Were you born in the 80s but grew up in the 90s? Can’t decide which decade theme to have? Why not celebrate both!? With and 80s and 90s party! This complete guide will make planning your radical retro party simple and fun.
I’ve packed it with lods of ideas for venues, invitations, attire, activities, food, and more. By the time you reach the end, you’ll be fully equipped to host the most excellent 80s and 90s bash ever! So bust out those scrunchies, cue up the jams, and let’s get planning!
Choosing an 80s and 90s Party Venue
To fully capture the vibe of these awesome decades, you need a party pad that takes guests back. Some options include:
Turn Up the Nostalgia at a Roller or Ice Skating Rink
Lace up your skates and get ready to roll back time! Many local rinks offer private party packages with exclusive use of the rink, arcades, party rooms, and catering. Guests can skate under disco balls to 80s and 90s hits all night long. For extra fun, require guests to rock their raddest retro skating gear.
Level Up at a Retro Arcade or Gaming Bar
Surround guests with vintage arcade and console games for hours of PacMan, Street Fighter 2, Crazy Taxi, and pinball fun. Look for facilities with private party options, ideally with food and drinks included. For ages 21+, find bars and breweries with classic cabinet games and pinball machines. Make sure to print out pixelated invitations and cupcake toppers to complete the retro gaming atmosphere.
Go Bowling for Days
Reserve lanes at your local bowling alley for an evening of strikes, gutters, shoe rentals, 80s hip hop and 90s grunge. Many alleys now have cool light shows and projections to enhance that late 90s flair. Skip the bowling shirts in favor of vintage threads from either decade. For extra nostalgia, hand out candies like Ring Pops and Push Pops at the lanes.
Check out my articles on hosting 80s hip hop and 90s grunge parties.
Lazer Tag Back In Time
Channel your inner secret agent and gear up for an 80s-style lazer tag battle. Look for glow in the dark arenas equipped with neon lights, fog, and heart-pumping techno beats. Split guests into teams with names like the Micros and Maxies and award radical prizes like cassette trophies and bubblegum upon victory. Blast 80s and 90s tunes for the battle soundtrack.
Righteous Backyard Retro Bash
If you want to DIY your venue, transform your backyard into an 80s and 90s paradise. Hang string lights, lanterns and disco balls from trees and fences. Project classic music videos onto the side of your house. Set up yard games like cornhole, Twister, and sack races. Supply bug spray and citronella candles to keep the mosquitos away, so everyone can party all night under the stars.
No matter the venue,aim for spots with party packages that include food, drinks and dedicated entertainment space so you can deliver a fully immersive 80s and 90s experience.
Send Guests Back in Time With Far Out Invitations
Whether you mail, email, or hand-deliver, your invites should ooze retro realness from the get-go. Some ideas include:
Arts and Crafts Time
Unleash your inner Martha Stewart and design neon flyers, posters and banners on your computer. Print them out on hot pink, electric blue or vibrant green paper. Use a funky retro font like Balloon Extra Bold. Craft battery-powered invites with oscillating pictures inside when you open the card. Spray paint cassette tapes or floppy disks in outrageous colors and use a label maker to add party details.
Technology Throwback
Email groovy Evites made to look like old school tech. Create interface mockups of MS-DOS prompts, Windows 95 desktops, and AOL welcome screens. Include ASCII art of cassettes, boomboxes, or movies from the eras. Mail floppy disk or VHS tape invitations covered in stickers. Write out the party specifics with gel pens and glitter.
Video Killed the Radio Star
For a totally tubular invite, record videos with a vintage grainy VHS type filter and upload to social media. Dress up in outrageous 80s and 90s garb and deliver the party deets via retro commercials or music video parodies. Ask guests to RSVP by calling you on your landline (if you still have one!)
No matter what medium you select, go wild with colors, shapes, and over-the-top designs that teleport guests back to the radical age of boomboxes, big hair and light-up sneakers.
