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Bowling Party Supplies
Does your child absolutely love bowling? Most children do! It is a game full of loud noises and lights and actually requires players to throw something at other things in order to knock them down. Sounds pretty enticing to a child! No wonder your little boy wants a bowling party—besides the food, the music, and the lights, part of the bowling party supplies is a big, heavy ball.
Bowling allies are continually one of the most popular venues to host birthday parties. The convenience, the price, and the entertainment are all reasons why people flock to these places to celebrate their children’s parties. Easy to set up and clean up, bowling alleys offer a lot of what parents want in a birthday party spot (including a spot for the adults). But you may be wondering what exactly goes into planning a party at a bowling alley. What bowling party supplies will you need? If you are like most parents, these thoughts are running through your head daily. The details below will give you an idea of what you should expect when throwing a bowling alley party—and how cheap it really is!
Choosing a Venue
Begin your venue search by researching bowling alleys in your area that offer a “party room” for guests. These rooms are usually situated with any number of “party supplies,” including a large table and chairs, table space for keeping food and drinks, and a closing door to keep the party separate from the rest of the alley. Renting a party room is convenient and easier to keep track of everyone who is attending, rather than having to chase them around the alley.
If you are looking at a venue that does not have a specified party room, you can reserve a specific number of lanes to be used and decorate them accordingly. The venue you choose will vary the amount of money you put into this party, but most alleys are not all that expensive to rent a room from.
Group Deals
Ask around for party deals and discounts in your area. Many times, bowling alleys offer discounted games, shoes, or food packages that can save you a bundle if you are planning on having a larger party of kids at the event. If you are searching online, be sure to call the facility and double check over the phone that there is or is not a party room or bowling specials, as information may not be up-to-date on the website. Also, by speaking in person to a manager, you might be able to arrange a group rate deal, even if the company advertises no such thing.
Decorations
Decorating for a bowling party is fun and pretty simple. Many times, the party room will already be prepared for you when you enter, including streamers and tablecloths. Be sure to specify exactly what is expected and what is offered in the party room package (in terms of decorations) prior to making your reservations.
For added decorations, or if the alley does not provide decorations, you can cut out bowling balls and pins and tape them to the walls of the party room, matching them to the bowling-themed tablecloth, plates, and utensils. If there is no private room available, you can tie balloons to the chairs in your lanes, not only to signify that those are your lanes, but also to add a bit of flair and excitement to the party. Since all you really need to decorate at the alley are some streamers, paper wall decorations, balloons, and maybe place settings, your decorations for this party will probably be the lightest weight on your finances. That gives you money to spend other places, like your party favors!
Party Favors
You are going to want to leave your guests with more than just the memories of the party. The favors you give should be fun, silly, useful, or edible. Keep those ideas in mind when choosing your favors.
Try to give the guests something related to bowling, such as gift certificates to the bowling alley or treat bags with bowling tattoos, stickers, key chains, or magnets inside. Depending on how many guests you are expecting, you may be able to afford team-bowling shirts for the birthday child and his friends. You can have these personalized with each child’s name or simply leave the shirts plain. An alternative may be polo shirts. Polo shirts are great substitutes for traditional bowling shirts and can usually be found much cheaper.
Food
Pizza, pizza, pizza. Bowling and pizza are one in the same. You should try to ask the manager of the alley if there are any pizza deals with big groups. Many times, if you rent a party room or simply reserve space for a large group, the bowling alley will grant you cheaper pizzas and discounts on other food items. On occasion, they will offer deals including a number of soft drinks and sides, such as garlic bread or chips.
If the establishment does not offer any discounts on food or you simply want to provide your own, foods to consider are nachos, chips and dip, little weenies, pigs in a blanket, tacos, or any greasy finger food you can think of. If you want to go a healthier route to try to leave the grease out as much as possible, try making salads, homemade sandwiches, vegetable trays, or sub sandwiches. Of course, for dessert, you can serve the cake with ice cream or Popsicles.
Bowling alley parties are great party choices because they are fun for young children to older adults and have something that every person will enjoy, whether it is the bowling, the music, or the fun, laid back atmosphere. Planning a birthday on a budget is possible if you are smart when it comes to your bowling alley party supplies. Use your resources, do your research, and make sure you know the facts before making any final decisions. Use these tips to help you score a strike, or you might just end up hitting a 7-10 split.
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