The Ultimate Halloween Party Checklist
Get ready for the spookiest night of the year with our Ultimate Halloween Party Checklist! From decorations to food and games, we've got everything you need to throw the perfect Halloween bash!
So if you want to throw a spooktacular Halloween party, we've got loads of ideas that'll help make it amazing! We've rounded up everything you could need, from Halloween party invitations, to a selection of brilliant Halloween decorations for adding a little extra awesomeness to your party.
Then for the big day we've got Halloween food and drink ideas covered. And if you need Halloween costume ideas, then we've got that covered too. Everything from Halloween outfits for baby to the coolest witchy make-up and tutorials for creating your own bloody wounds!
THE ULTIMATE HALLOWEEN PARTY CHECKLIST
We've got EVERYTHING you need to make Halloween party planning a whole lot easier!
DECIDE ON THE VENUE, DATE AND TIME
- First up, you need to decide where you're holding your Halloween party. Is it at home, do you need to book a venue? Think about the number of guests you want to invite and the space you have to use.
- Choose a date and time - if the 31st October isn't practical look at a date on the weekend before or after to still keep the spooky vibe.
- And if you know you are wanting to book a popular venue, then you might need to start looking at venues and bookings as far as 6-9 months in advance.
CHOOSE YOUR HALLOWEEN PARTY THEME
When it comes to Halloween the party themes are literally the BEST you can go for spooky mystical witches cottage, to full on spooky horror and everything in-between! We've popped some popular Halloween theme ideas we LOVE below to get your creative juices flowing!
- Haunted Mansion - turn your party venue into a spooky haunted mansion, think cobwebs, haunted flickering candles and shadowy decorations.
- Witches Cottage - this one is ideal for smaller venues, cosy up with cauldrons, broomsticks, potions and a book of spells, ask guests to dress as witches to complete the coven!
- Monster Mash - go all out monster and decorate your venue with a blaze of monster colours. Ask guest to dress as werwolves, vampires, zombies and creepy monsters.
- Day Of The Dead - opt for a traditional Día de los Muertos theme and go with a Mexican vibe.
- Ghostly Masquerade - go for a devilishly dark theme, with a spooky twist on a classic masquerade ball.
- Spooky Circus- if scary clowns are your thing, then a go all out with a frighteningly good circus theme.
SET YOUR BUDGET - HALLOWEEN PARTY CHECKLIST
Okay so it's super easy to get carried away when party planning, and that's why setting a budget, and allowing a small amount extra (just in case) is the best way to keep your costs in check.
And if you only have a small budget, then get creative with the food, drinks and decorations. Plus you can always ask guests to contribute with party food, bring a bottle or help make homemade decorations.
HALLOWEEN PARTY CHECKLIST - SEND OUT PARTY INVITES
- Create your guest list
- Send Halloween party invites out at least 3-4 weeks in advance, this gives people a chance to respond and get busy working on their Halloween costumes.
HALLOWEEN PARTY INVITATIONS
- Download free printable Halloween party invitations here.
- Buy beautiful ornate spider web Halloween party invites here.
- Buy 50 vintage style Halloween invites with envelopes here.
PLAN THE HALLOWEEN PARTY FOOD AND DRINKS - HALLOWEEN PARTY CHECKLIST
When it comes to planning the food and drinks for your Halloween party you can go one of two ways. You can do a cold buffet and appetizers, and we've popped loads of great recipe ideas below for you...
Or you can do hot food and look at options like creating a food bar or food station. You choose a theme for your station you can opt for hotdogs or burgers, a baked potato bar or maybe a chili station. Then you create your food bar around your chosen dish. Piling loads of toppings, sides and sauces on to the station so people can just dig in and serve themselves.
HALLOWEEN PARTY FOOD IDEAS - COLD BUFFET
HALLOWEEN PARTY FOOD IDEAS - HOT FOOD
HALLOWEEN DESSERTS
- Bogey Bites
- Edible Witch Wands
- Ginger'Dead' Men
- Halloween Cheesecake
- Halloween Chocolate Bark
- Halloween Jelly
- Halloween Candy Charcuterie
- Halloween Cupcakes
HALLOWEEN DRINKS FOR KIDS
HALLOWEEN COCKTAILS FOR ADULTS
HALLOWEEN PARTY SUPPLIES - HALLOWEEN PARTY CHECKLIST
Okay, so have a think about the number of guests, the type of food, whether or not you're doing party bags. And then work out your numbers. You'll need to order in the following - also look at ways to decorate the food like signs, and Halloween table features.
- Halloween Party Drink-ware - glasses, bottles etc
- Halloween Paper Straws
- Halloween Paper Plates - fab for cold buffet food
- Halloween Food Trays - great for burgers, hot dogs and nachos
- Disposable Cutlery - biodegradable, eco bamboo cutlery is best.
- Halloween Tablecloths
- Halloween Napkins
- Halloween Party Bags
Also stock up on trash bags, counter cleaner and paper towels for dealing with spills and mess.
