The Look

Ahoy! For a birthday party that is as good as gold, set the stage for a day of swashbuckling adventure! This will include lots of red, black, and white stripes. Black flags with skulls and crossbones are a necessity, too. 

The Eats

Seafood is the way to go here: shrimp cocktail, fried clams, you name it. It wouldn’t hurt to have hot dogs cut up to look like octopi for the landlubbers. Make a pirate ship fruit bowl out of a watermelon.  

The Fun

Eye patches are key; make sure each child gets one upon arrival! Encourage lots of pirate talk, and hand each child a map so they can set out to locate treasure. Will X mark the spot? The more elaborate you make the hunt, the more entertaining. Have on hand a DIY pirate tattoo parlor, and create an island area with a sand box and water table for free play. 

The Favors

Send the mateys home with anything pirate-related: their eye patches, of course, but also pirate rings, extra tattoos, and miniature treasure chests filled with fake gold coins (chocolate ones, if you please). Little messages in a bottle thanking your guests for journeying out to sea with you are a cute idea, too.