Food & Entertaining

Plan The Perfect Family Party: 8 Step Guide

If you have a large, extended family then, the chances are that you don’t get to see them all too often. Having a family members who live in different regions of the country means that you have to make a real effort to keep in touch with them. Organizing a family party is a fantastic way to bring people together and bond with your extended family. You don’t have to have a reason to plan a family get-together. You might just want to see everybody’s face for a change.

Plan The Perfect Family Party: 8 Step Guide

If you are going to plan a family party then, you should make sure that you give everybody a lot of notice. Having a family party can be tricky when everyone has other commitments. You want as many people as possible to show up to the party, and so you should tell them a few months in advance. Here is your unique eight-step guide to planning a family party.

Step 1: Hire a venue or room

The room or venue that you hire will depend on how many family members you are inviting to the party. Of course, you may want to hire a venue that is a little larger than you need, so that there is room for dancing and socializing. Make sure that you know how many people are attending before you hire out a venue. The last thing you want to do is waste your money on a venue that is too big, when only half the guests are going to attend. Tell your family that you plan to hire a venue and get a rough guide of how many of your family members will attend the party.

Step 2: Sort out the catering ahead of  time

Catering is one of the biggest issues when it comes to planning a party of any sort. The best thing that you can do is keep things simple. There will likely be a lot of children attending your party, and so you need to choose a cuisine that will suit even the fussiest of eaters. Ordering a bulk pizza delivery is always a great idea as pizza will suit all manner of tastes. Make sure that you order both vegetarian and meat options so that there is something for everyone.

Step 3: Make sure there is something for everybody

When a large family comes together, there is a mix of young and old people. That presents an issue for you as a party planner. You need to make sure that both the children and their grandparents have things to do throughout the event. Make sure that you plan party games for the children to play at the party. You could also make a ‘family quiz’ that every generation can enjoy.

Step 4: Decorating your venue

Decorating your venue is one of your minor priorities. A party isn’t as much about the decorations as it is about the atmosphere. It is important that you don’t waste too much money on decorating the venue. A few banners and balloons will suffice. You will find that few people notice the room decorations, and so it doesn’t matter how much effort you put into decorating the room. Instead, make sure that you save your money for more important aspects of the event, such as entertainment and food. You will have to throw away the decorations after the party ends, and so there is no point breaking the bank to pay for them.

Step 5: Hiring entertainers

When hiring entertainers for a family party, you need to consider everybody’s needs. Children will find a clown entertaining, but the rest of the group will find a clown dull. You need to choose an entertainment style that suits the family and their sense of humor. If the family members are quite jovial in nature then, you might want to hire a comedian. If you are not sure what type of entertainer to hire then, you should think about hiring a magician. Children love magic and, if you hire a quality performer, he or she, will be able to enchant the rest of the crowd as well.

Step 6: Arranging the seating

When a large family comes together for a party, you will notice that family units tend to sit together. That means that individuals don’t get a chance to socialize with everybody at the party. People tend to sit with their immediate family because they find the situation intimidating. People crave the reassurance that their immediate family brings them. Mix things up a little bit by creating a seating plan. You should try and get individuals to integrate into the party by separating them from their family members. In doing so, you ensure that everybody in the party speaks to everybody else.

Step 7: Make sure that there is parking

If people are travelling to the party from different regions, they will need parking. It is your job to ensure that there is enough parking for all the family. Maybe the guests are staying overnight or for just a few hours. Either way, they will need somewhere to park their car, where it is safe and cheap. Talk to the venue about appropriate parking in the area. You might find that you would be better off choosing a different venue with more available parking for your family members. Many people fail to consider parking when they are planning a party.

Step 8: Hidden extras and treats

You need something to make your party special. The best way that you can make the event memorable is by giving the guests something that they didn’t expect. You might want to consider making gift bags for your guests with individual gifts inside. If that’s not for you, why not make individual place names for the seating plan that you have decorated by hand. There are plenty of ways to make your party memorable, but you do have to use a little imagination to do so. Before you plan a party, spend some time thinking about what would mean the most to your family. Remember, you know your family better than anyone else in the world, so use that knowledge to you advantage.