40th Birthday Party Ideas that take the sting off this big milestone!
40th birthday party ideas can run the gamut, and much of which idea works best for you depends upon the guest of honor. As you think through your birthday boy or girl, keep in mind the “emotional fragility” of the person who is being honored. Does the person take themselves seriously? Are they depressed by the aging process? Or do they feel one day older is another day wiser? Do they take change in stride? Or do they complain about the arthritis sitting into their knees?
By asking yourself these questions as you review our list of 40th birthday party ideas, you’ll be sure to come up with an idea that hits the mark and lets everyone have a great time! To make your life easier (because that’s what we’re all about here!), we’ve organized our ideas list based on the type of honoree the party is being prepared for.
40th Birthday Party Ideas for Someone Who’s Grumpy about Aging
If your guest of honor is someone terrified by the prospect of getting older, complains about backaches that aren’t there, and has acted like a 40 year old ever since they were twenty, then these ideas are for you!
- Golf or sports outing. Many guests love parties that center around an activity or game. These types of parties are especially effective if the guests don’t know one another very well, or you’re hoping to keep things low key. The trick is to find an activity that people can do at any levels without being frustrated or feeling like a clutz. To that end, Golf is often a safe bet since it uses a handicap system and is not physically taxing. Other ideas include: tennis, volleyball, or bowling.
- Barbeque. A close second to the sports outing idea is the barbeque. There’s a reason barbeques remain one of the most popular 40th birthday party ideas. Barbeques are easy to throw, cost-effective (since you can feed many people with a few pounds of your favorite grill items), and have a laid-back nature that many people really enjoy.
- Ethnic. If your guest of honor is of a specific ancestry, it’s also a lot of fun to incorporate ethnic elements from that person’s heritage. If he’s a Chinese-American, as an example, there are certain traditions around gift-giving and the wisdom that comes with age that the guest of honor might really enjoy participating in. Similarly, in Germany, rocks are thrown onto the front porch of the person’s birthday as they reach middle age. Whatever your guest’s heritage, there is likely to be some ethnic tradition that will make a great 40th birthday party idea.
- Charity. Mixing a 40th birthday party with a charitable concept is also a great idea. Instead of gifts, ask all guests to make a charitable donation to a favorite charity that impacts the guest of honor. This is a great way to give back and for a birthday person who wants to keep things subdued, this is a great idea.
- Pub Crawl. If you live close to a strip of bars or a neighborhood that has a concentration of pubs, this is a great idea for a 40th birthday party. As the party host you can arrange transportation (no drunk driving!) and coordinate a schedule of place to visit along the way. You can even make great party t-shirts to celebrate the occasion and write menus of the “special drinks” to try at each stop along the route.
- Quiet dinner at home. There’s nothing wrong with the classics. And if your birthday person is truly a low-key person who is legitimately depressed at the prospect of growing older, then this is a great option. It shows you still care about the birthday, but mitigates any stress that could be induced by a larger celebration.
40th Birthday Party Ideas for Someone Who’s Thinks Age is just a Number and the Higher the Better
- Be a kid again. Of the many 40th birthday party ideas that we’ve seen in our day, this remains one of our favorites. The basic idea is to treat the 40th birthday just like you would a 5th or 6th birthday. Serve cake and ice cream. Turn out the lights when you blow out the candles. Provide party favors for your guests, and provide party hats and noise makers. There’s nothing that makes someone feel young again like a cone shaped hat and sugar frosted cake served on paper plates!
- Dress like the birthday boy/girl. As we get older, we get more set in our ways, and that usually includes the way we dress. If there’s a favorite outfit that you ALWAYS see your birthday person wearing, a funny idea is to have all of your guests dress up in the SAME outfit. But don’t tell the birthday person! This idea usually works best when it’s done as a surprise!
- Tropical. This is a timeless 40th birthday party idea that is actually appropriate at almost any age. A tropical theme is one where your guests dress up in Hawaiian style shirts, wear sandals, and sip on Mai Tais. This idea (believe it or not) actually is even more fun if it’s in the dead of winter. Talk about a mini-vacation!
- This is your life. Similar to the movie of the same name, this 40th birthday party idea takes the guests through a slide show of photos about the guest of honor’s life. You can include baby photos, school kid photos, and photos of the current state of the guest of honor. Like most of our ideas, this is one best kept a secret. Most guests can relate to the chronology and the ups and downs of a person’s life. Seeing it all in one place is a memory that everyone will treasure.
- Toast and Roast. Warning: You must ensure your guest of honor is a GOOD SPORT about being teased and ribbed! This idea is one where you have an “open mic” and invite guests to step up and tell their favorite (or most embarassing) story about the guest of honor. Each is either a toast or a roast of the guest of honor.
- Karaoke night – songs of the 1960s. We recommend songs from the 1960’s since this is the decade in which the guest of honor was born. What better way to celebrate this decade and the guest of honor’s birthday than by renting Karaoke equipment for your home (look in the Yellow pages or go to your local stereo store to find out how), or going to a Karaoke bar, and belting out the songs that celebrate the decade of birth of the guest of honor!
- Murder Mystery. This is a more elaborate affair and requires high levels of participation from your guests. If you’re not confident your guests will want to participate, you might want to think twice about this idea. The general concept is that you have a nice quiet party at home, but before the night of the party, each guest is given a “role” that s/he must play the entire evening. These games are clue-based murder mysteries where all players are suspects and everyone tries to solve the crime. The guests receive clues that will unfold the mystery. You will want to try to match the number of guests with the number of characters. These games are generally designed for small gatherings and are often played in a dinner party setting. This 40th birthday party idea, requires a great deal of preparation but if done correctly, they are really memorable!
