Dog Shot Recipe

What you’ll need:

  • 1 oz (30ml) Vodka
  • 3/4 oz (22.5 ml) Raspberry syrup
  • A few dashes of hot sauce
Difficulty: 2/3
 
How alcoholic is a Mad Dog shot? 2/3
 
How to make a Mad Dog Shot:
 
  • Add the raspberry syrup to the shot glass first
  • Layer the vodka on top by pouring it over the back of a spoon
  • Add a few dashes of hot sauce on the top 

Kamikaze Shot Recipe

What you’ll need: 

  • 1 oz (30 ml) Vodka
  • 1/4 oz (7.5 ml) Orange liqueur (blue curacao or Cointreau works best!)
  • 1/4 oz (7.5 ml) Fresh Lime Juice

Difficulty: 1/3

How alcoholic is a Kamikaze shot? 2/3

How to make a Kamikaze shot:

  • Shake all the ingredients in a shaker with ice 
  • Strain into two chilled shot glasses

21st Birthday Party Decorations and Supplies

You’ll also need to think about some decorations for your 21st birthday party venue. Here are some of our favourites: 
 
  • Create a photo opportunity with some 21st birthday balloons in front of a wall decorated with banners. 
  • Decorate some empty spirit bottles with some fairy lights and glitter.
  • Add a balloon garland to the entrance of your venue.
  • Pin photos from the past 21 years on a board or around the venue on the walls.
  • Personalised banners and paper fans are great budget decoration ideas.

You’ll also need some essential party supplies if your venue doesn’t provide want or if you’re hosting at home. These include, cutlery, plates, napkins and cups. 

Ebay and Amazon are your best friends for party supplies and decorations. But you can also have a look at your local party supply store for some great budget ideas and have fun shopping for your party!  
 
Take a look at this ultimate party supply pack to get all the essentials for your event. I was surprised at how cheap I could find this one on Amazon. 
 

Shindigz is a great online party supply store that you can use to find great decoration ideas with over 34,000 party supplies for every occasion and next day delivery!  

Stumps Party is another awesome party supply store offering custom event supplies and regular deals and discounts. 

21st Birthday Party Entertainment

If you want to go all for your 21st birthday party, you can hire some professional entertainment! Here are our favourite entertainment ideas for a 21st birthday party. 
 
  • Ceilidh band
  • Acrobats
  • Dancers 
  • Magicians 
  • Photo booth
  • Caricaturists 
  • Glow shows
  • Silhouette artists
  • Human topiaries 
  • Sand artists

Drinking Games

If you want a wild party but don’t want to spend too much, why not include some drinking games? Here’s one of our favourites to play, but if you want some more ideas, check out our list of the 10 best drinking games for large groups! 
 
Drunk Pass the Parcel
 

What You’ll Need:

  • A small prize
  • Wrapping paper
  • Some music

How Long Does it Last? Around 10 minutes

Number of Players: 10+ people

How to Play the Drinking Game Version of Pass the Parcel:

  • First you’ll need to wrap the prize in a layer of wrapping paper. Wrap the present again but underneath the layer, have a truth or dare written on a small piece of paper. Repeat this so there are around 6-10 layers.
  • Get all the players in a circle and pass the parcel around until the DJ stops the music. 
  • Whichever player the music stops on, must unwrap a layer and do the truth or dare written on the paper.
  • Keep going until someone unwraps the prize!

Throw in Some Karaoke

Everyone loves showing off their singing talents (or lack of). So why not involve some karaoke at your party to keep you and your guests entertained? 
 
Your venue might already have a set up, but if not, then you can hire or buy a karaoke machine, some microphones and a screen for a pretty reasonable price online.

You can purchase some ready made karaoke CDs as a package too. Some places even let you create your own set list so you can choose your favourite songs! 

Party Music Ideas

You’ll 100% need some great music to get your guests on the dance floor. There are a few approaches you can take to sort out your party music.
 
You can hire a professional DJ to keep your guests entertained all night. There are plenty out there, so you’ll be sure to find one that suits your style of music in your local area.

Make sure you let them know a few of you and your guests favourite songs so they can incorporate them into the night. Or hire a DJ that encourages requests to keep everyone happy! 
 
If you don’t want to spend money hiring a DJ, that’s no problem. You can create your own party playlist and show off your DJing skills instead! All you’ll need is some good quality speakers, an AUX lead, Apple Music and your phone. Check out our guide on creating the ultimate party playlist for some great tips!
 

Apple Music is the perfect way to create a party playlist. It’s intelligent recommendation feature makes it really quick to add songs to create the perfect track list and it’s cross fade feature makes seamless song transitions. It’s only $9.99/ £9.99 per month and you can get a free 3 month trial to check it out. And don’t worry, you can use it on Android devices too!

