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It’s exciting to watch the kid in your life become a teenager, but it does leave you with a big question: how do you come up with birthday party ideas for teens?
Keeping up with a teenager is tough — between their constantly changing interests and increased self-awareness, you don’t always know what will make them happy.
The mystery of adolescence causes many caretakers to have no idea how to entertain them. What do 13-year-olds do for their birthday? Or 15? Or 18? Fortunately, many simple and affordable activities can elevate a kid’s birthday party into a more mature, teen-appropriate event.
With a little bit of planning, you can use some of these birthday party ideas for teens to give a young person an amazing day they’ll never forget.
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- Creative Birthday Party Ideas for Teens
- Foodie Birthday Party Ideas for Teens
- At-Home Birthday Party Ideas for Teens
- Birthday Party Ideas for Teen Girls
- Birthday Party Ideas for Teen Boys
Creative Birthday Party Ideas for Teens
1. Pottery Classes
Pottery classes are great for 14-year-old birthday party ideas not at home, as well as for other young teens. A pottery class is a great birthday party idea for teens who enjoy creative hobbies, and perhaps prefer socializing with peers when there’s a shared activity to focus on.
Pottery is a popular activity, so you should be able to find a class in most major cities, such as pottery classes in Boston, pottery classes in Chicago or pottery classes in Houston. That said, if you don’t live near a big city, you should still be able to find pottery classes near you!
2. Dance Classes
Dance classes are another fun birthday party idea for teens who like experience gifts. Your teen can invite their closest friends for a private dance workshop, and then go out afterward for a cute birthday lunch.
Not only are dance classes a good birthday idea for teens who already like to dance, but they can also be a nice educational activity if you live in an area with a vibrant dance culture.
For example, you can learn a lot from dance classes in Las Vegas, dance classes in the Bay Area or dance classes in Los Angeles. Furthermore, if your teen has a long-distance friend group, you can also look into online dance classes.
3. Murder Mystery
Murder mystery parties are an awesome birthday party idea for teens with a flair for the dramatic. In a murder mystery party game, every party guest will get to play a character and question each other to try and solve the murder.
This is a particularly good birthday party idea for teens who want a fancy and memorable party, but don’t have a big budget, since most of the excitement comes from the guests’ performances. Keep them on their toes by making it a fun birthday surprise idea!
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4. Private Movie Screening
If your teenager is a blossoming film buff, you can arrange for a private movie screening. Most movie theaters offer private events, so it shouldn’t be hard to book a theater for your teen and their friends.
This is a smart plan for teens who want to get out of the house but still aren’t old enough to be unsupervised. When it comes to 14-year-old birthday party ideas not at home, it doesn’t get much easier than keeping all the kids entertained and supervised in one theater.
5. Visit a Museum
Museums may not be great for little kids, but they can be fun places to go for teenage birthday parties. If your teen loves art, take them to your local art museum. Likewise, if they enjoy science, they’ll have a ton of fun at a science museum.
Plus, if you need birthday party ideas for teens that incorporate a gift-giving opportunity, you can take them to the museum gift shop and let them choose any item they want.
Foodie Birthday Party Ideas for Teens
6. Cooking Classes
Younger teens are fairly easy to entertain, but older teens can be more tricky. For instance, how do 17-year-olds celebrate their birthday? Most of the time, the best birthday party ideas for teens who are older are activities that reflect their sophistication and independence.
If your teenager is passionate about food, sign them up for a cooking class. Cooking classes teach them a new skill and will make them and their friends feel very grown up. It makes for a perfect sweet 16 party idea!
You can easily schedule cooking classes near you, whether that's cooking classes in Houston, cooking classes in Los Angeles or cooking classes in Washington, D.C. If you don’t like the options in your area, you can also participate in online cooking classes.
7. Cookie Decorating
A cookie decorating party is a birthday party idea for teens that is sure to delight anyone with a sweet tooth. Shop the cutest cookie decorating kits for a pre-packaged assortment of themed sprinkles, frosting and other cookie decorations for birthdays.
8. Dinner Party
Younger teens still like to play games, and older teens can go out alone, but what do 15-year-olds do for their birthday? A dinner party is a great birthday party idea for teens who are too old for kid activities but too young to go out independently.
You can plan the menu with your teen and help them pick out some fun, personalized tableware, such as a centerpiece and matching napkins. You can also theme the dinner party around the teenager’s favorite book or movie.
9. Pizza Party
For a low-maintenance birthday party idea for teens that love food, consider a pizza party. This is a great option when learning how to plan a birthday party on a budget. Rather than order pizza from a restaurant, have the kids make the pizzas from scratch.
All you need is a few basic ingredients and some options for toppings. Each party guest can make a personal pizza and experiment with whatever crazy toppings they want. Kick things up a notch with some of the cutest pizza party decorations, invitations and gifts!
