Games to Play for a 60th Birthday
- Many people associate this clue-seeking game with summer camp or Easter egg hunts, but a scavenger hunt can easily be updated for an older audience. The party planners can devise clues based on the skills and memories of the guest of honor, or can even ask the guests to submit personalized clues that can be combined into an adventure. The clues can lead around the house, outside into the yard or beyond, directing the guest of honor to a special gift, surprise guest or unexpected party location.
- Incorporating a camera into the 60th birthday festivities can elicit funny or out-of-character responses from guests and will also guarantee that the event is well-documented. Using a still camera with a timer feature, have guests sit in a circle and pass the camera around. Each person must hold the camera at arm's length and say a designated phrase or sing happy birthday before passing it on. The guest holding the camera when it goes off gets a punishment, such as telling a joke or doing a dance. Afterward, the photos can be displayed (much to the chagrin or amusement of guests) in a slide show.
- This activity can keep guests laughing throughout the evening, but it doesn't require everyone's full concentration. Equip all the guests with a page of small stickers and see who can get rid of their entire page first by sneakily putting stickers onto other people. The game may lead to elaborate set-ups and sneaky pats on the back. Alternately, all of the guests could be on a mission to get 60 stickers onto the guest of honor before the night is over.
- Games that require special knowledge from bygone eras are a good way to celebrate the guest of honor's age without making the person feel embarrassed. For example, "Reminiscing" is a trivia-style board game designed to test the knowledge and memory of people over 30 with historical and pop culture questions from the 1950s through the 2000s. Particularly ambitious party planners could also design a game with more personalized trivia questions.