TREATS
Cupcakes are the new cake! Fave options include Cupcake Royale in Ballard, Madrona and West Seattle, and Trophy Cupcakes in Wallingford.
Ice cream cakes: Simplify life with this two-in-one option, available at Baskin-Robbins’ and Dairy Queen’s various locations.
The winner for quality, size and price on birthday cakes: Costco! If you have a big crowd, you can’t beat one of Costco’s customized birthday cakes. Look for the order forms in the bakery and pick up the day of the party in the nearby case.
BRING HOME THE FUN
Want to have your child's birthday party at home, but dread having to entertain all those kids? Consider bringing in entertainment as the highlight of the birthday party. Here are some great local options:
Doug Fleming Jr., a celebrated local children’s recording artist and performer, will come to your home and give a concert. His music has a great beat and everyone will be up dancing. 206-390-5198, dkflemingjr@gmail.com
The Moonpaper Tent. Sylvan Bourgette and her team of magical ladies provide a truly enchanting experience, either in your home or at her drama and crafts school, located just one block west of the Roosevelt Whole Foods in Seattle. She can bring a dress-up trunk, provide a craft, take your child and friends on a magical imaginative play adventure and even provide party favors. 206-422-6616, sylvanfairy@hotmail.com
The Musik Nest. Owner and Kindermusik instructor Rebecca Heib provides exceptional music instruction and musical birthday parties. Her parties have everyone from infants to grandparents enjoying making music together. She offers parties in your home or in her charming Gilman Village studio in Issaquah. 425-427-0984.
Dizzy’s Tumblebus. If you have an active child, but want a home-based birthday party, consider bringing in the ‘bus. Dizzy’s Tumblebus is a mobile gym on wheels, and they also have a bouncy house that can be set up in your backyard. 425-564-8287, info@dizzystumblebus.com
GREAT PARTY PLACES
Get moving
My Gym Bellevue. Located just east of Bellevue’s Crossroads Shopping Center, My Gym Bellevue offers great parties, with lots of great activities. They make the birthday child truly feel special. 425-451-1393
Pump It Up, locations in Kirkland, Lynnwood and Tacoma. Multiple bouncy houses — including one with a giant slide — are always a hit with birthday party guests. Kids get wild — and very dehydrated! — so ask parents to have their child bring a water bottle to fill at water fountains on the way in to play. 1-866-977-5867
The Zone Sportsplex, Poulsbo. Poulsbo’s hottest new kid-birthday-party location is a 42,000-square-foot, year-round, climate-controlled, multipurpose sports facility. Birthday-party package options can include pizza, time in the batting cage and on the field, and even a field supervisor. 360-697-9663
Kingsgate Ice Arena, Kirkland. During public skate times on Wednesday and Sunday afternoons, kids 6-12 skate for just $6 each. Have your guests bring a bicycle helmet. Guests without skates can rent them there for a few dollars. When you are done, zip over to the nearby Pizza Bank restaurant for a super pizza or pasta birthday dinner for your guests. 425-821-7133
Snohomish Indoor Soccer Dome, Snohomish. The Dome features dodge-ball birthday parties and field rentals with a soccer instructor. You can even rent the snack bar and decorate it any way you want! 360-568-6812
Safeco Field’s Birthday Tours. Safeco Field offers a birthday package to make any mini-Mariners fan’s dreams come true. The package includes a personal guided tour of the field and time in the dugouts. 206-346-4241
GO, SPEED RACER
Family Fun Center, Tukwila. Indoor and outdoor fun, including laser tag and go-carts. 425-228-7300
WhirlyBall. Think “superfast bumper car” combined with basketball, hockey and jai alai. Participants play on teams; this is a great birthday party option for tweens and teens. Packages can include pizzas, drinks and a customized cake from Baskin-Robbins. 425-672-3332