HALLOWEEN PARTY DECORATIONS
So, when it comes to decorating your party venue, you can go homemade and keep things in a smaller budget, or shop bought, which is often more convenient or a mix of both.
Shop bought Halloween decorations can be used year after year, so they are an investment if you plan on hosting more Halloween parties in future. And DIY Halloween decorations kids just LOVE to help out with, so a mix of both is a great idea.
HOMEMADE HALLOWEEN DECORATIONS
We've popped some of our favourite homemade DIY Halloween decorations below and you can check out our Halloween Decorations Pinterest board for a whole lot more!
- Ghost Garlands
- Milk Bottle Lanterns
- Paper Pumpkins
- Paper Spiderwebs
- Easy DIY Halloween Porch Decorations
SHOP-BOUGHT HALLOWEEN DECORATIONS
If you're doing shop bought Halloween decorations you can load up in bulk with things like paper bats, fake cobwebs and Halloween streamers and then buy some feature decorations to go amongst them.
HALLOWEEN ENTERTAINMENT - HALLOWEEN PARTY CHECKLIST
Depending on what type of Halloween party you're creating, you will need a mix of entertainment, we've gathered together the BEST Halloween games, playlist and movies for you to choose from.
HALLOWEEN PLAYLIST
A Halloween bash would not be complete without banging out these Halloween classics!
- Ghostbusters - Ray Parker Jr.
- Thriller - Michael Jackson
- Somebody's Watching Me - Rockwell
- Monster Mash - Bobby "Boris" Pickett
- Time Warp - Little Neil, Patrica Quinn, Richard O'Brien
- Disturbia - Rhianna
- Highway To Hell - AC/DC
- This Is Halloween - Citizens Of Halloween
- The Addams Family - Vic Mizzy
- Superstition - Stevie Wonder
- Toxic - Britney Spears
- I Put A Spell On You - Nina Simone
- Black Magic - Little Mix
- Ghost Town - The Specials
- The Monster - Eminem
- One Way Or Another (Hocus Pocus) - Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker, Kathy Najimy
- Bat Out Of Hell - Meat Loaf
- Monster - Lady Gaga
- Zombie - The Cranberries
- Killer - Adamski
10 BEST EVER HALLOWEEN MOVIES - HALLOWEEN PARTY CHECKLIST
- Ghostbusters (any, they're all classic)
- Practical Magic
- The Witches
- Hocus Pocus
- Beetlejuice
- The Addams Family
- Sleepy Hollow
- The Blair Witch Project
- The Shining
- Poltergeist
HALLOWEEN GAMES
- Cheap and Easy DIY Halloween Party Games (for all ages - includes doughnut on a string, skeleton ring toss, broomstick limbo and lots more!)
- Eyeball Pong
- Eyeball Dig
- Boo Bowling
- Pin The Eye On The Monster
- Apple Bobbing
- Witches Hat Ring Toss
- Halloween Costume Contest
TRICK OR TREAT ESSENTIALS - HALLOWEEN PARTY CHECKLIST
If you're heading out trick or treating as part of your Halloween party, there's a few essentials you'll need to get in.
- Halloween Costumes (obviously - see below for ideas)
- Trick or Treat Bags - we love these light up trick or treat buckets here, they make great goody bags.
- Sweets and Goodies - to hand out from your own home, we love these homemade witches broomstick treat bags. Super cute!
- Torches - so you and the kids can see where you're going, especially if it's dark or rainy, we love these hand-held mini LED torches, perfect size for kids.
- Warm Clothes - Halloween night can often be chilly, either layer up some jumpers under the costumes or wear coats.
- Wooly Socks - if the kids are going to be doing lots of walking, it's a great idea to grab some thermal hiking socks so their feet stay warm, and you help minimise blisters.
HALLOWEEN COSTUMES - HALLOWEEN PARTY CHECKLIST
Because Halloween just wouldn't be Halloween without the costumes! So, you can do DIY homemade Halloween costumes which can be super fun to do. You can go with a family theme, or a party theme or just any costume you fancy. Or you can buy shop-bought costumes, that cuts out the hassle of making your own. Just do you!
We've popped some fun DIY Halloween costumes below for you for inspiration, along with some BRILLIANT Halloween make-up tutorials.
HOMEMADE DIY HALLOWEEN COSTUMES
- DIY Ghost Costume
- DIY Pumpkin Costume
- DIY Fairy Costume
- DIY Unicorn Costume
- 101 Family Halloween Costumes
- Make Your Own Magic Wand
HALLOWEEN MAKE UP TUTORIALS
We hope you have the BEST Halloween Party Ever! You can download our Ultimate Halloween Party Checklist Here to stay on track!
Loads more ideas for family celebrations here!
Get loads more Halloween ideas here
Wendy is the creator of Daisies & Pie, a UK food blog sharing easy meals and home lifestyle tips since 2012
