15 Fun Things to Do on Your Birthday, Plus Invitation Inspiration

Whether you’re birthday royalty and enjoy reigning over your special day with lavish events or you’re someone who prefers more modest birthday celebrations, there are tons of fun things you can do to celebrate. From ice cream socials to group trips to adrenaline-filled adventures, there’s something for everyone when it comes to celebrating another trip around the sun.

To have the best birthday ever, make your party a celebration of your personality. Whether you want to one-up last year’s birthday party or are looking for special ways to celebrate next year’s big number, we’ve got you covered. Here are some fun things to do on your birthday from laid-back hangouts to high-intensity activities.

Fun Grown-Up Things to Do on Your Birthday

Party planning can be a lot of work. You have to coordinate with caterers, secure a venue, choose a theme, and set-up decorations. If you’re looking for fun ways to celebrate your birthday without the planning, these 15 options will inspire your easy-going celebration. Here’s a list of things you can do to celebrate your adult birthday with family members and friends.

1. Get Silly and Sing Karaoke

There’s nothing more fun than belting out your favorite tunes with your best friends. Invite a few of your closest friends and sing karaoke into the late hours of the night. You’ll find yourself in fits of laughter, reminiscing on old songs that bring back great memories. Look for karaoke bars in your town or plan to have the sing-along right in your own home. You can buy or rent a karaoke machine or download a karaoke app such as Karafun or Karaoke Cloud Player.

2. Relax and Unwind with a Spa Day

Take some time for self-care and have a spa day with your besties. Make an appointment at your favorite salon to get a new haircut, have your nails done, or get a refreshing facial. You can also invite an aesthetician to your home and have the spa day in your garden or living room. Keep things simple and offer easy refreshments like cucumber water or alcohol spritzers.

3. Face Your Fears and Go Skydiving

Start your birthday year with a bang by skydiving. The rush of adrenaline will make you feel alive and the beauty of the world from above is unparalleled. Plus, overcoming your fears can help you face your new age with confidence and an adventurous spirit.

4. Take a Leap of Faith with Bungee Jumping

If you’re not ready to jump out of a plane and want something with a little less height, try bungee jumping instead. Get a few friends together and leap into a beautiful gorge or canyon. You’ll be thrilled by the rush of free-falling, and taking that jump could inspire you to take a leap and try new things all year.

5. Play It up with a Trip to an Amusement Park

Take it back to the good old days when you and your friends would roam the theme parks in search of adventure and screaming fun. Head to Disneyland for fun times with old friends like Minnie and Donald Duck, or go to Harry Potter World to partake in a little magic.

If you want something more adrenaline-inducing, check out Six Flags or another amusement park that features huge roller coasters to scare your socks off. If your birthday happens to be in the summertime, try a water park to cool off and splash around.

6. Have Some Old-Fashioned Fun with Board Games

Scoop up all of your favorite board games and host a night filled with laughter. Choose from brain-boosting games like trivia to laugh-out-loud options like Cards Against Humanity. You can even set up some of your favorite video games from Crash Bandicoot to Mario Bros. Feel like going out, but still want to play games? Head to an arcade (or better yet, an arcade bar) where you can indulge in classics like pinball and get competitive with arcade basketball.

7. Go to the Beach

Sometimes, the best parties are about keeping things simple. Grab your beach bag, skateboard, volleyball, and sunscreen and head down to the boardwalk or your favorite strip of sand. Pack a few beverages and some snacks and lounge in the sunshine with your favorite people. You can make a beach day as active or relaxing as you want. Bring along games, toys, and floaties if you’re feeling energetic or just lounge in a comfortable chair and enjoy a relaxing summer day.

8. Feel Fancy with Wine Tasting

Get dressed to the nines and celebrate your birthday with a day of wine tasting. In Napa Valley, you can hop on a wine train to check out a few different wineries. In other wine-growing regions — including the Finger Lakes region of New York and the Columbia Valley in Washington State —  you can ride bikes to different wineries or choose just one and hang out on their patio for the afternoon sipping bubbly and sweet grapes.

Don’t live near a winery? Buy a few different bottles of wine and host a tasting in your backyard instead. If wine isn’t your thing, do a tasting of tequila, whiskey, or beer.

9. Have a Sleepover

Remember how fun it was when you were a kid and had sleepovers with friends? Grown-up sleepovers are even better. Invite your closest friends over for a night of doing makeovers, binge-watching movies, playing poker, and having general sleepover fun. Stock up on snacks and drinks and ask your friends for a list of their favorite movies that you can watch into the early morning hours.

