Easy to Host Mermaid Birthday Party

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Little ones admire mermaids, and they are surely magical enough to make a fun party theme. So when my daughter asked for a mermaid birthday party. And I was like, yeah, it’s fun and easy to plan. Mermaid themed birthday party can be easily hosted by pairing a mermaid, sea creature, and ocean colors. In this post, I am sharing mermaid party ideas that you can try when hosting a birthday party. I have included DIY mermaid party decorations so that you can plan it on a budget, along with party food, games, and favors for you to plan an adorable little mermaid party.

Magical Mermaid Birthday

I had thought of having a small outdoor birthday just for family, but my daughter was like No, I want a mermaid birthday party. I don’t know why, but she has recently become obsessed with it after unicorns. So, just last minute, I had to make a last-minute plan for this mermaid birthday. After all, the birthday party is for her, so it must be what she wants.

For a mermaid birthday party, things that reflect the party are ocean adventure, shiny, colorful, and sea-related things, and of course, the mermaids. Make it feel more special with sea-inspired food, mermaid games, and sparkly decorations.

Party Invitations

For the party invitation, I made a digital invite in Canva, can see below. However, you can also go for paper invites. If I had more time, I would have probably made paper invites in the shape of a mermaid tail or a shell. You can also buy some printed mermaid or ocean-themed invites.

Mermaid Themed Party Decor

For the decor, I went with a blue, purple color combination. I started by setting a corner of the room where the cake and food would be placed, so that the remaining area is available for everyone to move around freely, and it was a good choice kids were just running and having fun in the free space. This was a lesson I learned from her last birthday.

I started the decor by hanging blue streamers as a backdrop to look like ocean waves. I had this and blue balloons from her last birthday, so I had to make use of them, and it looked good. Next, I tied all the blue balloons to a string and added them to the top of the streamer for a neat look.

I had bought some foil balloons, I just love them, and they can instantly bring a party theme to the decor. So, I assembled the mermaid tail, shell, and star-shaped balloon to complete the look.

I also used a white transparent balloon filled with purple confetti and tied some silver streamers at the base to make it look like a jellyfish, and pasted them on the wall to make them look floating.

To the wall at the entrance, I hung a birthday banner in gold and made lots of paper cutouts with glitter foam paper and colored paper in the shape of fish, mermaid, and seaweed. Finally, I placed a blue bedsheet as a table cover and tucked the corners to make it look neat.

Here are some other options that you can try:

• You can also go for some soft ocean shades, like a mix of teal, lavender, light blue, and a little pink; they look pretty together.

• Or you can go monochrome with shades of blue or purple or pink, especially if your girl loves everything pink. Also add touches of silver and gold using ribbon, streamers. Match the table cover and other decor. It helps everything look tied together.

Mermaid Party Cake

I made a simple white cake and added little white chocolate mermaid tails and shells on top. It was easy and looked cute, and I sprinkled some blue and silver sprinklers and pearls. I used silicone molds to make the mermaid tail and shells, and just put them in the fridge to set. If you want to keep it even simpler, you can get some cake toppers like cute glitter tails, starfish, or even little mermaid figurines.

Since I had a few very young kids, like 2-year-olds, too, I didn’t want to add any color. But you can play with colors to make the cake look prettier and even match it to your party decor theme, too.

• A pastel ombré cake in blues, purples, and mint green will give a great ocean-like effect.
• Another fun idea is to frost the cake in waves to get the swirl look like water with the icing.
• You could also do a drip cake using teal or lavender-colored chocolate and add edible pearls to make it look like treasure.
• Cupcakes work great, too, if you don’t want one big cake. Just top them with mermaid tails, shells, and starfish.

Ocean-Inspired Party Food

For the birthday party food, I always feel it’s a great idea to pair the menu with the theme to make it more exciting. I went with the under-the-sea kind of vibe. Give some fun names to the food.

Here are some ideas:

Sea Weed Noodles: We served spinach noodles and called them seaweed noodles. They looked the part and were a hit with both kids and adults. To the regular noodle recipe, I added some finely chopped spinach.

Sea creature bites: I also made small coleslaw sandwiches and made small eyes with olives.

Oyster cookies: Kids loved this one, and it was very easy to make, too. I used the whipped cream that I made for the cake and filled it in between two thin, circular vanilla cookies and a Malteser ball in the center. They looked just like little shells holding a pearl.

Hot Octocups: I sliced 3/4^th sausage vertically and tossed them in a pan with mild spices. It looked like an octopus with tentacles. Served them with some sauces on the side.

Here are some extra fun food ideas if you want more variety:

Goldfish snack cups: Just pour Goldfish crackers into clear cups and label them fish and chips.

Blue ocean jello cups: Make blue jelly in small clear cups and add a gummy fish or two inside.

Mermaid popcorn: Drizzle white chocolate on popcorn and top with pastel sprinkles and edible glitter.

Crab croissants: Fill mini croissants with sandwich fillings and add candy eyes on toothpicks to make silly little crabs.

For drinks, I kept things simple but fun

Fish punch: We served the regular lemonade but added fish gummies to it; it looked fun, and kids loved it.

You can also serve

Ocean water: Blue lemonade or colored Sprite served with clear cups and little umbrellas.

Seashell milkshakes: Serve vanilla milkshakes in small cups with whipped cream and pearl sprinkles on top.

Mermaid water: To a big, clear jug of water, add strawberries, mint, and blueberries

To make things more fun, add cute mermaid-themed name cards or stickers with the food item name. Serve them to the kids on colorful mermaid-themed plates and napkins.

Party Games & Activities

Kids look for some fun games to play at the party. And if the games are with a twist of the theme, they enjoy them more. Here are some fun games to add to your party.

Pin the Mermaid Tail: I made a big mermaid on a chart paper, keeping the upper part and tail separate. Stuck the upper part on the door and added double-sided tape to the tail. Kids were blind folded and had to pin the tail. It first was getting very easy, so I gave them 2-3 turns, and that’s when it became fun; they would go to completely wrong spaces and pin the tail. It was so simple, but the kids enjoyed it the most.

Find the Pearl: To a small treasure box, I added lots of shells and just one pearl. Each kid gets 1 minute to find the pearl from the box with their eyes blindfolded. It looked easy, but when the game started, they realised it wasn’t that easy.

Bubble Time: If the weather’s nice and you have outdoor space, you can set up a bubble station. Place individual bottles of bubble liquid with a bubble wand, and keep some napkins to deal with spills. Add some pretty decor, or a mermaid balloon. Kids enjoy playing with soap bubbles.

Dance and Freeze: Finally, we ended the game session by playing dance and freeze. I had made a playlist of some fun kids’ favorite songs. After some time, it was just songs playing and kids dancing, as their parents came to take them back.

P.S. For more party game ideas, you can read 30 Fun Birthday Party Games for Kids

Mermaid Style Party Favors

For our party favors, I made a cone-shaped bag with paper, stuffed all the favors in it, sealed it with some tape, and added a glittery mermaid tail cutout on the top of the cone; it was super cute. Kids were so excited just to hold them.
Inside, I added the following:

• Cute mermaid stickers
• Mermaid mini notebook
• Mermaid stationery items
• Mermaid slap bracelets
• Mermaid tails toy
• A few small chocolates in a pouch

You can also go for some of these items as a party favor.

• Shell hair clips or bracelets
• Mini bubbles
• Mermaid bath bomb
• Sea creature keychain

Go for colorful, shiny, and mermaid-inspired stuff, and pack them cutely, and kids will love it.

What to Wear to a Mermaid Party

Dressing as per the party theme makes kids feel more excited.

Birthday Girl: She can dress up like a mermaid with a mermaid skirt. There are some cool options online. But if you do not want to get the dress just for one occasion, you can still dress as per the theme. Go for a sparkly mermaid-cut skirt, or a dress or a gown in the shade that matches the party theme. Like a mix of colors in blue, purple, and green. Or a dress with shell or mermaid print.
Added cute accessories like a little glittery starfish hair clip, a mermaid bracelet.
Guests: Other kids came in all kinds of outfits. You can share a color theme for the dress code along with the invite, such as ocean colors or pastel. They can wear dresses and tulle skirts. Any dress with a theme print or just regular clothes but added mermaid headbands or necklaces to match the theme

Planning Tips for a Mermaid Themed Party

Here are a few things I learned that really helped:

1. Match the party schedule to the kids.
   I kept the party short, about two and a half hours, because it was on a weekday and everyone had school the next day.
2. Use one space for everything.
   Instead of decorating the whole house, I focused on one main party area. It made clean-up easier and gave that wow moment when kids walked in.
3. Lay out everything before kids arrive.
   I set the table with everything from spoons to napkins before everyone arrived. Because last year I forgot to give party caps to the kids and realized it after the party, when I was cleaning up.
4. Have a gift station
   Another thing that I observed was that gifts are generally all over the place, so I kept a small table near the party area and kept all the party favors packed, labeled, and ready. And I informed my daughter to keep all the gifts she received to keep next to the favor on the table. Keep one or two extra favors ready in case someone unexpectedly shows up, like siblings or a guest at their home.
5. Have one backup activity.
   Just in case something flopped or finished too fast, I kept a mermaid coloring sheet and crayons ready.
6. Don’t forget a “photo spot.”
   I made an entrance decorated so that there is an open spot to take some photos.
7. Take photos before the party.
   This I really regret; everything was just ready at the last minute, and I didn’t get a chance to take many photos. I thought I would take photos once everything was ready and set up, but something unexpected came up, and I spent an hour dealing with that and got behind schedule. I thought I would take photos after the party, but some kids wanted to take the balloon or other decor items, and of course, the food was consumed, so I couldn’t take many photos.

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