Decorate to the Max with Most Excellent Party Decor
Once you secure your party spot, it’s time to give it a wicked makeover. Use these ideas to deck out your space with righteous 80s and 90s vibes:
Embrace the Neon
Go bright or go home! Use neon signs, balloons, streamers, tablecloths and strings of lights in electric shades of pink, green, orange and blue. Paint canvases and backdrops with neon colors and blacklight paint that glows under blacklights. Use neon duct tape and paint to customize posters, toys, and other decor items.
Surround Yourself With Pop Culture
Plaster the walls with iconic movie, TV show and music posters from the 80s and 90s. Think Pulp Fiction, The Goonies, Dallas, Nirvana, Clueless and more. For a budget option, print images on your own colorful paper. Add framed photos of classic celebs from the decades.
Relive the Arcade Experience
Capture the magic of 80s gaming dens by decorating with pixelated graphics, game controller props and setting up vintage consoles as decor. Use paint or printable templates to create pixilated bunting banners, wall art, and cupcake toppers. Scatter plastic balls around like ball pits.
Hang Disco Balls Galore
Install disco balls of various sizes and add rotating spotlights to get that retro roller rink look. The more sparkle, the better! Use clear fishing wire to hang balls from the ceiling at varying heights for a dynamic look.
Blow Up the Nostalgia
Inflatables make any party instantly more outrageous. Get a bounce house, inflatable palm trees, lounge chairs, and colorful alien or animal decor to truly capture the mood. Just be sure to safely monitor use.
Snap Cheesy Throwback Pics
Create a photo booth area with all the 80s and 90s props you can imagine. Use wood panels painted with retro patterns as the backdrop. Provide inflatable guitars, boomboxes, neon signs, weird wigs, masks, boas, and glitzy jewelry as costume pieces. Print out photos instantly and include free digital copies online.
Give Tables a Blast From the Past
Use cassette tapes, lava lamps, ghetto blasters, old TVs and vintage toys to create rad centerpieces. At each place setting put Jelly shoes, scrunchies, candy necklaces or 90s slap bracelets for guests to take home.
With these cool ideas, your party will be all that and a bag of chips. Now let’s pick some killer tunes!
Get some more ideas from my general 90s theme party ideas.
Cue Up the Most Excellent 80s and 90s Jams
No nostalgia night is complete without an epic playlist of feel-good throwback hits. Here’s a couple of playlists that capture the best of the decades.
Dress to Impress – 80s and 90s Style
The threads make the party, so encourage guests to rally their teased hair, neon colors, and Members Only jackets for a fashionable trip down memory lane. Share these ideas, then watch the legwarmers and crimped locks roll in!
Women
- Fitted neon mini skirts, off-the-shoulder tops, leggings and tights
- Acid wash high-waisted jeans with crop tops
- Leotards and colorful lace gloves
- Windbreakers, bomber jackets, denim vests
- Sweatbands, bike shorts, Keds
- Overalls with one strap down
- Plaid miniskirts, babydoll dresses, jumpsuits
- Slip dresses, spaghetti strap dresses
- Chokers, stacked slap bracelets
- Scrunchies, banana clips, hair crimping
- Jelly shoes, light-up LA Gear sneakers
Men
- Bold printed button downs, short sleeve collars
- Acid wash and destruction jeans
- Oversized blazers, Members Only jackets
- Suspenders, bow ties, fedoras
- Neon and pastel suits
- Parachute pants, Hammer pants
- Band t-shirts – Metallica, Nirvana, Guns N’ Roses
- Hightop fades, Air Jordans, Sketchers
- Fake piercings and tattoos
- Mullet wigs, mom jeans
Complete your getups in a glam station with hairspray, crimpers, neon makeup and accessories. Then hit the dance floor to bust your best Running Man and vogue moves all night long.
