Are you looking for a fun alternative to throwing a party for your toddler’s birthday? If the thought of hosting a traditional party with games and food feels like it’s going to be a bit too much for you and your toddler, you’re not alone. Rest assured – there are loads of parents out there who are looking for fun alternatives to a party with loud music and crowds of children. So read on for some easy alternatives to throwing a party for your toddler’s next birthday.
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Who Should I Invite For My Toddler’s Birthday?
Most of our fun ideas can be done with just you and your child or a few friends and parents as you prefer. If you want to invite others along, go with the theory of ‘number of children for child’s age’. So this may mean inviting just two, three or four other friends/family members. You can always have a birthday tea with grandparents etc. later on.
1. Go To The Woods/On A Short Walk
Why not arrange to meet a couple of friends at your favourite local woodland walk? There will be opportunities for stomping through leaves and mud, den-building and more – all the activities that help promote teamwork and being out in nature/that all-important fresh-air.
2. Do An Activity Like Scooting
Whether it’s trampolining, soft play, ice skating, swimming or taking some scooters to the local skate park, pick your toddler’s favourite physical activity. Just choose a time and a place for other parents to meet you (or go on your own as a family). If you’ve chosen a venue which offers ‘party packages’, you don’t have to take these – just pay for entry and have some food in the cafe afterwards.
3. Go To The Farm – Toddler Party Alternatives
There are many farms and play-barns out there where toddlers will happily spend hours. Some have ride-on miniature tractors or model railways while others offer animal grooming and trails or even tractor rides.
4. Go Blackberry or Strawberry Picking
One of the most chilled-out gatherings we attended here at Happity was at a farm which offered strawberry picking and feeding the pigs! The farm also had a café, grassy area and outdoor sand pit so children could wander round and play. They even hung a piňata on a tree.
For a truly relaxed feel, blackberry picking can be really good fun too. If you know of a local path or route in the countryside with blackberry brambles, arrange to meet the parents there, take some tubs for your pickings and go on a little wander!
5. Go To A Local Play Area, Playground Or Adventure Playground
What could be more chilled than something that just feels like playing? Maybe invite a few friends to meet at the local playground or park. You supply the cakes and perhaps a few extra things to do (think balls, buckets and spades, kites). If there is a bridge or stream you can play something like poo-sticks or just watch the ducks. National Trust properties also have great adventure playgrounds and ideas for keeping little ones busy in the great outdoors.
6. Hold A Mini-Sports Day
If you have space in the garden, why not have a mini-sports day? This can be as simple as throwing a few beanbags in a hula hoop, hopping or jumping from one side of the garden to another or throwing and catching a ball. If you have a shed, you can draw chalk circles as targets on the side and see who can squirt them with a water pistol.
7. Get The Bubbles Out – Toddler Party Alternatives
Everyone loves bubbles! With enough bubble mix, wands and even a bubble machine you can turn your garden (or house) into a bubble wonderland. Popping bubbles, floating bubbles, seeing how high they can drift off in the wind…hours of entertainment.
8. Meet At A Splash Park
Water, fountains and tons of space for picnicking will make this a win-win. You can buy icecream as a treat for all the toddlers from the cafée if they have one.
9. Build A Den – Toddler Party Alternatives
Children love making dens out of sheets, blankets and furniture. You can also get den kits which have rods and plastic balls. If you go to the woods, you can use natural materials.
“For one of our parties, we happened to have a load of hay bales out in the garden. The children had so much fun just jumping round these and hitting balloons too.”
– Liz, Team Happity
10. Go Pretend-Camping
Put a tent up in your back garden and you’re good to go. Toddlers will love climbing in and out of the tent. You can even give them food and cake to eat in there! If it’s chilly weather, throw in a load of blankets, or set up a camping area inside instead.
11. Host A Small Playdate – Toddler Party Alternatives
If you call it a playdate rather than a party, it can take the pressure off. Inviting just a few friends that you know your toddler will definitely play with can be very reassuring for toddlers who don’t like large groups. You should find the play is more spontaneous and organic, and you can still serve party food and cake (to the grown-ups, too).
