As the temperatures rise with the coming of summer, so does the opportunity to begin planning poolside festivities for friends, family, and neighbors. The pool is a perfect place for relaxing, lounging, and catching up with acquaintances, as well as hosting lively and fun activities. There are a handful of dynamic pool games and pool party hacks that will minimize the impact on your wallet and keep planning, preparation, and hosting simple, easy, and stress-free!
Summer Fun in the Pool: Party Hacks and Pool Games
1) Aesthetics
One of the most important aspects of a successful pool party lies within the decor.
Get creative with decorating! Have fun with it. Some simple and cheap ideas include placing a blue beach towel over a white tablecloth as a festive runner, use swim fins as a cute centerpiece, and set a few beach pails with water games such as inflatable balls, water guns, or heavy plastic rings around the pool area. Beach pails can also be turned into ice buckets for bottled beverages. Also, don’t forget a variety of colorful swim floats! Prepare beforehand by inflating a few brightly colored or uniquely shaped floats and have them ready for boarding in the water when your guests arrive.
While creativity in decorating plays a key role for atmosphere, make sure to include the necessities. Invest in lounge chairs, an outdoor table with an umbrella for shade, a few side tables placed strategically poolside, and of courses a stack of fresh towels.
2) Avoid Food Preparation and Maintenance
While a party should include food and beverages, make sure to consider how much time you will spend on preparation and regular maintenance. Don’t go overboard with a menu that requires too much prep time and remember it’s hot outside!
Keep it simple! Finger foods and bottled beverages are your friends.
Provide snacks such as crackers and chips, store-bought dips such as humus, salsa, and guacamole, and fresh fruit platters. Include options for main course items such as chicken fingers, pigs in a blanket, potato salad, cole slaw, or vegetable and dip platters. For the finishing touch, store some sugary, cold treats in your freezer such as ice cream sandwiches, Popsicle’s, and juice cubes (simply pour a selection of juice into your ice trays and let it freeze!).
Individual bottled water and juices are an excellent way to reduce cleanup fuss and avoid spills in and around the pool area. Of course, there are great alternatives. Provide disposable plastic cups and two or three pitchers of refreshing beverages such as lemonade, iced tea, and iced water. For the adults, there are a handful of great summer drinks such as sangria and classic margaritas. If you plan on hosting multiple parties throughout the year, you may want to invest in a large nozzle beverage dispenser.
3) Get in the Water and Get Moving!
- Pool Relay Race
This is a unique spin on the traditional relay race. Pool relay races require a pool, at least two beach pails, some pool water-color dye, and a few plastic cups.
Here’s how it works: Fill one beach pail with water dyed a bright color such as purple, red, or orange. There are specialty pool water dye’s made for these types of parties and games. Place the filled pail on one edge of the pool and make sure there are a handful of plastic cups sitting close by. Place the second empty pail at the other end of the pool.
It’s up to the guests to fill their plastic cup with dyed water and attempt to swim across the pool without spilling. Generally, there are two teams of up to five players. If one player spills dye into the pool they have to swim back to the beginning, fill their cup again, and start back across the pool. Whichever team fills the empty bucket on the opposite side of the pool first wins!
As the host of the party, it’s a great gesture to offer prizes to the winning team. This not only boosts competition and generates excitement, but it shows your guests that you appreciate their attendance and company.
- Octopus Ring Toss for the Kids
A great spin on the traditional ring toss game is this octopus ring toss. There are octopus pool floats made specifically for ring toss or you can purchase a traditional octopus float and create your own. Place four pails filled with heavy plastic rings at four points around the edge of the pool. Inflate and toss your octopus float into the pool and let the kids at it! See how many rings each participant can get on the tentacles of the octopus.
This is a great game that stimulates teamwork, provides great exercise, and allows every kid an opportunity to participate.
A great tip for kid’s games: instead of allotting one winner, the host should provide small prizes for each participant. Party bags filled with nick knacks and candies are perfect for a host on a budget.
- Ping Pong on the Water
Another fun and budget friendly pool game for participants of all ages is Ping-Pong. Ping-Pong balls are lightweight and will float on the surface of the water. All you need are two to four paddles and a basket of Ping-Pong balls. To add a little zing to the game you can paint the Ping-Pong balls bright colors or, if you are looking for more of a challenge, leave them white so they are harder to spot.
- Making Memories
Make sure to use your smartphone to capture the fun. These tools have advanced significantly and now allow you some amazing options that were previously only available to filmmakers. For example, shooting a scene in cinematic slow motion or with a shallow depth of field (background blur). Don’t overthink it; just capture random snaps that you can combine afterwards. Imagine you want to make a Through the Years film during your son or daughter’s marital rehearsal dinner. You can produce a video that follows your child from their first birthday through the big day.
- Floating Beer Pong – Id required for this one.
You can break this game out when the kids go home. This is the same game you played in college but now you have to compensate for the extra motion created by your drunken friends in the water.
Established in 2001 on the shores of Vero Beach, Florida, Reflection Pool Service provides high-quality, efficient, and trusted pool services. From repair, to remodeling, to maintenance, Reflection Pool Service is a one-stop shop for pool needs. For more information or to speak with a representative directly, feel free to contact us.
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