Some of our fondest childhood memories include those somewhat sleepless slumber parties with a group of our best friends, telling stories, playing games, eating snacks and laughing all night long.
If it's your turn to organise a slumber party for your child, you might be looking for some inspiration on how you can make it a fun and memorable night for everybody? Whether it's for a birthday, end of school, or just a bit of fun, we've gathered our favourite sleepover ideas for children, tweens and teenagers so you can throw the best sleepover in town.
Get creative with these sleepover ideas!
Organising and Preparing for an Exciting Slumber Party
Being organised and prepared is key to a great sleepover for your child, and it might just save your sanity as a parent!
To make the most of the evening, in the run-up to the sleepover party, you should;
- Get an estimate of how many kids will be attending.
- Decide where the party will be; bedroom or living room etc.
- Let other parents know if their child needs to bring a pillow and blanket or a sleeping bag for sleepy time (if it ever comes).
- Decide what food you will be offering and let parents know if their child should have a meal before arriving.
- Organise a plan to keep yourself busy or out of the sleepover area on the night of the party; try not to interrupt if you can help it!
- Plan some fun party games or activities to make the evening as fun as possible for everybody:
Fun Sleepover Activities for Children
Saturday Night at the Movies
Time to bring the towns coolest and snuggliest movie theatre to your home. Screen the party's chosen movie on your television or even better, use a projector if you can get hold of one. Deck out your home cinema area in all things comfy, such as beans bags, fluffy blankets and lots of pillows, and serve up a selection of sweet and salted popcorn.
Cute in Matching Pyjamas
Whether it's a friendship bracelet, pencil case or hairstyle, there's nothing best friends love more than a matching item. So, why don't you get your child and all of their friends cute matching pyjamas that they can wear at the sleepover that they will then have as a forever memory of the party?
You can send the pyjamas out with the invites so they can arrive already sporting their new favourite set, or you can have them ready and waiting for the kids to arrive.
Satisfying Sweet Carts
Create a DIY sweet bar that the kids can enjoy throughout the night and snack on when they're enjoying their party activities. If you prefer, you can hire a sweet cart from an external company. The sweet cart will come ready stocked, and you can choose from many themes, such as princess, marvel, retro etc. You can even hire mini ice cream carts!
We’re Going on a… Scavenger Hunt
Planning a scavenger hunt is one way to keep little ones excited and occupied! Leave clues all around the house with a goody bag or little prize to be found by every child at the slumber party.
Make it a Messy Manicure
Manicure, but make it fun! Have a little mani station in your house (complete with removable table covers to protect your furniture) and have the kids do their own or each other’s manicures. Have a selection of nail polishes and nail stickers or decals for them to use. If you want to make it extra fun, play spin the bottle… of nail polish, and let fate decide their new nail colour.
Indoor Camping
All children love camping, especially comfy, warm and cosy indoor camping. Set up sleeping tents for when the kids are ready to snooze, create a fake fire pit and have s'mores and BBQ food for them to snack on.
Thrilling Slumber Party Activities for Tweens
Tweenager Tea Party
Create a tea party fit for queens for your tweenagers sleepover. Encourage fancy dress and serve teas and sweet treats on elegant crockery, and watch the little tweens turn into young ladies in front of your eyes.
Create Bonds with Friendship Bracelets
What's the most certain way to secure a friendship in your tween years? Wearing matching friendship bracelets of course. Create a craft corner and let the party get creative by making their own friendship bracelets for themselves or each other.
Pizza Making
Pizza making is one of our favourite activities at MFW, being fed and having fun, what more do you need?! Gather a range of toppings and sauces and let the slumber party personalise a delicious pizza to enjoy afterwards.
Sing the Night Away on Karaoke
Dust down your karaoke machine, print off some lyrics sheets and let the kids sing and dance the night away. From top 40 hits, cheesy pop or Disney songs, there are endless songs that will go down a treat; you can even throw in some glow sticks and a disco ball to enhance the party!
Warning: earplugs for the parents are recommended!
Pretty Personalised Pillowcases
Painting pretty personalised pillowcases kill two birds with one stone, it's a fun activity and they double up as unique party favors! Buy some white pillowcases and an array of coloured fabric markers and let their imagination run wild.
Slumber Party Fun for Teenagers
Relax With a Spa Night
We all love pampering, so relax the teenagers with an at-home spa night, complete with foot baths, face masks, nail painting and more!
Sipping Drinks for a Mocktail Bar
The chances are this teenage sleepover are still far too young for a Martini or an Espresso Martini, but mocktails are not off bounds. Set up a bar using a vintage-style bar cart and include a selection of alcohol-free spirits, liqueurs and mixers so they can make virgin cocktails to sip while watching chick flicks.
Get the Props Ready for a Photobooth
Props at the ready, it’s photoshoot time!
Put together a box of fun props, whacky hats or fancy dress items, and use a plain white sheet or a background to create a mini set for the teenagers to take selfies, or if you can, set up a tripod with a timer camera on and let the modelling commence.
We’re Going Glamping
Set up a luxury glamping experience in your back garden, complete with a large yurt-style tent for them all to share. Kit the yurt out comfy blowup kids mattresses, lots of fluffy blankets, pillows and fairy lights and create a cosy space for them to gossip or play games. Being away from the house might feel like a mini staycation for the teenagers and make the experience all the more special for them.
There are endless ways to have a fun and unforgettable sleepover whatever your age.
Just be organised, allow the kids to let loose (they will be hyper and excited to be there) and just have fun - nothing can go wrong.
Oh and don't forget, try and keep the interruptions to a minimum, mum and dad!