Seattle Center Fun Forest. An old-fashioned carnival, with rides and arcade games. 206-728-1585
GET WET
Samena Club, Bellevue. The club in the Lake Hills neighborhood offers birthday party packages to the public and features an outdoor pool, kiddie wading pool and an indoor pool, complete with playground. 425-746-1160
Wild Waves, Federal Way. This is the water park your kids go nuts over when you drive past it going south on I-5. 253-661-8000
Chism Beach Park, Bellevue. Located at 1175 96th Ave. S.E., this beach park is superclean, with nearby restrooms, a playground, a safe and shallow swimming area and even super strict lifeguards from late June to Labor Day. You can reserve portions of the park. 425-452-6914
YMCAs, multiple locations, including Bellevue, West Seattle and Tacoma. Your neighborhood “Y” often has an indoor pool and low-cost birthday party options. Greater Seattle YMCA; Tacoma YMCA
CRAFTY KIDS
Creation Station, Lynnwood. This fantastic crafts store and art studio offers great birthday parties making art from recycled materials. 425-775-7959
Paint Away Ceramics Studio, Redmond Town Center. 425-861-8388
Neo Art School, Seattle. Birthday parties are tailored to your group’s ages and interests. 206-632-2530
Scratch Patch, Seattle’s Roosevelt District. It’s like an indoor beach covered with more than 150 varieties of sparkling smooth gemstones from around the world. Birthday party guests get to sit down in the stones, dig around and keep their favorites, and enjoy games and snacks. 206-523-6164
Creatively Yours Ceramic Studio, Bellevue, in the Crossroads Shopping Center. 425-747-2280
Paint the Town, Seattle. This University Village ceramic painting studio offers space for private birthday parties and more. 206-527-8554.
MUSEUM FAN
Seattle Children’s Museum, Seattle Center. For busy parents who need a birthday package that offers everything from invitations to party-favor bags, the museum offers its popular “Bonanza” package for as many as 20 children and 20 adults. You just need to show up with food and a cake. 206-441-1768
Odyssey Maritime Discovery Center, Seattle waterfront. This fun, interactive museum on Seattle’s waterfront has more than 50 exhibits and is seldom crowded. Several birthday party packages are available, including one that even provides the cake. 206-374-4000
KidsQuest Museum, Bellevue’s Factoria Square. This museum is a great choice for toddlers and younger kids, with a large play area just for them and a nearby Red Robin for an easy meal stop before or after the birthday party. 425-637-8100
Bainbridge Island’s Kids Discovery Museum, 206-855-4650
Imagine Children’s Museum, Everett. 425-258-1006
Children’s Museum of Tacoma, 253-627-6031
ANIMAL LOVER
King County Humane Society, Bellevue. Kids get to “adopt” a stuffed shelter pet, play games, meet furry friends and tour the shelter. 425-649-7553, birthdays@seattlehumane.org
Remlinger Farms, Carnation. This family-owned farm and amusement park offers a classic farm experience to guests, private birthday party areas, as well as fun, old-fashioned rides that include a train, roller coaster and the area’s only flying pumpkins. 425-333-4135
Woodland Park Zoo, Seattle. In addition to visiting all of their favorite zoo animals and playing at the indoor play and learning center Zoomazium, party guests will enjoy riding antique carousel horses and celebrating in a private birthday party room. 206-548-2500
BOWLER
Chalet Bowl & 26th Street Café, Tacoma. Birthday parties feature bowling under disco lights, with music, pizza and drinks, and a souvenir bowling pin for the birthday child. 253-752-5200
TechCity Bowl, Kirkland. 425-827-0785
Adventure Bowling Center, Snoqualmie. Eight lanes of old-school bowling, with pizza and arcade games. 425-888-1377
GAMER
GameWorks, downtown Seattle. 206-521-0952
Odyssey-1, Narrows Shopping Center in Tacoma. 253-566-3233
Originally published in the July, 2008 print edition of ParentMap.