10. Dream Big and Go Window Shopping

When you want to go shopping but don’t really want to spend a ton of money, window shopping is a great way to celebrate your birthday. Head to your favorite shopping street and peruse the storefronts for unique finds. Instead of picking out tons of things, buy yourself one special piece that you absolutely love.

11. Go for a Hike

Get into the great outdoors with a birthday hike or camping trip. Pack a small slice of cake or a few chocolates in your bag to enjoy at the top as you celebrate your special day. Spending time in nature can be restorative, and it enables you to disconnect from the stress and chaos of the world.

12. Take a Trip

Get the gang together and take a friends’ vacation to an exotic locale or a local hot spot. Choose a destination from your bucket list or head to one of your favorite spots for a birthday celebration.

A trip to a foreign country can be inspiring and a great reward for working hard or reaching a certain age. Alternatively, you can book a local wellness retreat or an adventure trip like heli-skiing or river rafting. Keep in mind that vacations require a lot of planning, so you may want to work with a travel agent if you’re looking for an adventure without a lot of hassle.

13. Host an Ice Cream Social

Brighten up your next birthday with an ice cream social featuring colorful sprinkles, sweet fudge, and all the refreshing ice cream you could want. You can choose your favorite ice cream flavors or make it a birthday theme and serve banana splits or have an ice cream sundae bar. Whatever you choose, an ice cream social is a great way to enjoy the sweeter things in life on your birthday.

14. Feed Your Inner Foodie with a Restaurant Tasting

If food is your thing, plan a birthday outing where you can try food from different restaurants. Plan stops at your favorite restaurants or schedule meals at places you’ve been dying to try. You can make it an all-day event by eating at different spots for breakfast, lunch, and dinner or keep things simple by opting for a long brunch.

15. Do Community Service

Want to skip the usual birthday plans and give back instead? Volunteer at a local charity or participate in a fundraising fun-run instead of hosting a birthday party. You can spend time serving meals at a local soup kitchen, clean up the beaches, or volunteer at a local animal shelter. Either way, you’ll have a happy birthday knowing you made a difference in someone’s life.

Invitation Inspiration for Your Shindig

When it comes to birthdays, it’s all about the celebration. Live it up with friends and family and show them they’re in for a good time with these grown-up birthday invitation ideas. Need even more inspiration? You can check out more birthday invitation options here and get tips on birthday invitation wording. Here are five of our favorite birthday invites to get you inspired for your birthday bash.

1. Party Time, Beaches! Invitation

Design: Robinson Creative House

Ready to spend a fun day at the beach soaking up the sun’s rays? This beach invitation is the perfect way to invite friends and family to a day of sand and sun. The bright colors and cheeky message let everyone know your day will be one to remember.

2. Let’s Get Toasted Invitation

Design: Signature Greenvelope

This campfire-themed invitation is a great way to invite friends to your birthday camping trip. The scrawling script and images of roasting marshmallows add a touch of nostalgic fun.

3. Wine Country Invitation

Design: Signature Greenvelope

Featuring a simple yet elegant watercolor design of a vineyard, this winery-inspired invitation will welcome guests to join you in a day of sipping grapes. Customize the invite with a brightly-colored background to add a touch of fun and change the font to reflect the seriousness — or lack thereof — of your wine tasting birthday.

4. Palm Leaves Invitation

Design: Claudia Owen

Gearing up to invite your friends on an exotic birthday trip? This palm-leaf invitation is a sure-fire way to get guests excited about the vacation. The graphics inspire visions of sunny days and sipping piña coladas beside turquoise seas.

5. Watercolor Brunch and Bubbly Invitation

Design: Lisa Travis

Hosting a brunch birthday bash? This whimsical invitation tells guests they’re in for a fancy brunch and a day of celebrating how special you are. Customize the color background to reflect your favorite colors or the birthday decor theme.

Get the Party Started with Beautiful Invitations

Sending digital invitations is a great way to save time and money without sacrificing beauty and style on your birthday. You don’t have to pay for postage or run down to the post office to mail your invites. With just a few clicks, you can send all the relevant party information without leaving your house. You can easily track all of the RSVPs and match the invitation to your party theme. Best of all, our online invitations offer full party suites, so after the fun is done, you can send matching thank you notes for any birthday gifts you receive.

Celebrate all of life’s special moments in style. From weddings to graduations and housewarming parties, we’ve got you covered when it comes to inspiration and invitations. Check out our full line of digital invitations and browse the blog to get unique ideas for your next celebration.