As your child becomes a teen, creative birthday party ideas become more of a challenge. You can’t satisfy them with balloons, ice cream, and pizza like in the early years. Bringing in the clowns won’t work, and you can forget about face painting and bouncy houses too! So, how do you engage them and create birthday memories? My teen loves the city for her birthdays; she can walk around the fabulous neighborhoods with her friends after the party. So check out these ideas for teen birthday parties in Boston, and find the right celebration for your not-so-easily-impressed teen.
See out our Top Attractions in Boston: Best Things To See and Do with Kids for more ideas on having fun in the city on their special day. And check out our Birthday Party Guide for Boston Kids for cake recipes, fun ways to connect virtually with loved ones, and much more.
1. Get Social
Digital natives are always ready for a close up. Photo courtesy of Go Pixel Yourself
You are never too old to play dress-up. Go Pixel Yourself in Cambridge has 13 rooms with different themes and 9 million pixels to create multi-dimensional, immersive experiences. Your teen can create selfies and videos with their friends to upload. Please note that no food or drinks are allowed inside this establishment but there are restaurants nearby.
If your teen loves to take selfies with their friends, this is a great place to host a birthday party. Your teen and their friends can bring clothes for costume changes for the many different theme spaces. Selfie Wrld in Somerville can provide the pizza and drinks; if pizza isn’t your thing, there are tons of food options at Assembly Row.
Located just right outside of Boston, Assembly Row is a great place to delve into. It is a host to plenty of shops, restaurants, and dessert places. Your teen will have fun going shopping with their friends before and/or after the party and have some yummy desserts too!
2. Have a Not So Average Bowling Party
King’s Dining & Entertainment (in the Back Bay and Seaport District) is not your average grandfather’s or dad’s bowling alley. It’s festive, modern, and have arcades and billiards, as well as a DJ, karaoke, air hockey, skeeball, shuffleboard, and basketball. There are a lot of food options to choose from such as popcorn shrimp, cheddar bites, chicken spring rolls, nachos, pretzel bites, buffalo chicken wontons, quesadillas, as well as burgers, sandwiches, pizzas, wings, salads, tacos, and desserts.
If you are looking for a more vintage, mod bowling alley, then Lucky Strike might hit the right stride. It’s a two-story venue located right behind Fenway Park. It’s great if you are planning to have your teen go to the Red Sox game with their friends and then hit Lucky Strike afterwards. Besides bowling, they also offer arcades, billiards, and parlor games. Their menu is classic pub fare, and they have a second location in Somerville.
If your teen is a fan, a game celebration is a home run. Photo courtesy of Fenway Park.
3. Take Me to the Ballpark or Garden
Take it out of the ballpark, as they say, by having your teen’s birthday party at Fenway Park, the home of the Boston Red Sox, or, take it to center court at the TD Garden, the home of the Boston Celtics and Bruins. Both venues offer private events.
4. Host an Outdoor Teen Birthday Party in Boston
The Lawn on D – South Boston Waterfront
If you are teen’s birthday falls on a warm weather month, you may want to consider an outdoor party. Along with complimentary furniture options, The Lawn on D offers awesome games like bocce, cornhole, giant chess, large Connect Four, and more. For food, there is an extensive menu to choose from, from formal to casual.
Picnics make for al fresco teen birthday fun. Photo courtesy of Let’s Picnic Boston.
Let’s Picnic Boston
Your teen may be tickled pink sitting on pink tufted cushions with a table laden with pink fluted glasses, pink napkins and table runner, candles, flowers, and an assortment of pastel macarons. Let’s Picnic Boston will help you set up the scene. They are a catering service company and they can help plan your ideal picnic for that special day. They will do all the setup and cleanup. You can provide the food or have them cater a full lunch for your gathering.
They offer charcuterie board, picnic table, rugs, blankets, pillows, personalized sign, tableware, décor such as balloons, flowers, and candles, Bluetooth speaker, and umbrellas. They can work with you on a theme such as a beach vibe or Boho chic theme or a color scheme such as pink, lilac, sage, and blue. You can have the picnic at your place or work with them to host one in or around Boston.
Here are some suggestions for picnic spots:
- The Esplanade
- Christopher Columbus Park
- Boston Public Garden
- Commonwealth Ave. Mall
- Fort Point Channel
- Back Bay Fens
- Rose Kennedy Greenway
- Castle Island
5. Go with a French Vibes Party with Crepes
If your teen wants a Paris theme, a great place to host one is at the Paris Seaport Bar + Creperie. It’s small, cozy, and casual. Besides the sweet and savory crepes, small plates, and sandwich options, your teen and their friends can enjoy mocktails while the adults can enjoy a glass of wine or one of their signature drinks.
Paris Seaport Bar + Creperie is in the Seaport District so there’s a lot of places for your teen to walk around with their friends afterwards.
A cruise ship is one of the coolest party places for teens. Photo courtesy of Spirit and Boston.
6. Have a Party on the Water
For a birthday party experience on the water, rent a boat or sailboat or charter a boat in the waters around Boston. My daughter really enjoyed her sweet sixteen birthday on the water with the Spirit of Boston.
The Spirit of Boston offers lunch, brunch, or dinner cruises. The 3-hour cruise takes your guests on a tour around Boston Harbor. Guests are free to roam around the ship, inside and out. The views of Boston are amazing from the water, whether you opt for a day or night cruise for your teen’s birthday party. They will allow you to bring your own décor for your party. There is also a dance floor and DJ and they take music requests.
7. Get Cooking
Have fun making mistakes in the kitchen while learning proper cooking methods. Food brings people together and when you are making a meal together, that’s an extra bonding bonus.
Selfup and Cozymeal offer cooking classes for your teen and their friends. They can choose from sushi, pizza, desserts, dumplings and other culinary delights from around the globe such as Japanese, Indian, and Italian. A private chef will guide your party along the way.
Turn a teen birthday party in Boston into an exciting adventure! Photo courtesy of Red Fox Escapes
8. Go on an Adventure
For a great team bonding event for your sleuthing teen, try these options:
9. Get Cultural
Make it a night on the town with dinner and a show. There are diverse shows from Blue Man Group to Wicked to comedy shows.
Here are some suggestions you can look up:
Sophisticated teens will love dining out in the city. Photo courtesy of Contessa
10. Try Something Different and Posh