RELATED: 37 Best Birthday Cake Ideas for Every Age in 2024
At-Home Birthday Party Ideas for Teens
10. Virtual Games
If you need the party to be at home, you can still come up with some awesome teenage party entertainment ideas. Virtual games, for example, are a birthday idea for teens that will be a big hit with young adolescents.
You can arrange all kinds of virtual game nights depending on your teen’s interests. Some popular virtual activities for teens and young adults include online trivia games, virtual scavenger hunts and virtual escape rooms.
11. Backyard Party
Take advantage of any outdoor space you have when planning birthday party ideas for teens. If you have a backyard, you can throw together a casual party.
Put out some food and soda, set up some lawn games and play music on a speaker. If your teen’s birthday is in the winter, you can set up a fire and have s’mores and hot chocolate.
12. Slumber Party
A slumber party is probably one of the most obvious options when you need teenage party ideas at home. Both teens and pre-teens usually love the chance to spend an entire night hanging out with their friends.
If you choose this birthday party idea for teens, be prepared for a lot of entertaining and supervising — teenagers are more independent than young kids, but they still need an adult nearby during a sleepover.
As a study from the Journal of Developmental Psychology indicates, finding that balance between independence and support is crucial to a teenager having a positive experience.
13. At-Home Movie Night
Teenage party ideas at home don’t have to be super complicated. One of the most popular at-home birthday party ideas for teens is movie nights. This plan works for birthday party ideas for 13-year-olds and 18-year-olds alike.
You can host a movie marathon of all your teen’s favorite films. If you have a movie projector, you could turn it into an outdoor movie night. However, a snuggly evening in the living room works just as well. Be sure to load up on plenty of snacks, such as popcorn, brownies and candy.
14. Costume Party
You can make an at-home birthday party more exciting by turning it into a themed costume party. With this birthday party idea for teens, you can choose a decade theme, a movie theme or other theme party ideas that relate to the birthday teen.
Birthday Party Ideas for Teen Girls
15. Shopping Party
If you’ve noticed that your young teenager has developed an interest in fashion, you should ask if they’d like to go on a birthday shopping spree.
You can take the birthday girl and a few of her friends to the mall or their favorite store and let them choose outfits. Alternatively, you can take them to a vintage shop and let them experiment with retro styles.
16. Ice Skating
For winter birthday ideas for teen girls, ice skating rinks are fun places to go for teenage birthday parties. Going ice skating is the perfect mix of exhilarating and picturesque. Your teenager is sure to have fun skating around the rink with her friends.
17. Spa Day
Being a teenage girl is stressful. If you need teenage party entertainment ideas, you may want to think about relaxing things to do on your birthday instead of stimulating ones.
Help your teen and her friends relax with a spa day. You can either take them to a real spa or set up an at-home spa. Your teenager will appreciate feeling glamorous and pampered on her special day. Better yet, take your teen for a spa-day spending spree at stores like Ulta or Sephora.
18. See a Show
Going to see a play or musical is a great birthday party idea for teens if you live within driving distance of a nice theater. Your teen girl and her friends can get dressed up and watch a live show.
After the play, you can take all the girls out for a fancy dinner. Explore sites like Vivid Seats to select the best seats for the price you're looking for.
19. High Tea
Some teenage girls love any activity that makes them feel classy, upscale and, let’s be honest, like a princess. If that sounds like the teenager in your life, take them to high tea. A tea party is a fun treat for milestones, such as 18th birthday party ideas.
Nice hotels and restaurants often offer upscale afternoon tea, and your teen and her friends will get to channel their inner royalty while enjoying pastries and sandwiches surrounded by the prettiest tea party decorations.
RELATED: 21 Heartfelt Birthday Card Ideas to Give in 2024
Birthday Party Ideas for Teen Boys
20. Paintball
Paintball is a fun and straightforward birthday party idea for teen boys. Playing paintball is exciting and involves strategy, action and fun, bright colors. This kind of team game will be a great way for your teenage boy to bond with his friends while engaging in a cool activity.
21. Bowling
Bowling is a slightly lower energy activity that works well as a birthday party idea for teen boys who prefer a more mellow atmosphere. A game like bowling leaves plenty of space for socializing, talking and getting food. Plus, many bowling alleys also have great arcade sections.
22. Camping
Take the birthday slumber party outdoors with a camping trip. Camping is an awesome birthday party idea for teens as long as you have enough adult supervision and all of the teenagers enjoy the outdoors. Alternatively, you could plan a glamping experience, with extra gadgets and entertainment.
23. Amusem*nt Park
Amusem*nt parks are great birthday party ideas for 13-year-olds and other younger teens. Your teenager and the other boys can spend the day riding roller coasters and eating snacks. With so many entertainment options in the park, you won’t have to worry about anyone getting bored or restless.
Figuring out birthday party ideas for teens doesn’t have to be a difficult task. As long as you talk to your teen and give them plenty of options, you can plan a creative and entertaining birthday party.
For even more fun party ideas, check out other experiences happening on Classpop!