12. Get Crafting – Toddler Party Alternatives
With beads, elastic, trays and some small wooden art kits (try these craft activities from Baker Ross), you can lay all this out on a table at home and invite a couple of toddlers (and parents) to join in. If you provide pens and paper/card as well, you should find there’s something for everyone. You can buy huge cardboard models from Hobbycraft (like this pirate ship and castle here), which is really fun to colour in and decorate. We also love this ‘secret door’ idea which just needs cardboard, sellotape, felt tips or paint.
13. Build Lego Or Duplo – Toddler Party Alternatives
Get a ton of Lego or Duplo and challenge the children (and adults) to build the tallest tower/longest bridge/fastest car etc. Chances are they’ll invent their own games so you can step back and enjoy the fun while they get creative.
14. Go To The Cinema
There are often family and toddler-friendly screenings at weekends (or during the schoolday). So you can either go solo or arrange to meet a couple of other families there and pay for their entry. After you could walk into town/to the ice-cream parlour etc.
15. Have An Ice Cream (Or Babycino) – Toddler Party Alternatives
Do you remember your first ice cream? We’ll bet you do! Ice cream can feel like such a treat for little ones. If you go to your local ice cream parlour, you can jazz it up with sprinkles, chocolate flakes and other little treats – or just go plain.
“We took Lucy for her first ice cream for her first birthday! She enjoyed it way more than she would have done a party and it cost us 99p.”
– Lisa, Team Happity
16. Go To The Museum – Toddler Party Alternatives
A local museum can be free and fun. Often museums have temporary exhibitions too, or even activities for kids. Larger museums have more facilities like the basement of the Science museum which has play areas and physical levers and things to experiment with.
17. Do A Treasure Hunt – Toddler Party Alternatives
Hide play money or chocolate coins around the house or garden. Or you could hide other small objects (e.g. clothes pegs, tokens, small toys) that the toddlers have to collect and ‘bank in’ for a prize from you/a lucky dip. To extend the activity, have the toddlers rehide some of the items – hours of fun! If you’re ambitious, you could hide objects in a small area of the local park or do a trail. It should be quiet enough on a week day.
18. Have A Picnic/Teddy Bear’s Picnic
A Teddy Bear’s Picnic with sandwiches, cake and/or snacks can take the pressure off the traditional party tea. Set children off collecting sticks and twigs for a ‘fire’ and build one to sit round while you have your party tea. Take a picnic rug, a picnic set and a few soft toys.
19. Go To Your Regular Toddler Class
If your toddler’s birthday coincides with your regular toddler class, it can be a surprisingly relaxing thing to do as part of your usual routine. Class providers usually love having birthday children along, and if it’s a music or signing class, you may find other parents and children enjoy singing Happy Birthday to your little one as well! After all, classes are tailored for children so it can be a lovely part of your toddler’s special day.
20. Go To The Beach (Or A Sand-Pit)
If you live near the sea, the beach (even on a cold day) can be a really fun place for toddlers to explore. Have a walk, make sand footprints, set them challenges of sand-castle and moat building, shell or pebble-hunting and decorating their creations with shells and pebbles too. You just need a few buckets and spades and remember to advise parents to dress their toddlers appropriately for the weather!
21. Go To A Theme Park – Toddler Party Alternatives
CBeebies World is totally aimed at toddlers, so if your toddler is into Octonauts, Go Jetters or Andy’s Adventures, a birthday could be a great time to see what it’s all about. Plus tickets give you entrance into Alton Towers as well (one for the thrill-seeking grown-ups!).
Here at Happity Club we currently have 15% off days out to Sea Life London Aquarium and Shrek World for parents. Just enter code HAPPITY15 at the checkout. Chessington World of Adventures and Legoland (with its Duplo Valley) are also great for toddlers. If you book a class with Happity, you can get 10% off at Legoland.
22. Go To The Zoo – Toddler Party Alternatives
So many toddlers just love animals, so a birthday outing to your local zoo (like Whipsnade or one of the ZSL zoos) can be a real treat. Just remember to take a buggy or scooter as there can be a lot of ground to cover.
Want to get out and about, have fun with your baby or toddler, and meet other parents?
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