Are you thinking of hosting a surprise party for a loved one? Whatever the event, you’ll have to be rather secretive and sneaky to ensure it goes to plan. You can’t just cross your fingers and hope for the best with these sorts of things. These secret soirees involve a lot of forward-thinking and most importantly, have to be hidden from the special guest! Armed with the following tips, your guest of honour and everyone will be talking about the event for a long time afterwards!
When, where, who?
First things first; you must select a date. Hosting a surprise party for a birthday is more difficult than a bridal shower, for example, because the person will probably be expecting a celebration around the time of their birthday. You don’t want them thinking you’ve forgotten their special day altogether, so tell them you’re planning something for just the two of you. Then pick a date where you’re sure nothing else is going on and all the important people will be able to attend. Improve your chances of hosting a successful party by selecting this date well in advance.
Choose the location with care. Pick somewhere that won’t arouse too much suspicion- not somewhere out of the ordinary. Don’t pick the swankiest venue in your town because they’ll know that something is up. Decide on a place that you’ve been to before whether that is one of your favourite restaurants, bar or the bowling alley. Be sure to book it a few weeks in advance, specific venue hire in London for example is more popular than you think!
As for guests, either invite a small amount of very close friends and family members or get a much bigger group together. The smaller group will be easier to cater for and might be less likely to spoil the surprise. The feel of the event will also be more intimate. However, having a larger crowd will be more impressive and create more of a ‘wow’ moment when the special guest enters.
Keeping mouths shut!
To reduce the risk of someone spoiling the surprise tell people individually, stressing the need for secrecy and outlining the plans. If you know one of the guests may blurt it out, tell them that you’re going for a day or a night out but don’t explain the reason behind it until the last minute. A little white lie for the success of the party!
The planning process…
Share the responsibility with a close, mutual friend. Work as a team.
Think about what decorations and supplies you might need. If you’ve chosen a restaurant as your party venue, go for some balloons to create a party feel. If you’ve gone for the bowling alley or a house, as well as the decorations you’ll need to provide all of the snacks and drinks. If it’s a birthday party, you will want to get a cake. In fact, any celebration is cause for a cake!
On the day of the surprise, you’ll need to set up the venue. If people are bringing items for the party with them, get them to arrive earlier. If a few of you are working together, the setup will run smoothly and quickly.
The most important bit… Delivering the surprise!
People are notoriously late for things so factor that into your organisation. You don’t want anyone showing at the same time as the guest of honour!
As for the reveal, you could go for the typical hiding and jumping out screaming “SURPRISE!” or have everyone act normal if that’s likely to scare the surprised guest! Whatever you decide to go with, make sure all attendees understand the approach.
Have one person with the most special guest and one overseeing the other guests. Having a team of two is useful as your co-planner can keep the guests in check whilst you take care of the one they’re about to surprise! You can then easily keep the guests in the loop and let them know when you’re about to arrive.
SURPRISE!
Their reaction will be well worth all of the organisation. Even if something doesn’t go exactly to plan or they had an inkling, they’ll still be touched that you went to such effort for them.
Chloe is a recent graduate from the University of East Anglia. She enjoys writing about social media and film.
