Recreate the Fair in YOUR Neighborhood with Portable Carnival Games

One of American society’s most iconic scenes takes place at the county fair. Walking down the street (made into a festival of sorts) with your friends and maybe even a special someone by your side. To your left, you’ve got everyone’s favorite classic bottle ring toss—right next to five pin bowling. To your right, you step up to skee ball and after a rough go decide you’ll try your hand at the football toss instead. After all activities are through, you decide to cap off the evening with a classic carnival hot dog. Can you imagine yourself in the scenario? Of course you can! So many of us have this shared experience. But when the county fair isn’t up and running, where can you get your carnival fill? The following post outlines how you can take matters into your own hands—with a custom neighborhood block party! If it sounds daunting at first, know that Fun Services Midwest has your back with all the portable carnival games you’ll need to make the night (or weekend) a success.

Let’s start by examining this moment in history. Sadly, many county fairs and festivals have been canceled over the past year due to a global pandemic. Even in 2021, carnivals aren’t quite back to normalcy, so it’s the perfect time to start a new tradition in your neighborhood!

Below are a few practical steps you can take to 1) equip your block party with all the necessities and 2) get the word out to respective family, friends, and neighbors.

What You’ll Need: Portable Carnival Games and More

OK, even if you’re not 100% convinced of this big block party idea, Fun Services Midwest wants to make it as simple as possible to take the best next step. Allow us to introduce you to a vast selection of block party inventory. Below, you will find a list of some of our go-to portable carnival games, and they usually get reserved FAST once the summer and fall roll around. Take a mental note of the items below and more on our site.

You’ve maybe never thought about a neighborhood block party as a means to gather friends and family. But again, this idea is rooted in an American staple: the fair or carnival in or around your city. Those items we listed at the beginning of this article—that are staples of any given carnival—happen to be stocked in our very own Fun Services Midwest Inventory.

If you want to jazz up each of those games, consider offering prizes to those participating. We have a wonderful selection of pre-packaged carnival game prizes for events like yours. Also worthy to note: our selection of booths such as a classic photo booth or the selfie booth! After all, the year is 2021 . . . is it even a real party without selfies galore?

It’s time to get with your block party planning committee to decide which of our portable carnival games selection will make an appearance at your event. We promise you can’t go wrong!

The Logistics: Next Steps for Block Party Planning

So you’ve got an idea of which portable carnival games are perfect for your party. Now what? At Fun Services Midwest, we think ideas are overrated—we prefer people who turn ideas into reality! Let’s look at a few practical next steps in regard to your block party this summer or fall. Don’t let winter 2021 roll around only to look back on this summer with regret. Here’s how to alleviate that potential problem:

Brainstorm Your Portable Carnival Games List. Yes, we’ve already mentioned this in the section above. But it really is a great next step! You can do this step by yourself, but we think it’s a lot more fun with a group of friends.

Create a Prospective Guest List. The key word here is INCLUSIVITY. If this is a block party in its truest form . . . invite the whole block! Consider placing parameters depending on your surrounding neighborhoods and streets. Maybe you keep it small (with just homes on your street) or maybe you extend the invite to a wider neighborhood reach.

Make an RSVP List Online. There are some great online resources to create an RSVP list. At the top of our list we’d say RSVPify, EventBrite, or even just a good ole’ event on Facebook.

Set a Date. We recommend planning at least a month or two in advance so that your guests have enough time to plan ahead.

Go Advertise! After you create an RSVP link, you can share it with friends, family, and neighbors (maybe through your HOA). This is also an opportunity to print yard signs and plant them across the neighborhood.

Start Planning. Once you’ve done items 1-5, it’s time to make the dream happen. Plan in the weeks leading up, but also start setting up the event at least 48-72 hours in advance.

Once we deliver your portable carnival games, inflatables, or moonwalks . . . you’re all set for the block party of the year! For families and friends to make long-lasting memories, someone needs to take the lead.

Why not you?

After all, you did take the time to read this full blog post. So take all that you’ve learned and go be the hero your neighborhood doesn’t deserve—but the hero your neighborhood most certainly needs.