Do you remember the old school party games you used to play as a kid? I don’t know about you but sometimes I think the old fashioned party games of our youth were so much fun and way less stressful for our parents.
Nowadays, children’s birthday parties seem to have evolved into a huge to-do at play places featuring visits from Princess or pony rides.
Most of them cost upwards of $300 just for a simple preschool birthday party.
If you long for a simpler celebration for your kids, consider going back to basics with some traditional birthday games.
I recently threw a party for my 4-year-old and all of her friends just loved playing traditional kids party games like pass the parcel and freeze dance.
Read on for some amazing birthday party games like musical chairs and sleeping lions, you might even discover some new favorites!
This page contains affiliate links meaning I earn a commission if you use those links. I was given free products while writing this post but all opinions are my own. Please read Disclosure for more information.
RELATED POSTS
27 Unique Goodie Bag Ideas For Birthday Parties
The Best Party Games For A Spooky Halloween
The Best Retro Party Games For Kids
The great thing about these old fashioned party games is that there is no limit on how many children can join in so they are great for those parties where you have to invite the whole class.
I also have found that most of the vintage party games from the past are suitable for all ages of kids.
Switch up the prizes and difficulty of the games to suit older kids.
If you have really little kids, these these birthday party activities for 2 year olds will be perfect for you.
The retro party games below will take you back to a time of simple pleasures and will save you a bunch of money.
If you need even more ideas, ask Grandma what birthday party games she played as a child and let us know in the comments!
It’s also really nice to keep these old fashioned birthday party games alive for generations to come.
Kids will have a ball balancing eggs on spoons and jumping in a potato sack with their friends.
The truth is, it doesn’t always cost a lot to have fun!
The Best Old Fashioned Party Games for Kids
Below you will find some awesome (and easy!) traditional party games if you want to go back to basics.
If you are throwing a party around the holidays, make sure to check out my list of Christmas party games for little ones.
1. Pin the tail on the donkey
What you need
- Picture of a donkey or other animal, stuck on the wall.
- A “tail” to stick on the donkey
- A blindfold
You can buy a ready-made pin the tail on the donkey game from Amazon.com
It comes with different tails and blindfolds.
(If you have a unicorn-lover, check out this unicorn fantasy version.)
How to play pin the tail on the donkey
Each child takes turns to be blindfolded.
Spin him around 3 times then guide him in the direction of the donkey.
Mark with a pencil where he puts the tail.
Closest to the correct place wins a prize!
2. Pass the parcel
What you need
- A small gift wrapped in 10-15 layers of paper
- Small prizes or candy for the other layers (enough for each child).
- If you are short on time or enthusiasm, you can buy ready-made Pass the Parcel gifts
, they come in various themes and options but they aren’t cheap.
Pass The Parcel Pro tips
- Alternate between wrapping paper and tissue paper for the layers to make it easier for the children to only take off one each time.
- Create enough layers so each child gets one small trinket within a layer of paper PLUS one grand prize at the end. This makes it much more exciting than everyone knowing the person who is left will get the big prize.
How to play
All the children sit in a circle and when the music plays, they pass the parcel to the person to their right.
When the music stops, the child with the parcel may open one layer of paper.
Continue until someone wins the prize at the end.
It can be hard to think of prizes for pass the parcel, I normally head to the dollar store and pick up $10 worth of candy and small items (Push pops, squishies, bath bombs etc).
You can basically use anything that you would give out as a party favor for birthday parties.
If in doubt, you can put candy in all the layers of the parcel and put a larger gift like the ideas below at the bottom.
Here are my top choices that my kids (ages 4-13) love.
Pass the parcel ideas for 4 year olds (and under)
- Toy Car
- Lollipop
- Water Wow Book
- Box of Crayons
- Packet of sticker
- Individual covered chocolates
Pass the parcel prizes for 6 year olds +
- Coloring Books
- Set of paints
- Movie Theatre Candy
- Small Squishy
- Surprise Toy
- Sticker Dolly Dressing
- Popping Candy
Pass The Parcel Ideas For 10 year olds and up
- Notepads
- Fancy pens
- Candy
- Hair ties
- Fuzzy socks
- Small Gift Cards
- Mini Chocolate bars
- Bath Bombs
3. The Chocolate Game
This is a fast and furious game that is hilarious.
What you need
- A large, unwrapped bar of chocolate. This massive Herseys chocolate bar
weighs in at 5lbs and would be awesome for this game.
- A knife and fork
- A pair of dice
- Thick gloves, a hat and a scarf.
How To Play The Chocolate Game
The children, seated in a circle, take turns to throw the dice then pass them to the left.
If a child rolls a double, they go to the middle of the circle, put the clothes on as fast as they can and can try to eat as much chocolate as they can, only using the knife and fork – no hands!
