390 PARTY THEMES: THE ULTIMATE LIST OF PARTY THEME IDEAS FOR ADULTS BIRTHDAY PARTIES AND COSTUME PARTIES

Here is a gigantic list of 390 party themes that are perfect for birthday parties, costume parties or festive celebrations for adults.

Yep, move over kids, it’s time for the grown-ups to have some theme party fun! If you have spent so long planning kids parties that you’ve run out of creativity for coming up with a party for you and your own friends, look no further. 

There are 390 party theme ideas for you to choose from ahead of inviting all your favourite family and friends to join you for the mother of all parties. 

Use this big list of themes to get creative with your next birthday party, anniversary party or even Christmas get-together party. Just because you’re grown-up doesn’t mean you can’t play dress-up! 

HOW TO CHOOSE THE BEST PARTY THEME FOR YOUR PARTY

You know your party guests – and yourself – best. So gauge just how much effort everyone is likely to put into getting dressed up for a themed party. If the answer is absolutely zero, then go for a theme that doesn’t involve fancy dress. You can easily theme a party with fun invites, decorations, food and music. 

But if you know that everyone is ready, willing and able to go full force with their fancy dress outfits, then the sky’s the limit with the party theme suggestions on this list. 

The only other thing to bear in mind before diving into the list of theme ideas is how much time you have ahead of your party. 

If you’re going for a full-on party theme you want to give your guests a good amount of time to plan and get their outfits together. Around a month should do it for most themes. 

The same goes for being realistic about how much time you have to prepare for the party. Don’t go for an over-the-top fancy theme that you just don’t have the time to prepare for. 

A quick note: Whilst plenty of themes below can be adapted or are suitable for kids parties, if you are looking specifically for kids party themes, I’ve got a separate post with a big list of 99 of the best themes for kids parties.

Right, back to the big list. I’ve created a huge list of party themes in alphabetical order. If you scroll past this list you will also find specific ideas for the following:

• Movie inspired ideas
• TV show inspired ideas
• Christmas theme ideas
• Sport inspired ideas
• Halloween theme ideas

Right, are you ready to dive in?

PARTY THEMES IN ALPHABETICAL ORDER

I’ve literally added every single conceivable idea for a party theme to this list. Some of the themes are food inspired, some are distinctly retro or nostalgic. There are plenty of ideas for dress-up and costume parties, but also plenty of ideas for simply having a party decor and party food theme.

