Three Great Themed Pool Parties for Kids

There’s almost nothing about summer that’s better than the weekend pool party. Your backyard can become a wonderland for friends and family, and most importantly, their kids.

While you can just invite a bunch of people over for hot dogs and an afternoon of swimming, why not turn it into a themed festival that will be memorable for all?

Here’s three ideas to get you started.

The Tropical Pool Party

Not everyone gets to live on an island surrounded by palm trees and white beaches. In fact, many people haven’t even visited this kind of paradise.

So why not bring the tropics right to your backyard? It can be super simple.

You can start with inflatable palm trees, and some flamingo floats for the pool. From there, you can turn the menu into an island buffet with pineapples and other fruits, as well as Caribbean themed mocktails for all!

You can set your phone to play calypso music all day long. You’ll think you just stepped off the plane and into the most beautiful place on earth.

The Mermaid Pool Party (And Mermen of course)

While this idea probably works better for a girls pool party, it really can be used for everyone. Who wouldn’t want to visit that magical land under the sea?

Getting costumes for this type of pool party for kids is easier than ever, and can be really inexpensive.

Some inflatables can be used to bring the seafloor alive- think big clams, fish, dolphins and other sea life. You could say the sky’s the limit, but we’re actually going to be underwater, so…

There’s quite a few recipes for the mermaid theme here at TinyBeans that are easy to make, and will delight even the pickiest of kids. While it may seem obvious, there’s soundtracks for a few famous animated mermaid movies out there that you can play to really set the mood.

Maybe you can even hide orange clownfish around the yard for the kids to look for to hearken back to another famous animated underwater movie…

The Athletic Pool Party

Once again, thanks to inflatables, throwing a sports theme pool party is fun, healthy, and sure to be a hit for everyone (including the adults).

For the budget conscious, pool basketball is the place to start. You can get a few hoops and balls for under $50 and let the games begin.

On a slightly larger scale, you can try your hand at water polo. Simply choose teams, place nets at opposite ends of the swimming pool, and blow the whistle. (If you have a deep end, just make sure you place the nets in the shallower water since we’re playing with kids here.

Another very popular swimming pool game is water volleyball.  You can purchase a net that spans the width of your pool and can be easily removed when the party’s over.

You may want to have a few of these on hand, as attention spans can dwindle on a hot summer day. And once all the games are done? You can’t beat a good cannonball contest.

As for the menu, you can’t go wrong with the sports drink of your choice.  For a main course, hot dogs and hamburgers are linked to sports more than any other type of food.

And don’t forget, win or lose, we go out for ice cream after the big game, so be sure to have some on hand to celebrate with!

Your Next Pool Party

In closing, we do want to remind you to always have an adult present when the kids are anywhere near the pool.  You can read a few more kids safety tips for your backyard pool here.

No matter what theme you choose, make sure your pool is properly cleaned and water chemistry is right before everyone shows up!