Party in the park: Our top outdoor party ideas

Hosting an outdoor party is a fantastic way to celebrate with mates in the sunshine. If you host outdoor parties often, you’ll know that there’s a lot of planning that can go into making the day or night perfect. But if party-throwing isn’t really your forte, then you’re probably looking at ways to make sure you have everything covered. Well, today’s your lucky day because we’ve got your back with all the best outdoor party ideas.


Know your location

Location is super important when it comes to outdoor party ideas. Regardless of where you’re hosting the event, you want to make sure it’s comfortable, clean and Instagram-ready. Aside from wanting it to look great, you’ll also want to make sure there is some kind of undercover area in case the rain decides to pay your party a visit.

Pick a theme

Not only does having a theme make your party a bunch of fun, but it can also help to make planning a whole lot easier! A theme will direct decisions about how to decorate, what food to include, any drinks you want, as well as the all-important dress code. Picking your theme before you do any other planning can make the entire process a lot more enjoyable. Plus, you’re sure to get some killer photo ops across the day!

Choose your food

Planning your park party food is super important. This will give you time to pick a menu that won’t need much preparation or refrigeration and to shop for all the ingredients you’re likely to need. If you’re planning a bigger, more formal outdoor party, then you could also consider getting the help of a caterer to make your menu stand out.

Plan your cocktail menu

If you’re going all out for your party in the park, you should also spend a bit of time planning your cocktail menu. Sticking with the classics such as margaritas, mojitos and martinis is always a safe option, or you can get a bit adventurous and design your own drink for the occasion. You might also want to consider pre-making the cocktails to make it easier on the day! 

Ps. remember to include a mocktail or two for the folk who aren’t drinking and your menu is sure to be a hit!

Think about seating

The last thing you want when your guests turn up is to find out you don’t have enough seating. Not only will this make you look unprepared but it can make your late arriving guests feel unwelcome. A great way to avoid this is by getting your guests to RSVP to your invitations. This will give you an idea of how much seating you’ll need to bring if your location doesn’t have enough on-site. And if it’s not viable to bring that many seats, picnic mats make a great solution for accommodating lots of guests.

Plan some outdoor party games

You can also think about organising some outdoor party games for your guests to play. Whether you want to splurge on a game of giant Jenga or plan a game of bocce for later in the arvo, party games are always a hit with guests and help to keep everyone entertained for hours.