Hosting a sleepover is always a fun idea for a birthday party. Whether it’s a campout in the back yard or a pajama party in the living room, you can host a memorable night with our Sleepover Party Ideas!
Invitations
Decorations
Food
Party Favors
Games & Activities
Planning & Invitations
A Sleepover Party is most often hosted at the birthday child’s own home. However, if you would like to hold the party elsewhere, you may want to consider renting a hotel room for the night, or taking the children on a camping trip. For additional ideas, see our When & Where to Have the Party article.
What do I need for the Party?
Basic supplies for a sleepover birthday party include paper tableware, such as plates, napkins, cups, and cutlery, as well as a tablecloth, streamers, and balloons.
You can stick with the basics, or add other items to fit your theme. For example, for a Sleepover Party, you may also want to consider renting a movie. Here are our picks for perfect movies to watch at a sleepover:
- High School Musical (Rated G)
- Enchanted (Rated PG)
- The Love Bug (Rated G)
- The Princess Diaries (Rated G)
- Parent Trap (Rated G)
- Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants (Rated PG)
- Over the Hedge (Rated PG)
Sleepover Party Tips
- Make sure to set a few ground rules up before the party and discuss them with your child.
- In case there is an emergency, collect contact information from all of the guests.
- Check with parents to make sure you are aware of guests' allergies or medications.
- Provide plenty of downtime for the girls to talk and hang out.
For more ideas, check out our sleepover party supplies.
And for additional party planning tips, our Party Planning 101 Guide includes cake ideas, party etiquette tips, a printable guest list, and more.
Sleepover Party Invitations
If you have the time to make your own invitations, here are a few sleepover party ideas to consider:
- Print your party details in large block letters on clean, white pillowcases. Fold them and send them in manila envelopes.
- Cut out photos of traditional slumber party food, such as popcorn, pizza, and candy, and paste them in a circle on a piece of cardstock. Write your party details inside the circle of pictures.
- Punch a hole in the corner of a card-style invitation and attach it to a new toothbrush and a small tube of toothpaste. Your guests can bring these items with them to the party! Mail your invites in padded envelopes.
- Send your invitation as a message in a bottle! Write your party details on a sheet of construction paper. Clean out old pop bottles, roll the paper into a tube, and slip it inside. Hand deliver these to your guests. To save time, consider our Message in a Bottle invitations.
- Include creative wording for your party details, such as:
Are you ready for some giggles and gossip?
Maybe some pizza, and some chips and dip?
Then come to [birthday child’s name]’s party and bring your pj’s,
’Cause it’s going to be fun in so many ways!
If you would rather not make your own invitations, but would still like a personalized touch, consider our Personalized Sleepover Invitations, which include all the party details for you!
Whichever invitation option you choose, remember to include what the children need to bring (change of clothes, overnight bag, sleeping bag, pillow), and what time the children will need to be picked up in the morning.
Decorating & Food Ideas
Sleepover Party Decorations
Most slumber parties require minimal decorations. However, if you would like to add a little extra flare, consider these ideas:
- Hang or float bunches of balloons around the party area. For a special touch, add shaped Mylar balloons as well.
- Twist together streamers and drape them along the walls of the party area. Hang long strips of streamers in a row across each entryway into the main party area, creating curtains for your guests to pass through as they come and go.
- Hang a banner near the entrance to the party. Check out our personalized banner and let us do the work for you.
- Decorate the ceiling with glow-in-the-dark stars. Your guests will love seeing the shapes appear when the lights go out.
- Scatter plenty of extra pillows, sleeping bags and blankets around the sleeping area. Your guests can use them to lounge on before it’s time to sleep.
- Have a selection of music sitting next to a CD player that your guests can dance and lip synch to.
- For an extra-special touch, hang white twinkle lights around the perimeter of the ceiling.
- Hang a pinata in the party area that can be used as a decoration before the activity begins. Remember, you can transform any pinata into a pull-string with these easy instructions.
Sleepover Party Food Ideas
Sleepover parties usually include traditional party food – pizza, chips and dip, veggies and dip, soda, and candy. However, if you would like to serve some more creative treats, consider these ideas:
- Funny Face Bagels - Cut bagels in half and toast them, if desired. Slice smoked salmon into strips or chop chives to use for hair; cut small black olives in half for eyes; cut slivers of red peppers or halve small cherry tomatoes to use as mouths; cut baby carrots into quarters for noses; finely chop peanuts to use as freckles; and use any other fruit or vegetable you wish. Slather cream cheese on the bagels for a base that will hold all of the decorations. Then, let your partygoers make funny faces on their bagels using the pre-prepared fruits and veggies.
- Relaxing Refreshments - Serve soda, strawberry milk, and juice with silly straws.
- Cute Cut-Outs - Use cookie cutters in the shape of daisies, stars, and butterflies to cut out peanut butter sandwiches, cheese, and deli meats.
- Popcorn Pizazz - Serve popcorn in traditional popcorn bags and let your guests add toppings of cinnamon, powdered cheese, salt & pepper, or chocolate sprinkles.
You will most likely be serving breakfast to your guests as well. Here are a few ideas for early-morning treats:
- Smiley Face Pancakes - Make a batch of pancakes, and set them out along with canned whipped cream, chocolate chips, maraschino cherry halves, chocolate syrup, finely chopped nuts, blueberries, or any other sweet treat that can be used to make eyes, a nose, a mouth, hair, etc., on each pancake. Let your guests decorate their pancakes the way they like.
- Waffle Bar - Set up a waffle bar with a selection of syrups and toppings such as cherries, whipped cream, strawberries, chocolate chips, and nuts. Let each child make his or her ultimate waffle.
- Fruit Pops - Slide sections of fruit, such as pineapple, banana, strawberries, and grapes onto a wooden skewer and serve.
Sleepover Party Favors
Put a smile on your guests’ faces by sending them home with party favors that fit your theme. You could give one large favor, such as a CD or DVD, or combine smaller favors such as a pillowcase, toothbrush, candies, stickers, and costume jewelry in a nice favor bag.
To save time, you may want to consider our complete Favor Sets, which includes matching favor bags. Or, consider our popular personalized favors. Choose from bag tags, zipper pulls, magnets, buttons, and more, all personalized with your guests’ names or a personal message from you!
Sleepover Games & Activities
Traditional sleepover activities such as nail painting, watching movies, eating popcorn and taking goofy photos are always popular, as well as games like charades, sleeping bag sack races, dress up relay races, dance freeze tag and flash light tag. Games like Twister, Scene It and Scattergories also are great choices for a sleepover birthday party.
It's also a good idea to plan some transition activities such as decorating autograph pillowcases, photo frames or slippers to keep the kids busy as guests arrive and depart.
We also have two free printable activities to keep the girls entertained. Print out a copy for each girl, and then fold in half once, and fold in half again to create a small card-style booklet.
Printable "All About Me" scrapbook.
Printable "Sleepover Memories" scrapbook. For additional sleepover party ideas, see the Games & Activities section below.
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