Plan an Epic Celebration: 19 Party Themes for Teens

Whether you’re planning your own birthday party or looking for ideas to celebrate your tween or teen’s latest trip around the sun, the options are endless. From pool parties and sporting events to sleepovers and dance-offs, this list of party themes for teens offers something for everyone. 

Party planning isn’t just about the decor. You also want to consider party food, activities, and invitations to let people know about the big day. Learn how to create a theme for your celebration and what kinds of games and food to fit into your celebration.

Top 19 Party Themes for Teens

Check out these fun ideas for birthday party themes for teens, including party games, decor, and activities. To help you with planning, we’ve also paired each teenage birthday party theme with one of our favorite online invitations to excite guests about the big event.

1. Sleepover

Design: Bonjour Berry

Invitation idea: Sleepy Mask Invitation

What’s one of the best parts about being a teenager? Having slumber parties, of course! Invite friends over and have a campout, roast marshmallows for s’mores, and celebrate a special birthday. You can watch movies late into the night or play karaoke and have pillow fights at your birthday sleepover party. 

For something a tad more relaxing, plan a slumber spa party. Your guests can have fun with DIY manicures and pedicures and you can get matching T-shirts, slippers, or pajamas to commemorate the event. Another idea: Set up a photo booth and add a few props like sleep masks and dream clouds. Don’t forget to select a slumber party invitation to match your theme. 

2. Luau

Design: Manu Torres

Invitation idea: Wild Paradise Invitation

Host a Hawaiian get-together with a tropical luau party. You can go all out and work with a party planning company to deliver party decor and supplies or you can go the do-it-yourself route with DIY party decorations. Decorate the space with palm trees and surfboards and ask guests to wear their best Hawaiian shirts or grass skirts. 

Serve up appetizers in hollowed-out pineapples, prep some homemade ahi tuna, and decorate the tables with loose flower petals. You can even give fresh floral leis (or fun faux versions) as party favors to guests. Add fun activities like the limbo or have guests learn how to play a ukulele.

3. Movie Night

Design: Signature Greenvelope

Invitation idea: Starlight Cinema Invitation

Get the gang together for movie night in the living room or the local movie theater to celebrate another trip around the sun. Plan to binge-watch the birthday boy’s or birthday girl’s favorite flicks at home or head out for a night at the cinema. You can also have an outdoor movie night in your backyard. Splurge for a full outdoor projector set or simply hang a sheet on the fence or a clothesline to create a movie screen. Set out cozy chairs like bean bags for the teens to lounge on and don’t forget the popcorn, pizza, and classic candies. 

4. Mystery Night

Design: Jen Montgomery

Invitation idea: Murder Mystery Invitation

Keep your party guests guessing with a whodunit mystery party. You can download everything you need to host a murder mystery party for teens from sites like My Mystery Party. You can even work with a local company that can bring actors to your home to play out a mystery dinner. Stock up on prizes — like candy, tech accessories, books, or video games — to give the winner.

5. Glow-in-the-Dark Party

Design: Claudia Owen

Invitation idea: Glow Sticks Invitation

Want to throw a party the teens will never forget? Host a blacklight, neon, or glow-in-the-dark party for the birthday boy or girl. Give each guest a few glow sticks and have a dance party. You can also use glow-in-the-dark paints to create arts and crafts (like T-shirts or scarves) that attendees can take home as party favors.

6. Pool Party or Beach Party

Design: Laura Bolter Design

Invitation idea: Dive In Invitation

Have a lot of fun in the sun with a teen pool or beach party. Grab some inflatable pool floaties — flamingos and unicorns are always popular options — and soak up the sun in style. Make sure to have some games like volleyball, ladder toss, and cornhole to keep guests entertained.

7. Scavenger Hunt or Escape Room

Design: Jessie Steury

Invitation idea: Escape Room Invitation

Host a friendly competition with a birthday scavenger hunt. Have guests hunt for local items like a popular coffee shop or silly toys in the park. Or you can host the scavenger hunt in your home. (Consider these scavenger hunt ideas and riddles you can use for your teen birthday party.)

You can also host an escape room party. Most escape rooms have birthday deals and they can even hide the birthday honoree at the end of the escape room. That way, the friends have to work through the puzzles to save the birthday honoree! 

8. Sports Party

Design: Claudia Owen

Invitation idea: Hoop It Up Invitation

Does your teen love sports? Get everyone in on the action with a sports-themed party. You can decorate your home with the guest of honor’s favorite sport or sports team. For a truly interactive experience, organize a game for all the guests to participate in. These can include tag football, baseball, or a volleyball match. Of course, you’ll want to serve classic treats like hot dogs and pizza.

