Make it special

Make it a birthday they'll never forget

Thoughtful ideas for the birthday star, the guests, the hosts and everyone celebrating from far away. None of them cost much, and all of them last.

For everyone involved

Little gestures, lasting memories

Pick one or two that feel like you. The best traditions start small.

For the birthday star

The birthday interview

Ask the same ten questions every year, like their favorite food, best friend and biggest dream. Keep the answers in one notebook and watch them grow up on paper.

For the birthday star

A birthday morning surprise

Fill their doorway with streamers and balloons while they sleep, so the celebration starts the moment they wake up.

For guests

The memory station

Set out an instant camera and a guest book. Each guest snaps a photo, sticks it in and writes a wish beside it.

For everyone

The toast circle

Before the cake, go around the room and let everyone share one thing they love about the birthday star. Short, sweet and unforgettable.

For loved ones far away

Video hugs from afar

Ask friends and family who cannot be there to send a ten second video. Stitch them together and play the montage after the candles.

For the years ahead

Letters for later

Have guests write letters to be opened on a future birthday, like the eighteenth or the next big milestone. Seal them in a keepsake box.

For everyone

One kind act per year

Celebrate with kindness: seven kind acts for a seventh birthday, thirty for a thirtieth. Donate toys, help a neighbor or leave cheerful notes for strangers.

For the hosts

A photo buddy for the host

Ask a friend to be the official photographer for an hour, so the people who planned everything end up in the pictures too.

For families

A tradition that comes back

A special plate, a birthday crown or a song only your family sings. Small rituals repeated every year become the memories everyone keeps.

Joyeux anniversaire
Feliz cumpleaños
Alles Gute zum Geburtstag
Buon compleanno
Feliz aniversário
Fijne verjaardag
Grattis på födelsedagen
Wszystkiego najlepszego
Gratulerer med dagen
Hyvää syntymäpäivää
Boldog születésnapot
Selamat ulang tahun
Maligayang kaarawan
Penblwydd hapus
Breithlá sona duit
Heri ya siku ya kuzaliwa
Tillykke med fødselsdagen
Happy birthday

Around the world

How the world says happy birthday

Borrow a tradition from somewhere new, or let one inspire a ritual of your very own.

Mexico

La mordida

After the birthday song, everyone cheers ¡Mordida! as the birthday person takes the first bite of cake with no hands. A friendly push into the frosting is almost guaranteed.

South Korea

A bowl of seaweed soup

Birthdays begin with miyeok-guk, the seaweed soup new mothers eat after giving birth. It is a warm thank-you to mom, served every single year.

China

Longevity noodles

Extra-long noodles are slurped without biting through them, a wish for a long and happy life.

Brazil

An ear tug for every year

Friends give the birthday person a gentle tug on the earlobe for each year, and the first slice of cake goes to someone very special.

Denmark

A flag in the window

Families hang the Danish flag outside the house or in a window, so the whole street knows someone inside is celebrating.

The Netherlands

Crown years

Birthdays like the 5th, 10th, 15th, 20th and 21st are kroonjaren, or crown years, and get extra decorations. Guests also congratulate the whole family, not just the birthday person.

Canada

A buttered nose

In parts of Atlantic Canada, the birthday person gets a dab of butter on the nose, making them too slippery for bad luck to catch.

Israel

The birthday chair

The birthday child sits on a chair that friends lift into the air once for every year, plus one more for luck.

Australia

Fairy bread

No kids' party is complete without fairy bread: buttered white bread covered in rainbow sprinkles and cut into triangles.