What is it and 24 Creative Ways People Celebrate It

A “golden birthday” refers to that one birthday — the once-in-a-lifetime event — where the age of your birth year matches the day you were born (eg. turning 18 on April 18th).

How do you create a  golden birthday celebration? How to celebrate depends on your family’s traditions and, most importantly, the birthday boy or girls’ wishes.

Yikes! I missed my teen’s golden birthday. What do I do now? You have another opportunity to celebrate with a “double golden birthday” when they turn 2x the number of the day they were born (eg. when they turn 20 on the 10th.)

What are some gift ideas for golden birthdays? Here are 24 ideas for golden birthday parties, decor, refreshments and gifts that can be modified for any budget.

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How to celebrate a golden birthday

Golden birthday party ideas

1. When you plan a golden birthday party, the details can be pretty easy to get right as your color theme and number concept can be used for decorations, invitations, party favors, gift wraps, and more. Minted is our favorite go-to site for unique invitations including those with glittery gold accents. 

2. Gold paper plates, napkins and utensils, confetti, and balloons are inexpensive golden decorations, and you can opt for just a touch of gold with gold napkins and your regular plates or go for gold everything.

3. Buy oversize Mylar gold balloons of the birthday numbers or a golden balloon arch. Arches are popular decor ideas that also create a perfect photo-op setting. Gold glitter adds to the festivities, as well as gold party favors.

4. Gold stars, the moon, or the sun as decorating motifs evoke celestial parallels to a rare planetary alignment, a great analogy to a golden birthday.

5. If dancing is part of the party, a gold disco ball is a must!

6. Sports enthusiasts who love competition might enjoy a series of games in the backyard with golden trophies awarded to winners.

7. Fill a pinata with gold-wrapped coins or other golden candies, and your friends will be thrilled to play this classic game and gather their golden loot.

8. One festive way to involve guests in the theme is to provide gold scrunchis or hats and/or ask them to wear something gold to the party. Or do both!

9. Create a celebration video for the partygoers, family, and friends who might not be able to join you in person. VidHug makes it easy to ask friends to record a video greeting: create an account and send them a link for their golden birthday message.

10. The concept of “24K” is another way to elaborate on a golden theme. Wrap 24 small gifts, create 24 clues for a scavenger hunt, make a speech with 24 things you love about the birthday celebrant, and gather 24 pieces of advice for family members who love and know them best.

Refreshments for a golden birthday

11. For the lucky ones with a birthdate that falls on the last ten days of the month, 21-31, a champagne bar may also be a must-have since golden birthdays are sometimes referred to as “champagne birthdays.” Plus, champagne is the quintessential beverage for celebrating anything!

12. Cupcakes or a cake with gold icing and candles on top would be perfect options for the birthday cake.

13. For other gold refreshments, tap into your teen’s inner child with Goldfish, Rold Gold pretzels, golden Oreos, buttery popcorn, or other snack food with gold, or even yellow, packaging.

14. Personalize cups for the celebration with initials or a message, and yes, gold is a color option here.

15. M&Ms be customized with a birthday greeting.

16. Godiva has many chocolate options in the elegant gold packaging they are well-known for.

17. Goldbelly is a site where you can find just about any famous bakery or restaurant treats from around the world to ship to your birthday boy or golden girl. Here are “Carrie’s cupcakes” from NYC’s Magnolia Bakery.

Golden birthday gift ideas

Depending on the age of your son or daughter, their interests, and your budget, you can choose a golden birthday gift that will be a special keepsake or a whimsical present that is just for fun. Here are some unique gift ideas:

18. Gold jewelry

Choosing a special ring, bracelet, initial necklace, and earrings would be lovely for your daughter.

Kendra Scott has gorgeous gold and rose gold jewelry.

19. Watch

There are many different Apple watches and bands to choose from. One of these amazing watches with an upgraded gold mesh band would be an incredible gift.

20. Favorite team

If your teen or young adult is a fan of a sports team with gold as part of their color scheme, hop over to Fanatics to search for the best selection of officially licensed NCAA and pro team gear.

21. Basket of treats

A basket filled with gold-wrapped snacks and candy is a tasty gift for them to enjoy and share with friends.

22. Pop Socket

Pop sockets are cute and functional accessories for phones, and there are many designs and colors to choose from. Here’s one that caught our eye.

23. The Boy, the Mole, the Fox, and the Horse

This international bestseller is filled with lessons about home, kindness, and love. This book is like a verbal hug with gorgeous words and illustrations – black and gold.

24. Countdown

Counting down to a birthday is a way to celebrate all month. Give a small gift a day or create an oversized calendar, similar to an Advent calendar, where your teen can punch out holes corresponding to a numbered birthday gift.

@tiffany3dorn

12 Days of Birthday Punch Board! #fyp #foryoupage #21stbirthday

♬ original sound – Tiffany Dorn

And just in case you think all the fun ends after age 31 when the days of the month run out, luckily, you would be wrong. You might get a second chance and a Golden Birthday if you missed your special day.

Those born early in the month are extra lucky because there are double and even triple Golden Birthdays. These are found by simply doubling or tripling the date you were born. If your birthday falls on the 10th of the month, your 20th and 30th birthdays are your double and triple Golden Birthdays.

You Might Also Want to Read:

Sweet 16 Gifts Your Daughter Will Love 

Fun Ways to Celebrate a 21st Birthday