Halloween Party Ideas

A Halloween party can be much more than store-bought costumes, prepackaged candy, and spooky music, especially if you use party rentals to give your event some extra special tricks and treats. With some creepy creativity and reliable rentals, you can easily arrange a truly spooktacular Halloween party.

Creating the Setting

The spookier your party setting, the better the ambiance will be for a fantastic Halloween party. Different party rentals can help turn both indoor and outdoor party locations into frighteningly festive haunts, including…

• Tents – For an outdoor party, a tent is a must. If you opt for a white party tent, decorate it with spooky ghost eyes to turn the entire tent into a grinning ghoul, or choose a colored party tent in black, gray, or dark red or purple hues for an instant Halloween setting.
• Projector Decorations – Use rented projectors to cast spooky silhouettes on any tent wall or ceiling, or on indoor walls for eerily floating decorations. Bats, spiders, flying witches, ghosts, or floating jack-o-lanterns are all popular choices.
• Sound Machine – Along with spooky visuals, add auditory ambiance to your Halloween party with a sound machine playing creaks, groans, moans, screams, wolf howls, owl hoots, and other scary seasonal sounds in the background.
• Fog Machine – Add instant eeriness to your party setting with a fog machine to spill creeping clouds across the floor or to fill an entire room with mystical fuzziness. Take care not to obscure steps, cords, or other trip hazards, however.
• Fire Pit – On cooler autumn nights, a rented fire pit can not only be a great rustic touch for an outdoor Halloween party, but it can be the center of a seating space for guests to gather and keep warm while enjoying one another’s company.
• Lasers – Create active, engaging lights with swirling lasers in red, orange, or green. This modern touch of lighting can add a spooky but rave-like touch to any Halloween party, and could even be set to music or sounds for an interactive experience.
• Backdrops – Transform any space into spook central with a Halloween-themed backdrop. Cemetery scenes, a haunted mansion, or a creepy forest are all classic favorites, or opt for more light-hearted seasonal scenes such as an autumn forest or harvest wagon.
• Linens – Give your tables a Halloween touch with boldly colored linens in black, orange, dark red, rich purple, or electric green. Layering linens can create a more luxurious impact, or use cobweb-style lace over the linens for romantic creepiness.
• Luminarias – Light your guests’ way to your party site with creepy luminarias, such as jack-o-lanterns or bags with spooky designs. Pumpkin faces, ghosts, skulls, black cats, or other classic Halloween icons are always good choices.
• Candles – No type of lighting is more appropriate for a Halloween party than candles of all shapes and sizes. Position candles in vintage candelabras, hurricane glasses, lanterns, or different vases to match your party’s theme.

Fun Fall Entertainment

Once you’ve set the scene, what will guests be doing at your party? Add a touch of fall spookiness with Halloween-themed games and props, such as…

• Costume Photo Booth – Provide some extra masks and scary signs for a photo booth so everyone can make some happy Halloween memories to enjoy for years.
• Outdoor Games – Cornhole, flag football, a pumpkin toss, and carnival-style games are always popular at fall festivals and Halloween parties.
• Bobbing for Apples – Renting a large galvanized tub or several tubs for different contestants can make this Halloween classic even easier and more competitive.
• Movie Screen – Enjoy time-honored Halloween movies, horror films, or even fun favorites with a movie screen, but be sure you have an appropriate sound system to accompany it as well.

Delicious Treats

Refresh your guests and have a taste of the season with delicious treats and the serving dishes to make them stand out, including…

• Blood red or rich black chargers underneath classic place settings.
• A white chocolate fountain dyed blood red for scary dipping.
• An upscale take on trick-or-treating with a candy buffet.
• Seasonal craft brews such as pumpkin ales served in classic steins.
• Tiers of spiderweb cupcakes on glass serving stands.
• Richly colored pumpkin bisque in white soup bowls or tureens.

No matter what treats you serve at a Halloween party, opting for themed or vintage-esque dishes and serving pieces will give your tables extra festive flair.

Extra Tricks

There are always more fun options to add that something extra spooky and special to your frightening festivities. While different rental companies may offer different options, popular choices for Halloween events include…

• Decorative gravestones with quirky sayings or chalkboard personalization.
• Hay bales that can be used for extra outdoor seating or seasonal backdrops.
• Seasonal inflatables, such as ghosts, witches, giant spiders, or haunted carriages.
• Skeletons, skulls, or other boney figures that can be adjusted and positioned.
• Oversized cauldrons to be filled with dry ice for a smoking or bubbling effect.
• Lifesize figurines or cardboard props of popular Halloween characters.

No matter what type of Halloween party you are planning, from a casual, fun get-together to a more formal autumn affair, the right rental company can help you make the most of your event with all the right settings, entertainment, serving dishes, and other equipment for a hauntingly good time.