Proven Favorite Children's Birthday Party Venues in Columbus, OH

After attending a birthday party, our son asked if he could have his next birthday party at the same location. We told him we would look into it and decided that we would come up with some alternatives if his first choice didn't seem to be a cost-value deal.

Below are six birthday party options we've considered in the Columbus, Ohio, area. In addition to the price of the birthday package, included is information about other perks or benefits the party venue offers (e.g., the ability to bring in your own food and decorations) and what items you still may need to purchase to make your child's party complete. Each place also has a personal experience section where we share how our kids have liked these venues - as either a guest or as the birthday child. With all of this information, you are bound to find the best deal for you and your child to celebrate his or her birthday!

Pump It Up!
Contact Information:
8200 Business Way
Suite F
Plain City, OH 43064
(614) 873-6111
http://www.pumpitupparty.com/oh/plain-city/columbus/home-p1q27.htm

The Party Package:
The Classic Party Weekend is offered Friday through Sunday and holidays. You may invite up to 25 children to enjoy inflatable play equipment for a two-hour party. Children are allowed in the play are for an hour and 15 minutes. Then the birthday child and his/her guests are escorted to a private party room. Included in the party package are free invitations, complimentary paper products, party set-up, and clean-up.

The Mini Classic Party Weekday is offered Wednesdays and Thursdays before 3PM. You may invite up to 14 children to enjoy inflatable play equipment for a one-and-a-half hours party. Children are allowed in the play are for an hour. Then the birthday child and his/her guests are escorted to a private party room. Included in the party package are free invitations, complimentary paper products, party set-up, and clean-up.

The Mini Classic Party Weeknight is offered Wednesdays and Thursdays after 3PM. You may invite up to 14 children to enjoy inflatable play equipment for a one-and-a-half hours party. Children are allowed in the play are for an hour. Then the birthday child and his/her guests are escorted to a private party room. Included in the party package are free invitations, complimentary paper products, party set-up, and clean-up.

The Cozy Classic Weekday is offered anytime on Wednesdays and Thursdays. You may invite up to 14 children to enjoy inflatable play equipment for a two-hour party. Children are allowed in the play are for an hour and 15 minutes. Then the birthday child and his/her guests are escorted to a private party room. Included in the party package are free invitations, complimentary paper products, party set-up, and clean-up.

For all packages, socks must be worn in the play area and all guests are required to sign a waiver. Prior to entering the play area, children watch a short, informational video about the rules and proper etiquette while playing.

Other Perks:
You may purchase pizza, ice cream, goodie bags, balloons or balloon bouquets for additional costs. Gifts are collected as soon as you enter.

The Price:
Classic Party Weekend - $259
Mini Classic Weekday - $149
Mini Classic Weeknight - $169
Cozy Classic Weekday - $189

What you still have to purchase:
You still have to purchase a cake and any food or snacks, party favors, and decorations if you choose not to purchase their offerings. You are allowed to bring coolers and other food into the facilities.

Personal Experience:
Our two boys had a blast at Pump It Up! Their favorite things to do is to go down the gigantic slide and the obstacle course. This location offers two party venues with slightly different equipment. The kids get to play first and then go to a separate room where tables are set up for the rest of the party. Depending on the host family's choices, the kids can snack and eat, and then open gifts. There is a throne in which the birthday child sits up high to open gifts. This is great with quite young children who wish to help their friends open all the gifts! It is also nice as staff is on hand to help supervise children and facilitate the rest of the party schedule, allowing parents to socialize with guests, take pictures, and enjoy the party.

Graeter's
Contact Information:
2555 Bethel Road
Columbus, OH 43220

Store hours:
Mon - Thurs 10:00 AM - 10:00 PM
Fri - Sat: 10:00 AM - 11:00 PM
Sun 11:00 AM - 10:00 PM

Phone: (614) 442-7622
Fax: (614) 442-0633
http://www.graeters.com/sub.aspx
Ask if other locations provide parties.

The Party Package:
There are two party options. One party option allows each guest to build his or her own ice cream sundae. The other option offers an ice cream cake. Both include a party host that helps facilitate activities throughout the 90-minute party. Each guest receives a balloon, party favors, and activity sheets. The birthday child gets to wear a special party shirt. Both options include set-up and clean up and they require a non-refundable deposit of $25 to reserve the private party room.

Other Perks:
They will provide punch, if requested, and tableware. Party bags are also available for $2.50 each for either option and include one Graeter's coin, one ice cream cone shooter toy and one Graeter's coupon for return visit. For an additional charge, you may purchase ice cream for your non-party guests (like grandparents and kids' parents). You are allowed to arrive early for any additional party set up you may have.

The Price:
The cost is $10.95 per child, although always confirm price when reserving the party. You must have a minimum of eight children, including your child, and are allowed up to 14 children at the Bethel Road location.

What you still have to purchase:
You may want to purchase additional snacks and you will need to provide beverages. If you do bring additional food, you may want to bring additional tableware and table service items. You may bring other decorations such as balloons to fit in with the child's birthday theme.

Personal Experience:
Our son had his four-year-old birthday party there and he loved it! The kids ran around the play area, which is just right for the pre-K set, and includes a banana split see saw! And of course, all the kids loved ice cream! We chose the "Create Your Own Sundae" option and the kids really appreciated picking out their own ice cream flavors and toppings - sometimes the kids got more toppings than probably their parents would have liked! We had about 45 minutes of play and then were ushered into a private party room that was already decorated with balloons and party favor kits. The children were entertained by a magic trick, followed by ice cream. Then they opened presents. It was nice that the party facilitator wrote down everything for us. It made it easier when we were ready to send our thank you cards. However, we did wish our son could have opened his own cards. To optimize time, the facilitator pre-opened cards and started the gift list while the children finished their ice cream. After the party was over, the kids could go back and play in the play area. One potential hang-up is that the play area is not closed for your party. The day my son had his party, another party was booked and there was a little bit of overlap between our party and the other in terms of the kids playing in the same area at the same time.

Jungle Gym
Contact Information:
755 Route 23 North
Delaware, OH 43015
(740)-363-7552
Email: info@thejunglegym.com
http://thejunglegym.com/page/1leq/HOME.html

The Party Package:
For a two-hour birthday party, children are allowed to play and use all of their gym apparatuses and equipment like the zip line and rock climbing wall. Three staff members will host and supervise the event. Children are allowed to play for roughly the first 90 minutes. The party costs include up to 15 children, including the birthday child. Additional costs are incurred for larger parties. A $50 non-refundable deposit is required. Birthday parties are held outside of regularly scheduled classes, providing you with exclusive access to the gym during the party. Party times are available by appointment on Fridays and Saturdays.

There's a pdf file you may download with all of this information and more, but it looks like it may be out of date as the prices are not the same as what is listed on the web. Contact Jungle Gym for complete details on pricing, etc.

Other Perks:
You are allowed to bring in your own food or the facility can provide that for you. Jungle Gym also provides pizza deals with local vendors. You are allowed to arrive 30 minutes ahead of time to set up any food or decorations that you bring.

The Price:
If you are a member of Jungle Gym, you pay $175 for the party; otherwise you pay $200.
Up to 15 children, the gym will provide everything for the party, except for goodie bags and/or party favors. Please see the gym exact costs for this option.

What you still have to purchase:
If you choose not to go through the gym for food, cake, etc., you will need to bring all of that yourself. Plus, you'll need to bring any decorations like balloons and tableware and table service items.

Personal Experience:
Our children have attended two birthday parties here. Both our sons have loved being able to do the zip line! There is a balance beam and other equipment for the children to use and enjoy in one large room. In a smaller front room are tumbling mats and other sports related equipment that's great for the toddler crowd. There is also a skateboarding area designed for toddlers and preschoolers in the front where the kids may practice their balance on skateboards and other wheeled devices. Our youngest son got on the skateboard and pretended to be one of his favorite cartoon characters!

Lazelle Woods Recreation Center
Contact Information:
8140 Sancus Blvd
Columbus, OH 43081
(614) 645-5330
http://recparks.columbus.gov/RecCenters/RecCenters_59.asp

The Party Package:
You get use of their facilities for as long as you have paid to rent them, typically two hours. You are allowed to come early to set up and staff will help set things up to your specifications. However, you are expected to clean up the room and clear the room of your items.

The Price:
Program Rooms
Maximum occupancy 25
$55.00 for first two hours
$25.00 each additional hour

Gymnasium
Maximum occupancy 750
$55.00 for first two hours
$27.00 for each additional hour

Game Room
Maximum occupancy 49
$65.00 for first two hours
$25.00 for each additional hour

What you still have to purchase:
This is bare bones. You still have to provide snacks for your party guests as well as cake, ice cream, party favors, goody bags, decorations, and anything else you would purchase for a party held in your home. The nice thing is that the mess is somewhere else and not in your home!

Personal Experience:
This is a great alternative to Jungle Gym or Pump It Up. You may set up the gym as an obstacle course for the kids and they may bring their trikes and bicycles to ride around. There are two party rooms that you may set up however you need to and decorate however you wish. One party room is bigger than the other, however. This is also a great alternative to having a party at your home for say your one-year-old or toddler and not cost a lot of money. We had our daughter's one-year-old party here - the room was large enough to fit all of our guests comfortably and we didn't need a lot of extras (like the gym) since she was only one! We could bring in slow cookers and other dishes for our birthday meal. In some ways this was nicer as we could set up two tables with balloon bouquets. One table was for gifts and the other table focused on a tribute display for our daughter with our favorite pictures of her from the past year. We had her party pretty much just as we would have in our house.

The Bare Bowl
Contact Information:
6 N. Sandusky St. - Downtown Delaware - (740)363.4804
Hours: Tuesday - Saturday 11 am - 8 pm & Sunday noon - 5 pm
Closed Mondays
http://www.thebarebowl.com/

The Party Package:
You may have each guest paint a special piece of pottery or help decorate a special plate for the birthday child. The cost of the party will reflect the store glazing and firing the pieces. The store does provide clean up. A $25 deposit and filling of a small contract is required to reserve a party date. The deposit is then applied to your final bill.

The Price:
The store fits your budget and theme; so, call for pricing details. For parties of 7 or more painters, they offer a 15% discount.

What you still have to purchase:
You will need to provide your own food, drinks, cake, etc. However, since each guest may paint a piece of pottery, there's no need to purchase party favors or goody bags.

Personal Experience:
While we have never been here for a birthday party, we have gone here several times to paint pieces for holiday gifts and for playgroup outings. The place is big and roomy enough to get a decent size group of kids (8 - 10) and their parents comfortably around tables to work on crafts. Our playgroup was able to schedule something during the store's off hours so that way it was just our playgroup there painting. The other nice thing was that there was plenty of help for the younger children as they painted and made handprints or footprints as desired. There are several pieces to choose from and one of our sons loves to pick out the paint colors. It takes about a week for the pieces to be ready for pick-up. However, the owner recommends birthday parties for elementary-aged children and older as they are more likely to get something out of the party than younger children who may only paint for a couple of minutes.

Columbus Clippers Game
Contact Information:
330 Huntington Park Lane
Columbus, Ohio 43215
Phone: (614) 462-5250
Ticket Line: (614) 462-2757
Fax: (614) 462-3271
info@clippersbaseball.com
http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/index.jsp?sid=t445

The Party Package:
All birthday party reservations must be made at least two weeks prior to the party date. There is an eight-person minimum requirement. Parties begin an hour before the game and the birthday person's name and picture will be featured on the score board. Tickets for the game are included. Kid's parties are held in the Picnic Terraces, where you will remain to enjoy the game. The party includes participation in LouSeal's (the Clippers mascot) Birthday Celebration during the game, a special Clippers Birthday mini bat for the birthday child and Clippers mini bats for all attendees. There are three party options and all provide a choice of cake and drinks. Where they differ is what food is provided. The Birthday Bash offers unlimited popcorn and two hot dogs per person. The Birthday Bash Plus offers unlimited popcorn, hamburgers with fixings, a choice of salad, and one side item like pretzels. The Pizza Party offers a choice of pepperoni or cheese pizza, garlic breadsticks, and salad.

Other Perks:
Other food is available for purchase as are additional souvenirs.

The Price:
Birthday Bash
$13 per child
$16 per adult

Birthday Bash Plus
$15 per child
$18 per adult

Pizza Party
$17 per child
$20 per adult

What you still have to purchase:
You will need to ask if there are additional items you may bring in or may wish to purchase (like additional party favors or balloons).

Personal Experience:
The new downtown ballpark just opened this spring (April 2009). My husband took our two boys to the opening day game and they just loved it! They loved watching the hot dog race and eating and singing "Take me out to the ball game" and keeping track of strikes, hits, runs and homers! They also liked the dancing contests and the mascots. Considering what one would normally pay for a ticket ($6) plus food at the game, the Birthday Bash's cost seems like a steal!