Big Top Kids Birthday Website
Websites
A circus kids' birthday website with a striped big top, carnival games, a program and the RSVP built in.
Party theme
Carnival Birthday Party Ideas & Invitations
A carnival birthday party brings the fairground home: striped tents, booth games played for prize tickets, popcorn and a ringmaster to run the show. It suits kids from about three to ten, and the same idea scales up to a school fun fair or a grown-up carnival engagement party. Below are carnival invitations that open on a striped big top, an admit-one ticket and a lit Ferris wheel at dusk, and ideas for the decorations, food, games and favors.
Pick a design
Then a page effect
Big Top Kids Birthday Website
A circus kids' birthday website with a striped big top, carnival games, a program and the RSVP built in.
Carnival party at a glance
- Best for
- Kids' birthdays, school fun fairs and family fun days, carnival engagement parties, block parties
- Ages
- 3 to 10 for booth games and prizes; any age for an evening carnival
- Colors
- Circus red and white stripes with yellow, or vintage red, cream and teal
- What makes it
- Striped tents, a ticket booth, booth games with prizes, popcorn and string lights
Carnival party invitation templates
These 3 designs draw the theme and play it as guests open the link. Press a design to watch it live, or Use to open it in the editor with your own details.
Use templateUse
Ferris Wheel
Celebrations
A lit wheel turns at dusk with your photo at its hub and every other photo in a gondola.
Carnival party animations
Intros play once as the page opens; effects keep moving behind it while guests read and reply. Put any of them on any design.
Big top
Striped tent flaps pull apart onto the ring, a spotlight sweeps, pennants drop in and the title lights up on a marquee.
Use this introFerris wheel
At a fair at dusk the lit wheel brings a gondola past at a time, a photo in each, then turns with every photo aboard under the title.
Use this introMarquee lights
A theatre sign on a dark street: bulbs chase round the frame, the letters buzz on one by one and the title lights up on the board.
Use this introPiñata smash
A piñata swings, takes three whacks, bursts, and candy rains down around the title.
Use this intro
Carnival party decoration ideas
- Ticket booth at the door. A cardboard box painted as a booth hands each guest a strip of tickets to spend at the games. A roll of raffle tickets costs little and makes the whole party run.
- Big top ceiling. Red and white streamers or plastic tablecloths gathered to one point on the ceiling make a tent over the party table.
- Booth signs and bulbs. Hand-letter a sign for each game ("Ring Toss", "Duck Pond", "Strong Arm") and hang a string of bulb lights over the booths for evening.
- Prize wall. Line up prizes on a shelf marked one, three or five tickets so kids can see what they're playing for.
- Strongman photo board. Paint a strongman and a ringmaster on plywood or foam board with face holes; kids queue for it all afternoon.
Carnival party food ideas
- Popcorn stand. Serve it in striped bags or paper cones, about two cups per child. Popcorn is a choking risk for children under four, so offer puffed corn snacks to the little ones.
- Cotton candy. It melts in humidity, so open tubs or spin it close to serving time; a rented machine is worth it for a big school fair.
- Mini corn dogs. Bake frozen mini corn dogs in batches; for toddlers, cut hot dogs lengthwise and into small pieces.
- Lemonade stand. A big dispenser of lemonade with striped straws; add a second of water so nobody fills up on sugar.
- Circus cake. A round cake ringed with animal crackers and topped with a paper big top is simple and reads as circus from across the room.
Carnival party games and activities
- Ring toss. Toss plastic rings over bottles or cones; move the line closer for little ones so everyone wins a ticket.
- Duck pond. Number the bottoms of rubber ducks floating in a kiddie pool and give each number a prize. It is the one game two-year-olds can play.
- Can knock-down. Stack painted cans in a pyramid and knock them down with bean bags; three throws per ticket.
- Face painting. A volunteer with a short menu of six designs keeps the line moving; test the paint on an arm first for kids with sensitive skin.
- Big top show. Before cake, kids take turns as ringmaster, strongman with a foam barbell, or lion tamer jumping through a hula hoop.
Carnival party favor ideas
- Prize-ticket swap. Kids trade their tickets at the prize wall, so the favor is something they won.
- Popcorn box. A striped box of popcorn or candy for the ride home, tagged "Thanks for coming to the show".
- Bubble wands and kazoos. Cheap, loud and very carnival.
- Plush prize. A small stuffed animal per guest, picked from the prize wall like a real fairground win.
Carnival party invitation wording
Copy one and change the names, or get more wording ideas.
Kids' birthday
Step right up! Leo is turning 7, and the carnival is in town. Saturday, June 19 from 2 to 5 PM, The Big Top (our backyard). Games, prizes and popcorn. Please RSVP so we save you a ticket.
School fun fair
Admit one family. The Oak Hill Spring Fun Fair: booth games, face painting and a bake sale. Friday, May 14, 5 to 8 PM on the school field.
Engagement party
Love is a ride. Celebrate Priya and Sam's engagement at a carnival night, Saturday, September 18 at 7 PM. Games, string lights and cotton candy.
Occasions for a carnival party
Each page has RSVP wording, timing and the questions to ask for that occasion.
How to make a carnival party invitation
- 1Press Use this design on one of the carnival party invitations above. It opens in the editor with its own intro and page effect already on.
- 2Type your title, date, time and place over the sample, and put your own photos where the design has them.
- 3To change the motion, tap Intro and try Big top, Ferris wheel, Marquee lights or Piñata smash, or tap Effect and pick Confetti, Balloons, Marquee Bulbs or Bokeh Lights. Every one is free.
- 4Create the event and share the link by text, email or QR code. Guests watch it play and RSVP on the same page, and you see every reply as it comes in.
Carnival party questions
- What age is a carnival birthday party best for?
- Three to ten. Little ones can play a duck pond or a ring toss with the line moved in; older kids love earning tickets and choosing their prize.
- What games do you play at a carnival party?
- Ring toss, a duck pond, a bean bag toss, a can knock-down and a sponge throw at a brave grown-up. Plan one booth for every four or five kids, each run by an adult or an older sibling.
- What's the difference between a carnival and a circus party?
- A carnival party is built on booth games, prizes and fair food; a circus party leans on the big top, a ringmaster and acts like the strongman. Most hosts mix both: a striped tent over the food and booth games outside.
- How do you make a carnival theme work for grown-ups?
- Keep the string lights, popcorn and a few booth games, add a drinks stand and swap the prize wall for a photo booth. Vintage red, cream and a Ferris wheel motif feel more evening than kids' party, which suits an engagement party.
- Is a carnival party invitation free?
- Yes. The 3 designs on this page and every intro and page effect are free on every event. A free event takes up to 20 RSVPs; a one-time upgrade per event raises the limit.
- Can guests RSVP to a carnival party invitation without an app?
- Yes. Guests open your link on any phone or computer, watch the invitation play, and reply on the same page with no app or account. Every reply lands on your dashboard.
Send your carnival party invitation
Start from the Big Top Kids Birthday Website design, change the words and share one link. Guests reply on the page, with no app.