1. 1920s – Flapper
2. 1920s – Gangster
3. 1950s – Rock n roll
4. 1960s – Swinging 60s London
5. 1970s – Hippie 
6. 1970s British punk 
7. 1970s Disco Party
8. 1980s Movie stars
9. 1980s Pop stars 
10. 1990s Pop stars
11. 2000 Pop stars 
12. 80s Club night 
13. 90s Club night
14. Abigail’s Party  
15. Alice in Wonderland
16. All American
17. A Midsummer Night’s Dream
18. Ancient Rome
19. Andy Warhol The Factory 
20. Angels and Devils
21. Animal Kingdom
22. Anime
23. Anything but Black
24. Arabian Nights
25. Around the world
26. Astrology
27. Austin Powers
28. Avengers
29. Awards after-show party
30. Back to Prom
31. Back to school
32. Back to the Future
33. Back to the Future
34. Back to the noughties dance party
35. Backyard BBQ
36. Bad Santa
37. Barbie
38. Barbie and Ken
39. Baseball Greats
40. Basketball / NBA party
41. Basketball Heroes
42. Baywatch
43. Beach party
44. Better Call Saul
45. Big Bang Theory
46. Black, gold, silver theme 
47. Black & White Movies
48. Black and white colour theme
49. Black tie
50. Bluey
51. Board game night
52. Bob Ross painting party
53. Boho
54. Bollywood
55. Brazilian Carnival
56. Breakfast at Tiffany’s
57. Breaking Bad
58. Bridgerton
59. Britain’s Got Talent / TV talent show
60. British royal family through the ages
61. Brunch party
62. Buffy The Vampire Slayer
63. Bugsy Malone 
64. Burlesque
65. Camping party
66. Candy theme
67. Carnival
68. Casino – the movie
69. Casino night
70. Characters from 80s movies
71. Characters from 90s movies
72. Characters from stage musicals 
73. Characters from noughties movies
74. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
75. Cheerleaders
76. Chinese New Year 
77. Chocolate fountain party
78. Christmas in July
79. Christmas sweater party
80. Chronicles of Narnia
81. Cinco de Mayo
82. Circus
83. City Slickers
84. Class Disney character
85. Classic 80’s (think Ferris Buller, Pretty in Pink)
86. Clueless
87. Coachella festival at home
88. Cocktail party 
89. Cocomelon
90. Comedy show characters
91. Comic books
92. Cook-off or bake-off theme
93. Country Bumpkin
94. Country music
95. Craft party
96. Crazy hair
97. Cricket afternoon tea
98. Dance battle
99. Dancing With The Stars/Strictly Come Dancing
100. David Bowie
101. Dead zombie pop stars
102. Dead zombie movie stars
103. Death to my youth party 
104. Denim and diamonds
105. Dessert bar
106. Dia De Muertos/Day of the Dead
107. Die Hard – everyone dresses as John McClane
108. Dinner party 
109. Dirty Dancing
110. Disco
111. Doctor Who
112. Downton Abbey
113. Dr. Seuss
114. Dress as the thing you most fear
115. Dress as your favourite celebrity
116. Dress for the decade you were born
117. Dress up as your favourite character from a TV show or film!
118. Dr Who
119. Egyptian Theme
120. Elvis through the decades party 
121. Enchanted forest
122. English High Tea
123. Escape room
124. Fairy Tales
125. Famous couples
126. Famous Dead People
127. Famous Sports People
128. Fancy Dress (anything goes)
129. Fantastic Beasts
130. Favourite popstar
131. Favourite things party
132. Fire and ice
133. Fondue
134. Footballers and Wives (or husbands) 
135. Footballing heroes
136. Fresh Prince of Bel Air
137. Friends (the TV show) 
138. Game of Thrones
139. Gameshow
140. Gaming
141. Gaming party
142. Gangsters and Flappers
143. Garden party
144. Geeks and tech bros
145. Ghostbusters
146. Ghosts and ghouls
147. Girls night in
148. Glamping
149. Glam Rock
150. Glam squad
151. Glastonbury at home 
152. Glee
153. Glitter and sparkles
154. Glow in the dark
155. Golf 
156. Goth
157. Grammys party
158. Grease
159. Great Leaders from History
160. Great Wall of China
161. Grill and chill
162. Halloween
163. Hamptons at home
164. Happy Days
165. Harry Potter
166. Harry Styles
167. Havana Nights
168. Hawaiian Luau
169. Heavy metal
170. Heroes vs villains
171. High tea
172. Hip Hop
173. Holographic
174. Horror film classics
175. Hot Tub Time Machine
176. House of the Dragon
177. Ibiza Chillout 
178. Ibiza Rocks
179. Ice cream bar
180. Iconic footballing heroes
181. International food
182. James Bond
183. Jane Austen novels
184. Jane Fonda 80s workout party
185. Jelly and ice-cream 
186. John Hughes 80s party
187. John Hughes movies
188. Karaoke party
189. Keeping up with the Kardashians
190. Kids show characters
191. Kings and Queens party
192. La Dolce Vita 
193. Las Vegas
194. Lego
