Celebrating A Birthday At Universal Islands of Adventure?

10 GREAT BIRTHDAY IDEAS

Going to be at Universal Islands of Adventure for someone's birthday? Celebrate throughout the day with these fun ways to keep the birthday fun going!

These ideas are sponsored by the Great Dollywood Adventure Challenge - Watch the video below for details!

Sing Happy Birthday in EVERY line that you wait in. You'll be surprised how often other folks don't mind joining in the song…especially in those longer lines when there's not a lot else for folks to do.

This is a great game to play for a larger group (4+). Ahead of time, prepare a list of fun tasks to do at Universal Islands of Adventure at write the out separately on small pieces of paper - at least enough for each person going. It's best to have someone else (who is NOT going with you to Universal Islands of Adventure) write them out - someone you can trust. Throughout the day, the birthday boy/girl periodically pulls one task out and reads it out loud. He/she then CHOOSES who in the group must complete the task right then. The rules are that EVERY person completes one task. The birthday boy/girl cannot look ahead at the different pieces of paper to see which ones he/she wants to assign or do for himself/herself. This can also be a great thing to do in the different lines you might wait in.

Plan a fun scavenger hunt throughout the day at Universal Islands of Adventure. There are all different types of scavenger hunts to go on, each with a different format. Although for some parties having different teams compete with each other can be a lot of fun, for someone's birthday when there is one person to honor, it's typically best to have everyone on the same team - everyone gets to help the birthday boy/girl be successful…when one person wins, they all win! These can be a lot of fun to create, but can take some extra work to make creative (sometimes you'll need more than just a list to excite some teens, for example.) Consider our GREAT ADVENTURE CHALLENGE AT Universal Islands of Adventure - a package for them to open once there filled with all kinds of puzzles and things to do! CLICK HERE to learn more!

Make a game out of their actual age number - see how many times you can find that number throughout the day at Universal Islands of Adventure. For example, if the birthday boy/girl is turning 21, everyone must look for the number '21' throughout Universal Islands of Adventure. Award one point to the FIRST person who finds a new one throughout the day and add up the points at the completion. You might find numbers on height requirement signs, menus, ticket pricing signs, phone numbers, etc.

This one is a lot of fun, but can take some extra prep. Ahead of time, make masks of the birthday boy/girl make from cut-out copies of his/her face with string attached. Sometimes there are rides/attractions that take your picture at a key spot. To prepare for this, everyone puts on their 'mask' as soon as the ride starts. When the photo is taken, the photo is filled with a bunch of faces of the birthday boy/girl!!!

Head of times, write down on small pieces of paper different topics for memories to share about the birthday boy/girl while standing in line or throughout the day. For example, you may choose that every 30 minutes a different person (NOT the birthday boy/girl) will draw a piece of paper out of a hat - perhaps the first one says "FUNNY." That person will then share a funny story about the birthday boy to share with everyone. This is a great way to encourage the birthday boy/girl throughout the day!

Surprise the birthday boy/girl with special 'guests.' Do not tell them about your plans to invite one or more of their friends to join you/him/her at Universal Islands of Adventure. Make it seem like a family trip. Arrange to meet his/her friend(s) AT Universal Islands of Adventure. It will feel like an added gift to see their friend(s) there when he/she wasn't expecting it!

Before you even leave for your day at Universal Islands of Adventure, decorate the INSIDE of your car with streamers and balloons (of course, being sure to not obstruct the view of the driver.) This will get the excitement going for the day ahead before you even get there!

At one point, buy a helium balloon at Universal Islands of Adventure. Each person there uses a Sharpie marker (that you brought with you) to write down something positive they'd like to wish for the birthday boy/girl for that coming year (or later in life.) Once everyone has had a chance to write them all down on the balloon, allow either each person to share what they wrote or allow the birthday boy/girl to read them all. Finally, let the birthday boy/girl RELEASE the helium balloon in the air and watch their dreams sail up and up - where the birthday boy/girl will 'catch up with them later'!

Pick different events that happened in the birthday boy/girl's life - events that happened somewhat close to each other. For example, different sets might include: (first tooth, crawled, sat up) or (learned ABC's, ride a bike, poured his/her own milk). This will work for adult events as well including (first girlfriend, first job, broke leg.) Everyone else there will have to guess the ORDER that the events happened. Award points as you go and determine a winner at the end of the day. This is a great activity to play while there are lulls in the fun (I.e. while standing in lines)