How to Plan a Surprise Party for Guests
A small, immediate family-only surprise party can be thrown together quite quickly at the last minute, but a larger function involving extended family, friends and co-workers takes extensive planning. Keeping the guest-of-honor in the dark for several weeks can be tricky when the people they interact with on a daily basis are in on the secret. Put a lid on the festivities with a solid game party-day plan and explicit instructions to all invited guests that explain how to keep the party a true surprise. Does this Spark an idea?
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Instructions
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Guest-of-Honor Arrival Strategy
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Select a date for the surprise party, then ask a co-conspirator to arrange an outing with the guest-of-honor to reserve the time slot in the guest-of-honor's schedule. Choose a date with no special significance, such as several weeks before or after the guest-of-honor's birthday.
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Ask the co-conspirator to plan a fake activity that will require the co-conspirator to carpool with the guest-of-honor and that requires them both to wear the appropriate party attire, such as formal wear for an elegant surprise party or casual wear for a backyard barbecue.
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Reduce the risk of the guest-of-honor's canceling the fake plans with the co-conspirator or making his own arrival arrangements by choosing a scheduled event with expensive tickets and paid event parking, such as a baseball game or tickets to the opera.
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Devise a signal that can be sent via text on the cell phones as a secret message announcing the imminent arrival of the co-conspirator and the guest-of-honor to the surprise party. Choose a mundane message that mentions nothing about the party, such as "pick up some milk," in case the guest-of-honor sees the message.
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Establish a 30- to 45-minute window of time as a "arrival blackout," slotted for the guest-of-honor's arrival. Arrange with the co-conspirator to arrive within the middle of the scheduled time period to ensure no straggling guests are entering the event at the same time as the guest-of-honor.
Arrival Strategies for Invited Guests
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Inform guests of the "arrival blackout" window of time slotted for the guest-of-honor's arrival. Explaining that no other guest may arrive at the event during this time period in order to eliminate the risk of spoiling the surprise. Clearly state that all guests who are running late must wait until after the "arrival blackout" to put in their appearance.
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Instruct guests to park well away from the location of the event to prevent a suspicious number of familiar cars from cluing in the guest-of-honor to the awaiting surprise party.
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Ask guests to be prepared with their own fake activity supposedly scheduled for the night of the surprise party to prevent from being caught off guard if the guest-of-honor inquires about their plans on the night of the surprise party.
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Include these clear and concise steps in a written invitation explaining that these steps must be taken in order to keep the party under wraps. Inform guests to hide or destroy their invitations to prevent the guest-of-honor from finding them. Remind guests not to write "surprise party" on their calendars or in their schedulers where the guest-of-honor might come across it.
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Tips & Warnings
Be sure to check the guest-of-honor's schedule prior to picking the date and sending out invitations.
Advise guests to double-check their fake plans with one another so that guest A doesn't say she's having dinner with guest B, after guest B has already said he'll be away on a fishing trip all weekend.
Resources
- Photo Credit Closeup of a woman's face surprised by something . image by dpaint from Fotolia.com
