Birthday Picnic Ideas
So it’s your birthday (or someone’s close to you) and you want to plan a picnic. But you aren’t quite sure where to begin. Well, look no further because here we have some of the best birthday picnic ideas around.
The first thing to consider is how many people will be attending. If it’s just going to be you and one person then consider having a Romantic Picnic Ideas. Otherwise, let’s assume you are having a birthday picnic with several people attending. Granted, some of the ideas found here aren’t really dependant on a specific number of people attending.
For more formal picnic events I usually recommend having a picnic in the park and renting one their picnic pavilions. These things are usually dirt cheap to rent, if you have to pay anything at all. You will need to book it in advance though. In any case, you shouldn’t discount the use of decorations, even though you are outdoors.
Kids Birthday Picnic Ideas
One of my all-time favorite picnic ideas for kids is the treasure/scavenger hunt. Bring a few items with you that you can hide and make up a list of things the kids must find. Alternately, you can make up a list of things that they should be able to find anyway (without having to bring anything along); a round stone, a y-shaped twig, a white flower, etc. One thing I like to do is take along a $10 roll of quarter and hide them in various places. The kids will go crazy for it!!
You could also do a balloon pop relay game. Give a balloon to each kid and divide them into two teams. Put two chairs at one end of a field and have the two teams stand on the other end. The players have to hold the balloon and run with it to a chair (one at a time). When they get to the chair, they have to sit on the balloon and try to pop it. When they pop the balloon, they run back to their team and the next person goes. The first team to pop all of their balloons wins.
Want more Kids Picnic Games
Adult Birthday Picnic Ideas
Ok, so the kids (if any) are taken care of but now you need something for the adults to do. Activities for adults are harder to give advice for because adults tend to be more reserved. Having said that, here are a couple of ideas which are usually pretty popular.
I call this one “Dizzy Batters”.
All you need is a two baseball bats and two chairs. Divide the guests into two teams and have them start roughly side by side. Give each team a baseball bat and place a chair about 15 yards in front of them. When the game starts, one player from each team will place the business end of the bat on the ground with the other end sticking straight up. They must then bend over until their forehead touches the bat and quickly run around the bat 10 times (this will make them dizzy). They must then run to the chair and sit down. Once they do, the next player on their team goes. The first team to have all players make it to the chair wins. This game is an absolutely hilarious to play. (Especially if your guests have had a few drinks first.)
A good idea for active adults is Frisbee golf. Of course, now-a-days they have actual Frisbee golf courses but you don’t really need anything more than a couple of Frisbees and something to throw at to play. All you do is mark off each hole as you play (pick something like a tree or a fire hydrant as the “hole”) and see who can hit in it the fewest number of tosses.
In the end, you know you guests better than I do so consider whether they are a fun loving playful group, a more reserved (older) group or something of a mix. I actually tend to shy away from planned picnic games for adults, unless it’s a Company Picnic or something similar.
I think a better idea in most cases is a themed picnic birthday party. An ‘over the hill’ party for someone who is middle aged is a fun idea. You can take it a step further and make fake tombstones: “Here lies [NAME]’s youth. Dead and buried but not forgotten.” Other possible themes include, the 70’s, the 80’s, black and white, Hawaiian luau, etc.
If you are looking for food ideas, check out our Picnic Recipes section.