Chow Down on Delicious Munch and Killer Cocktails
Keep guests fueled up with righteous recipe ideas straight from the snack-loving 80s and 90s:
Nostalgic Bites
- Nachos loaded with neon cheese and all the fixings
- Personal pan pizzas with cold ranch dressing for dipping
- Chicken tenders and fries with Heinz ketchup
- Snack cakes like Zebra Cakes, Nutty Bars and Honey Buns
- Jell-o molds and fruit salad with mini marshmallows
- Hand pies and empanadas – beef and bean flavors
- Bugles topped with Easy Cheese
- Pizza rolls dipped in marinara
- Fondue with breadsticks and veggies for dipping
- Trail mix with M&Ms, raisins, peanuts
- Popcorn – make flavored varieties like ranch and cheddar
- Dunkaroos with rainbow vanilla frosting and chocolate cookies
- Caprese and fruit kabobs
Quench Thirsts With Awesome Beverages
Cocktails
- Jungle Juice – fruit punch, rum, vodka
- Sex on the Beach – vodka, peach schnapps, OJ, cranberry
- Blue Lagoon – vodka, blue curacao, lemonade
- Fuzzy Navel – peach schnapps and orange juice
- Cosmopolitan – vodka, cranberry, lime juice
- Jolly Rancher Shot – vodka, green apple schnapps
- Paralyzer – vodka, Kahlua, cola, milk/cream
- Long Island Iced Tea because duh.
Mocktails
- Shirley Temples – ginger ale, grenadine
- Madras – orange juice, cranberry juice
- Orange or Grape Nehi soda
- Roy Rogers – cola, grenadine syrup
- Arnold Palmers – iced tea, lemonade
- Capri Suns – pouch it and throw it back
- Hi-C juice boxes – all the flavors
The Sweet Stuff
- Pop Rocks margarita rims
- Warheads lemon drops
- Skittles vodka
- Nerds candy straws
- Popcorn balls
- Twinkies tiered cake
- Candy necklaces and bracelets
- Rock candy swizzle sticks
- Jello Jigglers spiked with vodka
Get more ideas from my 90s party food article.
Guests will be stoked on all the sweet, salty, cheesy, and outrageous food creations. Don’t forget the beer and serve juice and soda for the non-drinkers. Next, bust out the most classic activities and games!
Get Rad With 80s and 90s Party Games
After refueling, keep the good times rollin’ with these bodacious party games:
- Sack races – No backyard party was complete without these. Have guests hop to victory or hilarious defeat.
- Dance off – Pick themes like 80s workout moves and have groups face off to see who has the best choreography.
- Name that tune – Test guests’ musical knowledge with audio clips.
- Piñata – Fill it with rad candies and see who can unleash the most sweet treats.
- Twister – Play this knot-tying classic with an 80s & 90s soundtrack.
- Cornhole – Toss neon bean bags through the wooden cutouts to score.
- Limbo – Shimmy under the neon stick set ever lower. How low will guests go?
- Photo scavenger hunt – Send teams on a hunt to snap pics with mullets, Jelly shoes, pay phones etc.
- Hula hoop contest – Who can gyrate their hips the longest without letting the hoop drop? Time to find out!
- Tug of war – Split into teams and battle to not get dragged through the mud.
- Flip cup – Does it get any more 90s college party than this? Race to flip cups down the table.
Get more ideas from my 80s games and 90s games articles.
Get everyone on their feet and mingling with these outrageous activities. End the night by sending guests home with tubular favors!
Gift 80s and 90s Party Favors
Let guests geek out over one more neon-filled treat as they head home with:
- Slap bracelets – These classic 90s accessories double as great party favors.
- Bubbles – Chase childhood nostalgia with individual bubble bottles. Add wand stickers.
- Eraser collection kits – For the kids at heart. Bonus points if you track down erasers in wild 80s and 90s shapes.
- Temporary tattoos – Top up those faux tat sleeves before guests depart.
- Scrunchies – Send guests on their way with an armful of scrunchies in bright hues.
- Stick on earrings – Everyone secretly loved these as kids. Add butterfly and star shapes.
- Blow pops – A sweet treat for the nostalgic ride home.
- Pixelated cookies or cupcakes – Wrap it up with 8-bit decorated sweets.
With this totally tubular party guide in hand, you’re set to host the raddest, most excellent 80s and 90s bash of the century. Your guests will be stoked to do the Macarena, skate and dance back to their childhoods. It will be all that and a bag of Pop Rocks
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