Like many teens, I was stuck on what to do for a great 21st birthday party. I wanted the experience to be memorable, yet original. I didn’t want to spend a lot of money, nor did I want to make my guests pay for the experience. So here is my tips to you fellow party goers, 21st or not, I’ll tell you how you can have the best birthday ever.

There are a couple of steps to work through to obtain this original feel.

Step one: Budget and plan 

Start planning early, but if you haven’t that is not to worry.

You’ll need to work out a budget of course for how much you have to spend all up. This will then be divided later based on what you want to do.

Step two: Who, What, Where and When.

First decide when you would like to have the party. Over a weekend or week, or a day in particular.

Secondly you need to decide where you would like to have your party. I chose to have it at a holiday house in Mt Eliza near the beach. You can find these houses, some very cheap (around 300$ for the weekend). [visit www.stayz.com.au for Australia only.]

Yet there are other venues to keep in mind. For my partners 21st we had it at a bar, but you can also go camping, hire out a hall or even have it at your home.

Next you need the who. Who are you going to invite? How many people will fit in the venue you have chosen with out being cramped. Maybe even consider who has invited you to their birthdays recently in making such decisions.

Now the ‘what’ is the most important. What will people be doing, eating and experiencing during the night. This is the most important part.

People want to have fun and doing so is not always continuous during any party. Now what I suggest, no matter the venue, organise games that teams can play. Fun activities that will run during the night so people can have a mission, even win a prize. (Free drinks is always a bonus!). You can organise a treasure hunt, celebrity heads, mime games ext. This is always good to keep people on their toes and focused on what’s happening during the party.

It really depends on what you want people to do.

Now my next step is looking at the budget you have and allocating how much money will be spent on what you would like to have. Break it up into sections. Then search the internet for the cheapest deals you can find.

My advice, don’t be scared to barter.