Join over 50 million subscribers and sign up for your 3 month free trial today! 

 
Can’t decide which option is best? Check out our post on everything you need to know about party music.

Speeches and Toasts

It’s usually tradition for someone to make a speech at a 21st birthday party. It  doesn’t just have to be the birthday boy or girl that gives a speech. If you’re organising an party for a family member or one of your friends, it can be nice to say a few words and thank you to all the guests for coming. 

If you plan on giving a speech, don’t be nervous! All it takes is a bit of preparation and practice, and you’ll be able to make an amazing speech on the day. Here are some tips to help.

  • Start by introducing yourself but try to keep it brief. 
  • Try and include a couple of jokes. Make sure they’re tasteful though and know your audience. You don’t want to say anything cringe-worthy!
  • Share a few key memories. It’ll help make the speech more meaningful and prevent it from being generic. 
  • Thank everyone for their attendance.
  • Don’t go on too long! The best speeches are around 2-5 minutes long.
  • Practice your speech in front of a mirror. It might sound a bit silly, but getting used to the sound of your own voice and the way you say things can really help with your nerves. 
  • Bring some notes but try not to look at them. They should only be there as a backup and you should aim not to use them at all.
  • Take a few slow deep breaths before you start talking to help lower your voice and maintain composure. 

Consider Hiring a Photographer

An 21st birthday party is a special occasion, and you should try and capture the moment with plenty of photographs. This way, you’ll be able to look back at your hard work planning and enjoy the party for even longer. 

There are plenty of freelance and agency photographers out there, but how do you choose the best one? Here are some of the best tips on choosing a photographer for your party. 

  • Narrow down your search by looking at the websites of some photographers in your local area, to see which style suits your party best.
  • Arrange a phone call with a few photographers to check their availability and pricing first, to make sure they’re a suitable option.
  • Ask to see a full portfolio of a recent anniversary party they’ve photographed.
  • Compare the best packages for your budget and requirements. 
  • Check out some testimonials and reviews to make sure they’re reliable and professional.
  • Ask what the back up plan is. If for any reason they’re unable to make it on the day, can they make a plan B? If they are well known in the community and experienced, they should have no problem hooking you up with another photographer that’s a suitable replacement. 

Order of Events

So now you’ve got everything booked and ready for the big day, it’s time to start thinking about the order of events.

It’s good to get a rough timeline in place as it’ll help you to relax on the night knowing there’s a plan in place. Here’s a rough order of events for an anniversary party.

  • 0:00-0:30 Let the guests arrive and offer out some drinks.
  • 0:30-1:30 Serve the food
  • 1:30-1:45 Speeches
  • 1:45-2:15 Party entertainment
  • 2:15-4:00 Hit the dance floor!
  • 4:00 Start winding down and saying goodbyes

Unique 21st Birthday Party Ideas

So you want to make your 21st birthday party a night to remember? Here are some great ideas! 
 

Photo Slideshow 

This is a cool idea if you’re hosting a 21st birthday party for your friend or a family member. Hire a projector screen and make a slideshow of pictures to display at the party.

You can put it on the dance floor at the start of the night and then move it later on when the party gets going. Choose around 100-200 photos if you can, and have them on the screen for around 10 seconds each. 
 

Scavenger Hunt 

This is a fun one to play with friends at a 21st birthday party. If you’re hosting for a mate, create a list of 21 challenges for the birthday boy or girl to do throughout the night! Shots make great forfeits too! 
 

Disposable Cameras

These are a great idea if you aren’t hiring a photographer. Simply grab a few disposable cameras from your local supermarket and take plenty of photos to remember the night! 
 

Champagne Bottle Souvenir

Champagne is a staple at a 21st birthday party. But why not turn it into a souvenir too? Buy a magnum bottle of champagne and get all the guests to sign it with bright neon or gold and silver pens so you have something to take home and remember the night by.
 

Arrive in Style 

If you want the VIP experience, you’ll need to arrive in style. Why not hire a party limo or a classy super car to rock up to your party in? It’s definitely a way to make your night even more special!  

So that’s it! Now you have plenty of ideas to plan the perfect 21st birthday party. We hope you have a great time!

Don’t forget to take a look at our party planning timeline to make sure you’ve got everything covered. It’ll tell you everything you need to do at each stage of the party planning process so you can create an amazing party without any stress or worry about forgetting anything! It even includes a free printable party planning checklist to make sure you stay on track. 

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Take a look at this ultimate party supply pack to get all the essentials for your event. I was surprised at how cheap I could find this one on Amazon.