195. Line dancing
196. Lord of the Rings
197. Love & romance
198. Mad Hatter’s Tea Party
199. Mad Max
200. Mad Men
201. Madonna through the decades
202. Magic show
203. Magnum PI
204. Makeover
205. Mama Mia
206. Mardi Gras
207. Martin Scorsese movies
208. Marvel Characters
209. Masks and Mimosas
210. Masquerade ball
211. Mediaeval
212. Memory lane 
213. Mermaids and mermen 
214. Mexican fiesta
215. Miami Vice
216. Milkshake bar
217. Minute To Win It
218. Mission Impossible
219. Moulin Rouge
220. Movie marathon
221. Movie stars of the 80s
222. Movie stars of the 90s
223. Movie stars of the noughties
224. Murder mystery
225. Music festival in your yard/back garden
226. Music video party
227. Neighbours (TV show)
228. Neon UV party
229. New York New York 
230. Nightmare Before Christmas
231. North Pole
232. Notorious figures from history 
233. Oktoberfest
234. Olympians/Olympics
235. Olympic heroes
236. Onesie party
237. Oscars party
238. Outer space
239. Painting party
240. Pantone Colour of the Year
241. Parisienne nights 
242. Pastel colours
243. Peace and love
244. Peaky Blinders characters
245. Pierrot 
246. Pirates of the Caribbean 
247. Pizza
248. Plant and sip gardening party
249. Poker party
250. Pool party
251. Pop art
252. Pop culture
253. Popstar 
254. Pot luck party
255. Pretty in Pink
256. Pretty Woman
257. Primary Colours Only
258. Priscilla Queen of the Desert
259. Project Runway
260. Pulp Fiction
261. Pyjama Party
262. Quentin Tarantino movie characters
263. Race day
264. Rainbow party
265. Real Housewives
266. Reality TV Stars
267. Red, blue and white
268. Red carpet
269. Redneck/Hillbilly party
270. Reggae
271. Retro
272. Retro board games 
273. Retro rave 
274. Retro video games
275. Revisiting your school prom
276. Rio Carnival 
277. Rockabilly
278. Rock n Roll
279. Rockstar
280. Rocky Horror Picture Show
281. Roller disco
282. Safari
283. Salsa 
284. Sandra Dee sleepover party
285. Saturday Night Fever
286. Scavenger hunt
287. Science fiction
288. Scooby Doo mystery party
289. Selfie party
290. Seven deadly sins
291. Shakespearean characters
292. Signs of the zodiac
293. Silent disco
294. Silver soirée
295. Slumber party
296. Smores and hotdogs campfire
297. SNL 
298. Social media influencer party
299. Spaghetti Western
300. Spa pamper party 
301. Speakeasy
302. Speed dating/matchmaking party
303. Spielberg movie characters
304. Sports Day
305. Spice Girls
306. Springtime in Paris
307. Squid Game
308. St. Patrick’s Day
309. Star Trek
310. Star Wars
311. Stranger Things
312. Strictly Come Dancing / Dancing With The Stars
313. Studio 54
314. Summer camp
315. Sumo party
316. Super Bowl
317. Superheroes
318. Superstar DJs 
319. Surf’s Up
320. Surprise party
321. Survivor
322. Sushi train 
323. Taco bar
324. Talent Show 
325. Tantrums and tiaras 
326. Tartan & Scotch
327. The Bachelor / Bachelorette
328. The beautiful and the damned
329. The Breakfast Club
330. The Crown
331. The Future
332. The Godfather
333. The Goonies
334. The Greatest Showman
335. The Great Gatsby
336. The Grinch
337. The Inbetweeners
338. The Kardashians
339. The Mandalorian
340. The Muppets
341. The Nightmare Before Christmas
342. The Queen’s Gambit chess party
343. The Rocky Horror Picture Show
344. The Simpsons
345. The Sopranos
346. The Wizard of Oz
347. Things starting with a certain letter
348. Things That Fly
349. Thrift Shop Finds (set a budget)
350. Tiger King
351. Time Travellers
352. Titanic
353. Toga party
354. Top Gun
355. Toy Story
356. Transformers
357. Trashy/tacky dress-up party
358. Travel themed
359. Tropical
360. Truth or dare games
361. Tux and Tiaras
362. TV show characters 
363. Ugly bridesmaid dress theme 
364. Ugly sweater
365. UK prime ministers through the decades
366. Under the Sea/ Nautical
367. Underwater/ocean
368. Unicorn
369. US presidents through the decades
370. Venice Beach muscle party
371. Video Killed the Radio Star
372. Vintage Funfair Themed Party
373. Vintage garden party
374. Vintage Hollywood
375. VIP party
376. Viva Las Vegas
377. Walk Like An Egyptian
378. Westside Story
379. White partyBlack party
380. Wig party
381. Wild west
382. Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory
383. Wimbledon whites
384. Wine and cheese
385. Winter Wonderland
386. Wizard of Oz
387. Woodstock
388. Woody Allen movies
389. Zen 
390. Zombie Apocalypse Party

