This article lists some fantastic as well as funny ballon games for children as well as adults for a party or just casually.
Balloon Race
It’s easy to turn many simple games into balloon games. For example, take a any basic kid’s race, add balloons and you’ve got a challenging and very hilarious balloon game.
Requirements: []
- Two pieces of string or rope
- A balloon for each player
How to play:
- Lay out the string on the floor to mark the start and finish lines.
- Divide the kids into two teams and give each kid a balloon.
- Have the kids hold their balloons between their legs and go from the start to the finish line without dropping the balloon.
- If they drop it, they have to go back to the start line and try again.
- When both teams have completed the course the game is over.
Sunny Balloon Burst[]
Balloon game or science project? Who cares? — this balloon game is great fun no matter what you call it. Just make sure everyone’s wearing sun screen!
Requirements:
- 1 balloon for each kid
- 1 small magnifying glass per kid
- A place in direct sunlight to play
- Thumbtacks or string
- A fence or clothes line (in the sun!)
How to play:
- Inflate all the balloons and attach them to a fence (or a clothes line) at kid height about one foot apart. Make sure the spot you choose is in direct sunlight.
- Have all the players sit or kneel in front of a balloon.
- On the count of three they must hold their magnifying glasses about three inches from their balloons.
- Make sure the sun is shining through the magnifying glasses onto their balloons.
- After a while a small bright dot will appear on their balloons.
- The kids must hold their magnifying glasses steady until the heat caused by the sun causes their balloons to pop.
- The first kid to pop a balloon wins.
Balloon Pop “Surprise”[]
Balloon games that require the players to deliberately pop the balloons are exciting and always bring out lots of silly antics. So, it’s worth including at least one.
Requirements:
- Large balloons one for each kid.
- Small individually wrapped candies, pieces of paper that have jokes written on them and a few that say “claim a prize” (there’s no limit on size with this option).
How to play:
- Push a small candy or a piece of paper into every balloon. Then blow them up and knot the ends.
- Spread all the balloon around the floor (one for each kid) or hang them from the ceiling.
- Let the kids know that each balloon has a surprise inside.
- Then on the word “Go!,” let the kids go wild grabbing, sitting on them and popping them to reveal their surprise. This can be great fun for young kids as long as they’re not frightened by the popping balloons. You can even put a small light-weight party favor in each balloon and use them to decorate the party area. Then at the end of the party, let each guest take a balloon and pop it.
Balloon Stuffing Race[]
This is one of the balloon games that is better suited for older kids. “Muscle Builders Race” is a similar balloon game (see below), and is a much better choice for younger kids.
Requirements:
- Lots of small balloons
- 2 large shirts
- 2 large pairs of pants
- 1 long hat pin
How to play:
- Divide the players into two teams.
- Give each team a bag that contains a large shirt, a large pair of pants, and a bag of balloons.
- Have each team choose one person in their group to put on the clothes. The rest of the team will be blowing up the balloons. (Volunteer should have clothing that covers most of their skin. Popping balloon can really sting bare skin. Ouch!)
- On the word “Go!,” each team begins to blow up the balloon while their team’s volunteer puts on the large clothes.
- When the person is “dressed”, her teammates begin to stuff the inflated balloon in the shirt and pants as fast as they can. Yes, some balloons will pop in the frenzy, but that’s half the fun!
- After the allotted period of time, both teams must stop stuffing their volunteers.
- The team with the most balloons stuffed into their volunteer’s clothing wins.
Balloon Stomp[]
You may want to plan this balloon game as an outdoor event so a stomping good time can be had be all!
Reuqirements:
- An inflated balloon for each kid.
- String for each balloon.
- Rubber bands for each balloon (optional).
How to play:
- Start by giving each kid a balloon with about 3 ft of string tied to it.
- Next have them tie the other end of the string around their ankle leaving about 12 inches or so between their foot and the balloon. You can also tie the string to a rubber band so the kids can slip the rubber band over their feet.
- Have everyone stand in a large open space.
- The object is to stomp on everyone else’s balloons and pop them.
- The last one with an un-popped balloon wins!
Balloon Pop Relay[]
What could be better, a balloon game where the kids get to run around and pop balloons!
Requirements:
- Balloons (inflated) many colours preferable.
- Bag, basket or other type of container to hold the balloon.
How to play:
- Blow up a number of coloured balloons according to number of teams present. For example blow red, blue and green balloons for 3 teams.
- Divide the kids into teams and have the kids form lines facing each other about 20 feet apart. Place a big bag of balloons in the middle between the teams.
- On the word “Go!,” the first two kids from each team must race to the balloon bag, take one balloon of the teams's color out and pop it as quickly as they can – they can sit on it, step on it, or pop it by any other means. Once the pop the balloon they race back and tag the next team member in their line.
- The game continues like this until every kid has had a turn. The team that finishes first (i.e.: has every player pop a balloon) is the winner.