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Looking for quarantine birthday ideas to make someone feel special without a traditional party? Here are a few of our faves!
Quarantine Birthday Party Ideas for Kids
How do you Celebrate A Birthday During Quarantine?
What happens when your child can't have the party or the outing they'd been looking forward to? It's already so hard on many of us, being secluded from our friends and family… but marking a birthday without the normal celebrations can be extra hard. Here's how to make the best of a quarantine birthday with a little creativity! Most of these ideas are focused on kids – but can be equally fun for adults.
1 . Drive-By Birthday Visit
NOTE: In some states that aren't under shelter-at-home orders this would be okay still – while in others this should be avoided.
While you can't invite people over to party, you can invite them to drive by! Invite friends and family to show up in the driveway with a fun birthday poster or banner to hang out their car window and brighten up your child's special day. You can chat from a safe distance and even sing Happy Birthday together. 🙂
If you have a child with a birthday – you can call around or put it out on facebook that they could use some cheering up!
2 . Order Birthday Gifts Online
Being quarantined doesn't mean no gifts! Invite friends and family to send gifts that will both delight and deliver some quarantine boredom relief – and Lysol them or wipe them down before wrapping in party paper.
Some boredom busting things to help get your kids through the quarantine are:
- Art Supplies
- Lego Sets
- Pocket Microscope
- Kinetic Sand
- New Games
- Science Experiment
- Nintendo Switch or other Video Games
- Razor Scooter
TIP: Party City now offers front door delivery on orders of $35 or more! If you're looking for balloons or items to decorate gifts with, be sure to check out these Party City coupons and sales!
3 . Have a Netflix Party
This is a neat feature Netflix offers – you can start watching a movie WITH friends and chat along with them while you watch. You'll just go to Netflix Party to get started. Once you pick a movie you'll receive a link you can send out to others to invite them to join you.
**Note: Only available on Chrome browsers, laptops or desktops.
4 . Set Up A Virtual Birthday Party To Hang Out
You can use video conferencing tools like Zoom, Jitsi and Google Hangouts to invite friends to do a face-to-face virtual party. This is great if people sent gifts – because they can be present while you open them!
Readers are writing in these fun Virtual party ideas they're doing on Zoom:
- Name that tune game
- Dance Contest
- Invite people to wear a fun “party” hat
- Decorate and dress festively
- Play Charades
- Do a Talent Show
- Use Zoom's Whiteboard function to play pictionary together
GO HERE to see how to use zoom for video hangouts!
5 . Pick Up Drive-Thru Treats
While restaurants are closed – most of their drive thrus are open! Swing by the Starbucks for a favorite drink, or pick up their favorite meal via takeout for a special family dinner. It's also something to do to get out of the house on their special day.
See our list of all the restaurant freebies and deals going on right now for drive-thru and pickup orders!
6 . Play Family Games Together
This is something lots of us are doing during quarantine times – but make sure to let the birthday girl or boy pick their favorite game and everyone join in.
One of our recent favorites is Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza – it's a crazy and silly slapping game that is super fast to learn and quick to play!
Make it feel like a real party event by popping popcorn, setting out snacks, playing music and creating an atmosphere of fun.
7 . Have Some Outdoorsy Fun
If you have somewhere pretty near you – like a waterfall you can visit, a river walk or some pretty woods – take the family on a little trip. Make a picnic lunch if the weather's nice!
It's also a great time to go for a little camping trip, spend a day fishing, and doing all the things that are far away from other people.
Of course – you don't have to head out into the woods to do a family campout…. Backyard camp-outs are super fun too! Make a campfire using thesehomemade fire starters, cook hotdogs and s'mores, and even project a movie onto a sheet or a wall. Don't have a tent? No worries – you can snag a tent for the kids for under $18 right now. 🙂
8 . Bake A Cake Together
If your child likes baking or crafty things, let them have a hand in their own birthday cake. Instead of ordering a cake, take the time to bake one and decorate it together. Whether it's a little bit of a hot mess or an impressive masterpiece – it'll be a fun birthday-ish way to spend some of the day!
Here are a few fun cake ideas:
9 . Rent a Movie Online
Lots of kids plan on going to a movie on their birthday – but the quarantine has really changed that. Instead – let them pick a movie to rent and have a family movie night. If your kids are littler – watching a movie in a blanket fort is an extra fun touch.
*See some of our tips for having an extra fun family movie night!
- Amazon Prime Video | FREE Trials for Channels
- 25 Best Amazon Prime Movies for Kids
- FREE Streaming Services Roundup
10 . Glamour Shots Photo Shoot
Girls might get a kick out of doing a photo shoot and posting it on social media – think glamour shots! Let them get dressed up and be their photographer – make them feel pretty and special on their special day (plus it gives family and friends the opportunity to say lots of sweet things too) 😉
You could even head out of the house to take photos at a few different locations – as long as they're relatively unpopulated.
11 . Video Game Party
If your kiddo loves video games – they can have lots of fun playing with their friends online and talking with them through their headset. Fortnite, Minecraft and many other games are set up perfectly for this type of fun interaction! If you have a teen at home – you might also want to check out these teenager birthday party ideas. (Although the treat bags we mae for friends will be just for family members in this case!)
Submit YOUR Quarantine Birthday Party Ideas!
What kinds of things make your kids feel special on their birthday? Do you make their favorite dinner or snacks? (Walking tacos is a super fun one if you plan to hang out and watch a movie or be outdoors!)
Do you have any quarantine birthday party ideas? I'd love to add to this list – please share your celebration idea in the comments below!
For my youngest in June, we ordered take out and bought laser tag sets, set up and inflatable pool and unicorn that squirts water, and had water guns. My middle child, whose birthday is today, had a sip and paint (just family) with pre made paint sets, I made a charcuterie board and we got sparkling cider since she is a minor. Now I need an idea for my oldest turning 15 in January.
Do nothing
Hi Amber,
My son is turning 15 too. I have no real ideas on what to do. Have you found any ideas?
Hello. My nephew has an upcoming birthday, July 1st. I think you have great ideas so I’m thinking of blending the Minecraft and Netflix Watch Party for him. I didn’t know Netflix had that option so this is something I’ll look into for him, thank you for sharing these ideas. Stay Safe and Be Well everyone. God Bless.
I love those ideas Holly! I hope he has an amazing birthday – such a fun idea! 🙂
My son is turning 9 on Saturday. We decided to have a picnic with Popeyes and a Baskin Robbins’ ice cream cake. We are then going to have a nerf war with the 4 of us.
I love that Kandi – so fun! 🙂
My kids’ party business is now offering balloon yard art decorations for Birthdays and special occasions. It’s becoming a thing 🙂
Thank you for giving me the idea to play our favorite game indoors as a way to celebrate my daughter’s party. We’re all on home quarantine, and we don’t want to risk our health just to celebrate it outside. Since she really loves to play detective, we might come up with a murder mystery party game for our kids.
We did a “pool party” for my daughters birthday at the end of March with her favorite takeout place for dinner. We had family FaceTime with the singing of Happy Birthday. My son turns 10 at the end of April and I turn 40 also the same day. Month of birthdays in our house. Trying to plan something extra special for his tenth. Great ideas!
My daughter turned 15 on March 24. A friend of mine came up with this great idea. I contacted 6 of her friends or their parents and asked them to “shop” around their house and wrap up something that they thought she would like. Then I bought some Hostess cupcakes and put together some goody bags (in full mask and gloves, of course) and had them leave their gifts on the front porch and switched them off the goody bags. Upon loading the gifts into the car with gloves, I put them straight into a trash bag and sealed it. I got everything home and left it in the garage for 3 days. On her birthday, I sprayed the gifts with Lysol and we surprised her with the gifts all set out on the table. We got on Zoom with all of her friends to sing “Happy Birthday” and eat their cupcakes (I baked her a real cake). Then she put on a pair of gloves and opened all of her gifts and after the party, I wiped them all down. Obviously, it wasn’t an ideal situation and it was quite a production but I had to do something to soften the blow that she wouldn’t be getting her learner’s permit until whenever the DPS opens back up and it was fun seeing the kids get creative with it. I wish I had video of the whole process because it was definitely (hopefully) a once in a lifetime experience!
Wow! That’s a great idea! Thanks for sharing!
I am turning 57 this year and I am throwing myself a virtual birthday party. I plan on using zoom having music playing a game of name that tune. Everyone is encouraged to wear a cute or fancy hat. Even having a dance off and a game of Pictionary. Going to decorate the house with balloons and streamers!
Oh my goodness Carla – I absolutely love that!! SO FUN – thank you for sharing and happy happy birthday!
My grand son’s birthday is Saturday. We’re having a birthday parade as suggested, but may use a karaoke machine to play games like Simon Says. We’re still making plans.
I love the Simon says game idea from the car!!
My own birthday falls under quarantine this year. I am just going to play video games and watch YouTube videos with my stuffed animals. (Yes, they’re my party guests this year lol) Also I was able to buy myself several gifts online before my town went into lockdown. I will treat myself to more when this lockdown gets lifted (hopefully doing the summer)
I did a scavenger hunt around the house for my little one’s 7th birthday. He loved finding clues leading up to his presents. He chose to eat McDonald’s, so we picked it up in the drive thru and had cake and ice cream at end. He had been looking forward to having his party at the indoor trampoline park, but he loved his “scavenger hunt” party and told me it was the best!
I love that idea Jessica – so fun! Thank you for sharing! 🙂
Can you share some of your clues?
My daughter turned 12 on Thursday. Her friends met up in cars and parked in front of our house, honking like crazy, ending with a loud rendition of singing Happy Birthday. We also put a poster in our yard that said “Honk, it’s Myah’s bday” We live on a busy road so we heard honks all day long. It made her smile every time, even the semis that even scared us. lol
My daughter’s 7th birthday is Saturday, so I put a message on facebook and asked people to send her birthday cards. She has gotten some really neat cards, some sticker sheets and lots of good wishes.
Our daughter’s 10th birthday was Monday, the 23rd. This is usually when the kids get to have a big birthday bash (for turning double digits) and invite a bunch of kids. She’s been planning it for about a year! She was very understanding of how everything turned out not in her favor. We did the best we could as a family to put up decorations, play birthday party games, cake and ice cream and presents. She hasn’t voiced any disappointments yet. Our oldest daughter turns 13 this coming Monday on the 30th. She’s asked for a “Glow party”. I’m going to try to find maybe a black light and get as much glow stick things as possible. I’ve got neon ballooons too. We always do the pick the food of the day for the bday kid. I’m also going to try to make her favorite dessert since she doesn’t like cake, a turtle cheesecake.
Where did you get the glow party stuff? My options are limited to Walmart. This is a good idea!
If you have a Dollar Tree store by you they always have some kind of glow sticks and the best part everything in the store is $1. I think Walmart carries some also. You also might be able to order from the Dollar Tree online and them ship it to you.
Great ideas Sarah – I love it! Thanks for sharing! 🙂
http://www.orientaltrading.com has tons of glow items, as well as party and theme supplies!
My sons 4th birthday was on Tuesday. We woke up and I made him funfetti pancakes with sprinkles and whipped cream. Then we played music and had a dance party. We played some activities and made a pizza for dinner and I baked him a funfetti cake and we FaceTimed his cousins and grandparents and we all sang happy birthday together. I also had friends and family send him videos all day long wishing him a happy birthday!! He had a blast and said it was the best birthday ever!