TV SHOW INSPIRED PARTY THEMES

TV shows make great party themes. They are particularly brilliant if there is an iconic character or characters, such as Ross and Rachel for a little nostalgia, or Jon Snow and Daenerys for an epic fantasy style party.

Reality TV shows also make a great basis for creating a party theme for a party for adults. Keeping Up With The Kardashians provides endless opportunities for creative dressing up fun, as does the Real Housewives.

Favourite and super popular TV shows from across the decades make great party themes. Here is a list of TV shows that would make great party themes, either because they have iconic characters or iconic storylines or just because they offer up the chance to have lots of fun.

1. Bay Watch
2. Better Call Saul
3. Breaking Bad
4. Bridgerton
5. Doctor Who
6. Downton Abbey
7. Favourite TV comedy show
8. Favourite TV detective show
9. Favourite TV quiz show
10. Friends
11. Fresh Prince of Bel Air
12. Game of Thrones 
13. Happy Days
14. House of the Dragon
15. Keeping up with the Kardashians
16. Mad Men
17. Magnum PI
18. Miami Vice
19. Neighbours
20. Peaky Blinders
21. Project Runway
22. Real Housewives
23. SNL 
24. Squid Game
25. Star Trek
26. Stranger Things
27. Strictly Come Dancing / Dancing With The Stars
28. The Crown
29. The Inbetweeners
30. The Muppets
31. The Simpsons
32. The Sopranos
33. The Walking Dead

MOVIE INSPIRED PARTY THEMES

Movie inspired party themes make for really big, fancy parties. Think milestone parties, like 30th, 40th, 50th etc. You can pick a film that was huge in the birthday person’s year of birth.

Go for parties with iconic characters, such as James Bond, Cher from Clueless or Holly Golightly from Breakfast at Tiffany’s. Or think about how the movie could inspire the party venue – or the party venue could inspire the party theme!

1. Abigail’s Party  
2. Austin Powers
3. Avengers
4. Back to the Future
5. Breakfast at Tiffany’s 
6. Casino
7. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
8. Classic 80’s (think Ferris Buller, Pretty in Pink)
9. Clueless
10. Die Hard – everyone dresses as John McClane
11. Dirty Dancing
12. Fantastic Beasts
13. Ghostbusters
14. Grease
15. Harry Potter
16. Hot Tub Time Machine
17. Iconic horror movie characters
18. James Bond
19. John Hughes movies
20. Lord of the Rings
21. Mad Max
22. Mama Mia
23. Martin Scorsese movies
24. Moulin Rouge
25. Pirates of the Caribbean 
26. Priscilla Queen of the Desert
27. Pulp Fiction
28. Quentin Tarantino movies
29. Saturday Night Fever
30. Spaghetti Western inspired
31. Star Wars
32. The Breakfast Club
33. The Godfather
34. The Goonies
35. The Greatest Showman
36. The Great Gatsby
37. The Mandalorian
38. The Nightmare Before Christmas
39. The Oscars – Academy Awards 
40. The Rocky Horror Picture Show
41. The Wizard of Oz
42. Titanic
43. Top Gun
44. Vintage Hollywood movie stars
45. Woody Allen movies

MUSIC INSPIRED PARTY THEMES

Music inspired party themes. Well the sky is the limit. Pick from a favourite band or artist or pick a music genre or music from a certain decade.

Music inspired parties are great for invoking a sense of nostalgia, especially as they lend themselves to you getting really creative with the music playlist.

