If you’re hosting a company picnic this year, then you already know that you need to make your picnic the place to be. One of the easiest and most fun ways to do this is to find the perfect picnic theme and commit to it!
A theme can act as a marketing tool to drive your attendance, add a fresh perspective or celebrate a specific concept. Keep your mind open to the possibilities—you never know when inspiration will strike!
With more than 30 years of experience hosting picnics and enjoying the exciting San Diego summers, we consider ourselves picnic (and party) experts. So, we’ve come up with five exciting themes to make your 2018 company picnic truly memorable.
This theme is for the wild ones out there. The Jurassic Jungle invites your guests into an exciting, prehistoric world full of adventure. From posing with a giant dinosaur to chowing down on “brontosaurus” beef ribs, your guests will be energized by this fun and different theme. And, this summer brings another blockbuster Jurassic Park movie, so this theme is timely and exciting.
We like to think that San Diego is a Polynesian island without the humidity. Celebrate the many incredible cultures on these oceanic islands with a variety of food and activities. A whole roasted pig will truly WOW your guests, and the mellow sounds of island music will relax everyone. Take your guests on an island escape to a beautiful Polynesian Paradise picnic complete with a hula contest, steel drum band and leis for guests.
California knows how to picnic, so celebrate everything great about the Golden Coast. Cali has so much to offer to your picnic, from watersports to sand castle contests, retro music, chilling in the shade and eating barbeque in style. This easygoing picnic theme is all about surf, sun and summer fun.
Everyone loves a good day at summer camp, whether they’re adults reliving their childhood or kids tackling all of the camp challenges. Welcome campers to your picnic and assign them to a “cabin.” This will be their activity group—it’s a great way to create inter-departmental bonding. Crafts, team sports, talent shows, bingo, lawn games, camp cheers led by upper management, competitions and singalongs are all perfect for a fun day. Mr. Sun’s Summer Camp will delight guests with everything they loved about camp, including picnic food and exciting activities.
Celebrate the U-S-A with this patriotic picnic theme. This theme excites people from all backgrounds as it celebrates freedom, diversity and—of course—delicious American picnic foods. Old-fashioned lawn games can be played by all ages. Backyard games like corn hole are casual and allow you to play while chatting. And it wouldn’t be an American picnic without a local craft brew, so serve your favorites! Your guests will show their red, white and blue pride at this All-American Celebration.
Themes make your picnic unique and memorable. It’s not just another work event; it’s a rewarding day of appreciation and even a mini-vacation! Themes also create excitement about the event for your guests, making them more likely to attend. It’s more exciting for your guests if the picnic is a true escape from the day-to-day, and if you’re planning a family picnic, kids will be over the moon about the extra fun.
When you’re picking a theme, there are a few things you should think about. Obviously, you’ll want to pick a theme that appeals most to your guest list. Think about the ages of those invited and their interests. Additionally, you’ll want to make sure that a family picnic has a family-appropriate theme. If you are having an adults-only employee event, the focus can be competitive teambuilding with a fun, relaxing vibe.
If your company had a picnic last year, consider the theme and try to switch it up. Having a new theme each year almost guarantees a different type of fun, and people will be more excited for the picnic.
Another thing to keep in mind is not offending anyone with the theme of your picnic. Think about the sensitivities of your guest list before you pick a theme. That way, everyone can have a good time!
Part of hosting a themed picnic is spreading the word. Once you’ve decided which theme is best for your celebration, you should go all-out in promoting it. Themed invitations, reminders and save the dates are super important in getting people to go to your picnic. If creating these sounds intimidating, don’t worry! We’ve already created these for you to use as part of our Picnic Promotional Package—ask our picnic pros for more information.
There are a number of ways to really make your theme POP. Food and drinks can fit the theme, but they don’t have to. After all, delicious food makes everyone happy, whether it’s themed or not. But it is a fun way to add to the theme.
Decorations are key to setting the stage. Most picnics are outdoors, so props and decorations should be oversized and heavy enough not to blow away. Keep in mind that when the sky is your ceiling, smaller decor can be overlooked.
Activities are a great way to round out a theme. Take your favorite picnic activities and add a twist that complements your picnic’s theme. Adding props and costumes, renaming the activities or using themed equipment (like halved coconuts for a tropical Bozo’s buckets) can really take fun to the next level.
And remember: any activity can be added to any theme. Don’t feel tied down by your theme, and feel free to choose any theme that fits your company and your picnic. There are hundreds of themes, from a sporty Olympics event to a Western hoe-down, a Mexican fiesta and an International Day of Fun.
If you need more ideas, are looking for a little help or don’t know where to start—don’t worry! Picnic People can absolutely provide whatever help you need. We’ll take care of the hard stuff so you can really enjoy the picnic.
Keep an eye out for more information about our 2018 picnic themes on our blog, Facebook and Twitter. And if you’re ready to start planning your picnic today, contact us or give us a call at (858) 586-1717.
It's never too early to start. Give us a shout to find out how we can deliver the most scrumptious picnic catering in town and help you throw an epic event from start to finish.