20 Ideas for Children’s Birthday Party Entertainment

Children’s birthday parties are a big industry with many families spending hundreds of dollars each year to celebrate their little one’s big day.

While you may choose to hire out a venue or take the kids on an outing, such as bowling or to the movies, another option is to bring the party to you by hiring your own entertainment for the day.

There are several different types of entertainment designed especially for children. Below are some of the entertainers you may want to look into. Keep in mind that the costs are only an estimate and this will depend entirely on where you live, how long the entertainer is hired for and the quality of the entertainment.

1. Magician

A magic shows feature a magician that will perform various tricks and optical illusions for the children, meant to amaze them. Magic shows are especially great for children older than 5 and will feature various tricks, from card tricks, to hat tricks, from animal tricks to interactive tricks. A magic show is usually around a half an hour and this gives Mum and Dad some time to prep the cake, clean up the mess and organize the next birthday activity while the kids are watching the show.

Magicians can cost as much as $250 per show but many will also offer additional services, such as balloon animal making.

2. Jumping or Bouncing Castles

There are several companies that specialise in bringing inflatable bouncy castles to your party. Set up takes only a few minutes and the company does all the work for you. A jumping castle allows children to bounce around for the duration of the party and can usually be hired for one to three hours. Some will come with a slide option as well as various Disney and television characters. You can expect to pay around $100 per hour for a jumping castle and more for a bouncy castle/slide combination.

3. Face Painter

Sure you can book a professional face painter for your kids party – but seriously – you can buy face paint from most cheap stores and have a nifty niece or Aunt that is great with makeup doing the kids faces to save on money.  Grab a couple of simple designs from Pinterest – and let the kids choose what face they would like the best!

4. Balloon Animal Maker

Balloon Animal Makers are a thing – and most will not only make amazing balloon art but will also paint the kid’s faces. Many will have a flat rate, such as $60 for the party plus travel expenses.

5. Baby Animal Enclosure

You may also be able to hire an animal show for your child’s birthday party. Many companies will bring zoo or farm animals directly to your party so the kids can pet and interact with the animals and learn a little about the various critters. Most of these experiences come with a half an hour interactive show which provides the kids with an educational way to get up close and personal with snakes, baby crocodiles, chicks, ducks, guinea pigs and much more.

The general rate for a live animal show is around $200.

6. Musician and Children’s Bands

You can add a little boogie to the birthday party by having a live band in the background. Children’s bands normally perform all your kid’s favourites from Hot Potato to the Wheels on the Bus. Letting the kids have a dance party as part of the celebrations are a great way to burn off all that extra energy from cake, fairy bread and more.  Live bands are usually around $100 per show.

7. Clowns

Clowns while many adults have an ongoing fear of clowns (I know I do!), children of all ages seem to love these creepy things. Clowns are designed to make children laugh with slapstick comedy so you can expect a lot of silliness.

Clowns will normally entertain the children for a half an hour show and, like magicians, you will get a chance to prep for the next activity without worrying about what the kids are up to. Clowns rates are similar to magicians at around $200.

8. Jewellery Making Party

9. Science Party

10. Pamper Parties

11. Book a Princess for the Party

12. Snakes Alice

Book reptiles

13. Dance Party

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