1. 1950s – Rock n roll
2. 1970s British punk 
3. 1970s Disco Party
4. 1980s pop stars 
5. 1990s pop stars
6. 2000 pop stars 
7. 80s Club night 
8. 90s Club night
9. Back to the noughties dance party
10. Characters from Musicals (stage or film)
11. Coachella festival at home
12. Country music
13. Dance battle
14. David Bowie
15. Disco
16. Elvis through the decades party 
17. Favourite popstar
18. Glam Rock
19. Glastonbury at home 
20. Glee
21. Harry Styles
22. Hip Hop
23. Ibiza Chillout 
24. Ibiza Rocks
25. Karaoke party
26. Line dancing
27. Madonna through the decades
28. Music festival in your yard/back garden
29. Music video party
30. Reggae
31. Retro rave 
32. Rockabilly
33. Rock n Roll
34. Rockstar
35. Roller disco
36. Saturday Night Fever
37. Spice Girls
38. Studio 54
39. Grammys winners

SPORTS INSPIRED PARTY THEMES

Sports party themes don’t necessarily mean having to play the actual sport. Get everyone to dress up as a sporting hero from the world of football or basketball.

1. Baseball heroes
2. Basketball / NBA party
3. Basketball Heroes
4. Cheerleaders
5. Cricket afternoon tea
6. Footballing heroes
7. Iconic footballing heroes
8. Olympic heroes
9. Sports Day
10. Superbowl

CHRISTMAS HOLIDAY PARTY THEMES

Give your party a fun theme if you want to really make sure your Christmas party stands out as THE party of the holiday season. There is so much pressure to have fun at Christmas that sometimes a theme is the best way of getting the party started.

Think Christmas movies or simply think glamour and luxury. Christmas number ones is a particularly fun idea, where everyone can choose their favourite Christmas number on and dress up as the music artist.

1. 12 Days of Christmas 
2. A Christmas Carol
3. A winter wonderland
4. Bad Elf on the Shelf 
5. Bad Santa
6. Black and gold 
7. Candycanes
8. Christmas crackers comedy 
9. Christmas Elvis
10. Christmas games night
11. Christmas HoeDown
12. Christmas in Vegas baby!
13. Christmas masquerade ball
14. Christmas movie marathon
15. Christmas number ones
16. Christmas on the beach
17. Die Hard – everyone comes as John Maclane
18. Dress as a Christmas bauble
19. Funny Christmas hats
20. Gingerbread house building
21. Ornament making party
22. Snow and ice
23. Tartan and Scotch 
24. The Grinch 
25. The Nightmare Before Christmas
26. The Nutcracker
27. Ugly Christmas sweaters
28. Wreath making party

HALLOWEEN PARTY THEME IDEAS 

If you want to take your Halloween party to the next level it is well worth giving it a theme. It’s also a great way of getting everyone to dress up, because a general theme of ‘Halloween’ can sometimes be overwhelming.

Go for current spooky favourites from the world of TV or film, like Stranger Things of Squid game or go for movie classics, like Halloween or It, or Freddy Kruger in Nightmare on Elm Street.

1. A Nightmare on Elm Street
2. Beetlejuice
3. Black and white 
4. Dead zombie movie stars
5. Dead zombie pop stars 
6. Dia de los Muertos
7. Escape room
8. Fortune telling party
9. Ghost white party
10. Ghouls night in 
11. Halloween (The movie)
12. Hallo-Wine party
13. Haunted gingerbread house
14. Iconic horror movie characters
15. It
16. Mad scientist 
17. Murder mystery
18. Neon glow party
19. Rocky Horror Picture Show
20. Scooby Doo
21. Scream (The movie)
22. Smores and hotdogs campfire
23. Squid Game
24. Stranger Things
25. Vampire / Dracula
26. Zombie prom night

HOW TO BRING YOUR PARTY THEME TO LIFE

Once you’ve chosen your party theme you need to work out how to bring it to life. Here’s a quick list of ideas for things you can do and include.

• Themed party invitations – include dress-up ideas/instructions
• Themed decorations
• Party music playlist
• Themed party food
• Themed party food plates and cups
• Themed party drinks – create a special themed cocktail?
• Themed party favours

PIN TO SAVE: