Halloween parties require three things to be successful – costumes, drinks, and guests. Below you’ll find some of our favorite ideas for throwing the perfect Halloween party!
Halloween Party Themes
Themes are an easy way to ensure guests come dressed as they don’t have to spend days agonizing over which costume to wear. It also allows you to quickly gather decorations as you’ve established a theme and aren’t just wandering around the store aimlessly picking things.
GHOST
Everybody dresses as a ghost. This can be from a sheet with holes to a full-on latex application. The decor is haunted, and the outside is a graveyard.
DEAD CELEBRITY
Guests have to come as a famous person who has passed on. Skulls and glitter and a DIY photobooth are a great addition for this theme.
MOVIE MONSTERS
Everybody has a favorite movie monster from childhood, and this theme lets them all run wild. Think Jason, Freddy, Mike Myers, Dracula, Mummies, Frankenstein, and those are just the classics. Décor for this theme can be Hollywood’ish with old movie posters and memorabilia as well as a healthy dose of jack-o-lanterns.
ZOMBIES
Everybody comes as the walking dead. The yard and house can be decorated as a graveyard with the kitchen looking like a mad scientist lab/morgue. Toxic waste symbols and zombie posters hung everywhere. A fun idea is to remove all the napkins and flatware, so guests have to “eat like zombies.” This works great with lots of red sauces and salsa as well as pasta and BBQ items!
CLOWNS
All the clowns… the good, the bad, the ugly…. and the evil. Circus theme throughout. Creepy old school circus music will help set the mood. Some people have serious issues with clowns so be sure and let the coulrophobics beware!
VAMPIRES
Real ones, not the shiny ones. The yard as a graveyard with lots of coffins and caskets. Lots of bats, candles, and spider/spider webs. Red wine, red sauce, red velvet cake, anything red or bloody can be served.
OLD FASHIONED HALLOWEEN
Old black bandit style masks, plastic face masks held on with a rubber string. Classic old decorations everywhere. Apple bobbing, charades, and cake walks with candy corns, caramel apples, and adult punch for treats.
WICKED BREW BASH
Guests come as a witch or warlock (or something similar) and everyone brings a six-pack of their favorite beer to toss in the cooler. Spider webs and witch-themed décor set the mood, while “guess the beer” games keep the party going.
BLACKLIGHT PARTY
Everybody wears UV reactive costumes or makeup. Almost like a modern-day rave but for Halloween. Your décor should be blacklight posters and anything neon. This works great with a lime green punch!
How Much Alcohol Do You Need?
Regardless of which theme you choose, there’s nothing worse than running out of alcohol in the middle of your party. You typically want to ensure guests have a drink in their hand from when they arrive to when you shuttle them off in their Uber. Smaller parties are easier to estimate as the worst that will happen is you end up with an extra bottle of wine or two, whereas with larger parties, you could end up with several handles of liquor that will remain in a cabinet collecting dust.
A general rule of thumb is to assume each guest will consume two drinks during the first hour of the party and one drink every hour after that. So, if you’re hosting a four-hour long party, plan for each guest to have five drinks.
For some Spooktacular cocktail ideas check out our Halloween Punch Blog!
Don’t forget the bowl filling sweets and savory snacks to keep all your guests satisfied, even the zombies.
Recommended Spooky Snacks
Stonewall Kitchen Ghost Pepper Queso
Ratcheting up the heat levels in our original chile con queso with the addition of ghost peppers, this spicy blend also includes several types of melted cheeses, tomatoes, red bell peppers and onions for a cooling contrast to the fiery chili flavor.
Hershey’s Reese’s Minis Peanut Butter Chocolate Candy
Perfect on their own or tossed into a spooky party mix!
Candy Popcorn M&M’s or Candy Popcorn Snickers
All of your favorite snack flavors, coated on to the lightest, crispiest popcorn you’ve ever tasted!
