4th birthday party advice

eckythump

Apologies for double post as I posted in wrong bit of forum

My D.S is fast approaching his 4th birthday and would love a Birthday party for his friends(we have up til now had small family gatherings)
we are on a very tight budget and the local soft play centres are so expensive £10 + a head.
having a party at home is not an option as we are sceduled to have building work done.
the other option is to hire a local hall
the catering would be no problem as I am a chef.
Trouble is I have no idea how much an entertainer or a face painter would cost.
what are the pros and cons of organising a party ?
what sort of entertainer/games for 4 year olds
we are south wales if that helps .

flea72

expect an entertainer to charge in the region of £100+ for about an hours entertainment, add on hall hire, cost of food, party bags and the loss of your hair, and youll most likely find that the £10 a head at the playcentre is actually good value

kids at parties can be quite demanding, and you may find that even though the kids you are inviting are only 4, none of their parents will stay to supervise them. it takes a very skilled entertainer to control a room full of kids (boys especially), and you spend most of your time mopping up tears and breaking up fights. also it seems kids nowadays arent interested in simple parties, where you play a few games and have a bit of food. they expect non-stop entertainment, that is continually changing. youre lucky if you can finish one round of pass the parcel, before half of them have left the circle and are just running around the room, or crying that they didnt 'win'

having learnt from experience, id say go for the soft play, and invite as few kids as you can, to keep costs down

F

babie_gurl

i always facepaint for my sisters kids im getting quite a pro you can pick up a kit from earlylearning center with all the paints and it shows you basics you can also keep it for more bdays also if you go on to the snazoos website its shows you more ideas !! if your not artistic surly there is some friend / family member that could help out?? if not you could always try your local beauty collage i know my friend studying makeup at collage and she has to body paint for her course , might be worth a try ??
like i said my sister leaves me as games master at my niece/ nephews partys and the kids love it we have pinata you can pick this up on any party website / store hook a duck you need a paddaling pool and rubber ducks kids have to hook a duck some have prizes some have dares on the bottom!!
are you doing a theamed party ???

eckythump

flea72 wrote: »

expect an entertainer to charge in the region of £100+ for about an hours entertainment, add on hall hire, cost of food, party bags and the loss of your hair, and youll most likely find that the £10 a head at the playcentre is actually good value

kids at parties can be quite demanding, and you may find that even though the kids you are inviting are only 4, none of their parents will stay to supervise them. it takes a very skilled entertainer to control a room full of kids (boys especially), and you spend most of your time mopping up tears and breaking up fights. also it seems kids nowadays arent interested in simple parties, where you play a few games and have a bit of food. they expect non-stop entertainment, that is continually changing. youre lucky if you can finish one round of pass the parcel, before half of them have left the circle and are just running around the room, or crying that they didnt 'win'

having learnt from experience, id say go for the soft play, and invite as few kids as you can, to keep costs down

F

I have been to 40+ parties with my son in the last couple of years and I have never seen any of the parent/s leave .

eckythump

thanks
the thing is if we have it at a playcentre we really will have to restrict the numbers,£10 a head doesn't get party bags or a cake in this area so they will have to be purchased too.
as he has just started school he now has quite a few new friends so choosing might be difficult.

swangirl2010

Hi don't know whether you're near Swansea but we just threw my sons birthday party. The hall cost £18 for 2+ hours and we had an entertainer called Sparkys Parties, he cost £90 for 2 hours. My son loves superheros and the guy dresses as his own superhero called Partyman, this went down well with all..even the girls! Party went very well as I didn't have to entertain 30+ 2-8 yr olds so I was just left to worry about if I had enough food and party bags!!!! Hope this helps, if you need number or web address let me know

zippybungle

How about hiring a bouncy castle to use inside the hall? ( My boys are 4 & 7 and have both had bouncy castle parties for the last few years). I suppose prices vary, but the ones I have hired have been between £50 - £100. Kids have always really enjoyed it

I always do 2 rounds of pass the parcel too, make my own cake, the £1 shops (poundland especially) are usually good for party bag fillers (9 pots of bubbles - £1), If you have a Home Bargains they are great for bargain party things too (Pinata £5).

My son is having the usual bouncy castle party again this year, and we are having a 'pirates and princesses' themed party, where party guests can come in fancy dress.

Zippy x

eckythump

Thanks all.
we are going for a super hero party in a local hall with a bouncy castle and bubble machine.
I am not doing party bags but instead we are doing a lucky dip,that way I can wrap up books from red house/the book people to keep costs down.