7 Best New Year's Eve Party Ideas For Seniors

New Year's Eve – it's funny how it seems to sneak up on us every year about this time. We often get so involved with Christmas and all the festivities that New Year's Eve gets pushed to the back of our mind.

Celebrating the coming of the new year means deciding on party ideas, what to serve, who to invite, and honestly, it can become overwhelming.

If you find yourself in this situation, you’re in luck! We have seven perfect New Year's Eve party ideas for you to choose from, including murder mysteries, nostalgia, games, dress-up themes, and even a thought for those who can’t make it to midnight.

1. Play Party Games

Everyone enjoys a good game with friends. By choosing the game ahead of time, your competitive guests will be able to hone up on their skills, and your non-competitive guests will enjoy knowing what to expect.

Your group of family and friends may have some old favorites such as 42, Bunko, or Spades, but this is also a great time to introduce a new game.

We have a few suggestions that prove to be fun for everyone:

• Liar's Dice is a game of deception and detection and is available on Amazon for around $20. You will need a good poker face for this one. 

• Guesstures takes a new spin on charades, often delivering hilarious outcomes. This game is played with two teams and is sold at many stores, including Amazon and Walmart.

• Codenames is played in teams. Using thinking skills you have long forgotten you had, you have to connect two or more items with a single word. Target and Amazon are two places you can purchase this challenging game.
  

2. Host a Murder Mystery 

Have you ever wanted to be a detective? Are you that person that always solves the crime before the end of the show? Do you enjoy going to Escape Rooms? If so, then a murder mystery New Year's Eve party idea is perfect for you.

My Mystery Party has tons of mysteries to be solved with as few as two guests or as many as 200. Browse through the choices and choose the best idea for your crowd. 

Just imagine trying to be the first to solve the murder As the Ball Drops...on Times Square – this might be the perfect pick for this year's New Year's Eve party. 

Their mystery packs are downloadable with everything you need to pull off the murder mystery party, or you can order a boxed version to be delivered. Either way, your guests will enjoy themselves and get to try out their detective skills in the process.

3. Host a Time-Period Party

Choose a time-period from your past and use that as the basis for your New Year's Eve party. Let's just use the 50's for an example. 

Your guests can expect a sock hop with a little Elvis Presley, Chuck Berry, and Jerry Lee Lewis playing on the radio, maybe cheeseburger sliders with root beer floats, poodle skirts, and perfectly greased hair.  

Who wouldn't enjoy that? How much fun could you have decorating for that? Talk about bringing back some memories! Find all your party needs at Party City, located here in Decatur, IL. 

4. A Walk Down Memory Lane

When you have been through 60 or more New Year's Eve parties, the memories are endless. Hosting a party that embraces those memories can be a refreshing twist to the normal hoop-la typically associated with this night.

For a walk down memory lane, your guests will bring items from their past to display around the party area.  

By having an area ready for each of your guests, they can come in and quickly set up their 5 or 10 items. Some item ideas include:

• Pictures
• Clothing
• Souvenirs
• Foods
• Relics

Throughout the evening, guests can browse through each other's displays and get a glimpse into each other's lives. 

There is no telling the conversations that will take place once everyone begins to look at all the memorabilia. What a fun way to spend the evening – not only reminiscing but also getting to know each other.

5. Dream Job Party

As a kid, you probably dreamed of what you wanted to be when you grew up. Most every kid does, but did that dream come true?

A unique twist on that childhood dream is to dress up as what you hoped to be. Maybe you dreamed of being a professional baseball player, but you ended up taking over your dad's septic business instead, or perhaps you wanted to be a pilot, but you became a nurse.

While there is nothing wrong with whatever it is you do (or did) for a living, it just might not have been what you dreamed of as a child.

Pull from those long-ago memories of childhood. What did you want to do? Rescue gorillas in the rainforest, track the dolphins with Jacque Cousteau, or did you just want to stay home and have a dozen children? 

Whatever it was, dress the part, even if it is for just one night.

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6. Host the "Perfect" New Year's Eve Party

For over 60 years, you have watched what other people do on New Year's Eve. This year is your chance to have the typical New Year's Eve party, complete with party hats and noisemakers, champagne, and midnight kisses.

Decorate with glitter, huge 2020 balloons, regular balloons, and streamers. Have a photo booth with fun glasses, hats, feather boas, and signs for your guests to enjoy. 

Times Square should be on the big screen for everyone to be able to countdown the dropping of the midnight ball. Afterward, music and dancing are in order.

Sound like a good time? It certainly could be with the right group of family and friends. Make your list, get your decorations and food in order, and get ready to party the night away.

7. Host a New Year's Eve Brunch

That's right – I said brunch. Let's face it... no matter how old you are, staying up until midnight is not for everyone. If you get tired just thinking about staying up that late, then ring in the new year earlier in the day.

Arrange for your group of friends to meet at a local restaurant, such as Diamonds Family Restaurant or Coney McKane's American Eatery, both located in Decatur, IL.

Meeting for a New Year's Eve brunch is a hassle-free way to celebrate the coming of the new year. You can indulge in great food, good conversation, let someone else do the cooking and cleaning, and you don't have to stay up until midnight.

Party the Night (or Day) Away

It doesn't matter when or how you ring in the new year. What is essential is that you do it with the people that make you happy. 

If you always host a New Year's Eve party, or if this will be the first time, planning is the ticket to success.

Choose one of theme theme ideas, and go for it! When friends gather in the right spirit, you can't go wrong.

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