They get to keep eating chocolate until the next person rolls a double.
Then it’s their turn to try and eat the chocolate. Continue on until the chocolate is all gone.
4. Musical Statues/ Freeze dance/Disco Statues
This game has few names depending on where you live but the rules remain the same, stay as still as you can once the music stops.
What you need:
- Music
- Space to dance
How To Play Freeze Dance
Everyone dances until the music stops.
As soon as it stops they must freeze.
One person is the judge and tells anyone who moves that they are out.
Keep playing until only one person remains.
They are declared the winner.
5. Sleeping Lions
Whoever invented games like sleeping lions is a genius!
I used to work at a children’s camp in the summers and whenever the kids needed to calm down (and I needed a break), I got them going with a nice relaxing game of sleeping lions.
What you need: Space for the children to lie down.
How to play sleeping lions
All the children except one or two are “lions” and have to lay on the floor as still
can without making a noise.
The remaining child (or an adult) is the hunter and has to walk around trying to make the Lions laugh or move by telling stories and jokes. If you move, you are out!
6. Egg and Spoon Race
What you need:
- Space to run
- Enough tablespoons for everyone
- Uncooked eggs. If you don’t want to mess around with the eggs or if you have to play inside, you can buy plastic egg and spoon kits like this one.
How To Do An Egg And Spoon Race
Balance an egg on your spoon and race to the finish line.
The first one there with the egg still intact is the winner.
Make it even harder for older children by doing relays where they have to pass the egg to someone waiting with an empty spoon.
7. Blind Man’s Bluff
What you need:
- A blindfold
- Space to run
How to play Blind Man’s Bluff
One child is blindfolded and gets spun around while the other children scatter.
The “blind man” has to tag one of the other children and guess who it is.
If they guess right, that person becomes “it”.
8. Musical Chairs
What you need:
- Enough chairs for all the children
- Music
How To Play Musical Chairs
Put the chairs back to back in a line in the center of the room.
While the music plays, the children must dance around the chairs.
When the music stops, they have to scramble to secure a chair.
The person without a seat is out. For each subsequent round, remove a chair until there is only one remaining (and two players).
9. Musical Bumps (A Variation of Musical Chairs)
Musical bumps is a good option for young children such as preschoolers as it removes the risk of them falling off the chairs or banging into them in the frenzy to get a spot.
What you need:
A spot on the floor for each child (can be a small mat or even a X created using masking tape would work). For a Frozen themed party I threw, I used felt snowflake shapes from the Dollar Store.
How to Play:
When the music stops, each child has to find their spot and sit on it.
Gradually take away a spot each time until there are none left.
9. 3-legged Race
What you need:
- Bands to tie the children’s legs together
It’s easy to make your own bands for the 3 legged race using pieces of ribbon or rope for one per two children.
You can also get these
- Space to run.
How To Do A 3-Legged Race
Pair up the children, Tie their two inside legs together with the ribbon.
Once they have had a practice of walking, stage a race to see which pair is the fastest.
10. Sack Race
What you need:
- A large sack for each child such as these burlap potato sacks
- Space to run.
How To Do A Sack Race
Each child gets their legs inside the sack and races the others to jump to the finish line.
11. Escape Room
An escape room is one of the best party games for winter. It is suitable for ages 7+.
What You Need
- Space to play
- A Virtual Escape room kit like the one from Escape Room Geeks. My kids did the Houdini one a few Saturdays ago and had a blast!
- Or an in-home escape room. I have done the Cursed Dollhouse from Escape Room in A Box and it was awesome.
How To Do An Escape Room
Print off the at-home escape room instructions and information. Gather together and complete the challenges until you can escape.
12. Apple Bobbing
Apple bobbing is traditionally a Halloween party game but I decided to include it in this list of fun retro birthday party games for kids as it is always a hit.
What You Need
- A Large Tub (you can play using a clean bath tub if indoors)
- Lots of Apples
- Water
- A plastic sheet or tablecloth is advised as water will get everywhere.
How To Play Apple Bobbing
Fill a large tub with water and apples, Each child takes turns to try and grab an apple using their teeth only, no hands allowed!
More Fun Activities For Kids
101 free things to do with your kids
25 Winter Budget-Friendly Activities for kids
amber
Saturday 5th of February 2022
Thank you so much for these ideas. I am planning a COVID bday which will be a five year old, her slightly older cousins and the adult family members. I think these ideas will go over well with everyone in every age group! I think we can use a few of these for easter and the fourth as well. Thanks again.
Kelly Brown
Thursday 7th of February 2019
YES! I remember Pin the Tail on the Donkey, Egg and Spoon game, 3 Legged race, and Sack race. Tho some games are new to me such as the Chocolate Game, guess I have to gather the kids and play!