9. Dessert Night

Design: Becky Nimoy Stationery

Invitation idea: Banana Split Invitation

Serve up delicious party food like ice cream and cupcakes at a dessert night or ice cream party for a special birthday honoree. You can create a dessert table with all kinds of treats from chocolate croissants to cupcakes and pie, or create a DIY dessert bar with various ice creams and toppings. Swap a traditional birthday cake for an ice cream cake to complete the theme.

10. Board Game Party

Design: Becky Nimoy Stationery

Invitation idea: Classic Game Night Invitation

Get ready to LOL with a board game birthday bash. Choose fun games like Pictionary, Apples to Apples, or Exploding Kittens. You can choose one or two games for a small get-together or select dozens of different games so everyone can play, even if you’re inviting the entire class. Give out prizes to winners or make the “losers” do something silly like sing their favorite childhood song while hopping on one foot.

11. Dance Party

Design: frau brandt

Invitation idea: Dance Party Invitation

Break out the disco ball and get your groove on with a dance party for a teen’s birthday celebration! Queue up a playlist of the most popular songs or select a specific genre if you’re having a special theme. You can ask guests to dress up for a particular era — think 70s disco attire or 1990s pop outfits — and pair the music to your chosen time period. Check out these guides to 80s theme parties and 90s party ideas for more inspiration. 

12. Carnival Night

Design: Paper Raven Co.

Invitation idea: Carnival Party Invitation

Recreate all the fun of an amusement park with a carnival-themed party. This is ideal for teens as the summer approaches but it could also work for a fall celebration. Play traditional carnival games, eat popcorn and hot dogs, and spend the evening outside together until it gets late.

13. Karaoke Party

Design: Claudia Owen

Invitation idea: Karaoke Night Invitation

Invite your teen and their friends to sing their hearts out at a karaoke party. Put together your own DIY setup at home with a TV screen and a karaoke machine, or book a booth at your local family-friendly karaoke bar. We love this party theme for teens who are big music fans!

14. Bowling Party

Design: Stacey Meacham Design, LLC

Invitation idea: Bowling Party Invitation

If your teen is all about hitting the bowling alley and showing off their moves (or laughing at their misfortune), then why not host a bowling party? Keep things casual and fun with dinner at the bowling alley or a restaurant nearby, or head back home and order pizza. Let guests know what to expect with a bowling party invitation.

15. Video Game Night

Design: Kid Collective

Invitation idea: Retro Arcade Invitation

For some teenage girls and teen boys, there’s nothing better than video games. If that’s your teen, host a fun video gaming party. Don’t have enough equipment at home? Find out if there’s a gaming party bus or game cafe you can use, and choose a fun matching game night invitation.

16. Paintball Party

Design: Shiny Penny Studio

Invitation idea: Painted Rainbow Invitation

Splat! Paintball is one of those games that never gets old for teens. Invite guests to have a blast with bright colors, run around, and laugh together. This is a fun way to celebrate a teen or tween who likes an adrenaline rush.

17. Laser Tag Party

Design: Jen Montgomery

Invitation idea: Laser Tag Invitation

If paintball isn’t your teen’s thing, maybe laser tag is it! Hide out in a dark space, dart around, and try to score points over the opposing team. See who’s crowned victorious, then head out for a fun meal afterwards.

18. Pizza Party

Design: TM Stationery

Invitation idea: Pizza Party Invitation

You really can’t go wrong with a pizza party at any age. This fun party theme for teens gives them a chance to get creative with toppings and learn some useful cooking skills at the same time. Invite everyone over for pizza, games, and a lively afternoon of celebrations.

19. Afternoon Tea Party

Design: Kid Collective

Invitation idea: High Tea Invitation

You don’t have to have an action-packed celebration to have a good time — there are also plenty of chilled party themes for teens, including an afternoon tea party. Whether you host an Alice in Wonderland-themed bash or a vintage-style tea party, this is a lovely way to celebrate a sweet 16 or another special day.

Have a Blast with These Teen Birthday Party Ideas

With these birthday theme ideas, you’re sure to pull off an incredible celebration for your favorite tween or teen. Once you decide what type of party you’re having, it’s time to think about decorating and sending out invites.

At Greenvelope, we have hundreds of birthday party invitations for every type of event — and they’re all customizable! Have fun with the layout, choose your colors, adjust the fonts, and add a personalized stamp. Check out our teen birthday party invitations to match the invite to your party theme and get ready to have an unforgettable time!