Cars Party Ideas!

Customize Cars invitations to rev everyone up for the party!

Give your little racer a chance to customize his hot rod - well, maybe just his invitation - before the big day. He'll love helping you create 1st to the Finish Custom Cars Invitations for his special day. Let him choose the character or characters he wants on the invitation, and watch him get all revved up with excitement. Add a message like: "You'll go where no Car has gone before for Nick's birthday adventure" or "Float like a Cadillac, sting like a Beemer at Sam's birthday party!" Party City will print your invites and ship them out to you within five days. Add a pinch of Cars Confetti and seal the envelop with a Cars Sticker.

Soup up your invitations with a VIP pass

Get guests' minds racing with easy add-ons to Cars Fill-In Invitations. Slip a Cars Tattoo inside the envelope with your invite and tell guests to wear theirs as a special pass into your Cars party. Then sprinkle Confetti inside the envelope and finish it off with a Cars Sticker.

Tie a Lightning wristband onto hand-delivered invitations to get little hearts racing

Get kids in the racing mood before the party! If you're hand-delivering your Cars Invitations, punch a hole in the corner of each envelope and use Yellow Curling Ribbon to attach a Cars Wristband (available soon). The kids will love getting a pre-party favor that has them imagining the adventures to come.

Send custom Cars thank-you notes with personal flair!

Our 1st to the Finish Custom Cars Thank You Notes are as special as all the friends that made your little boy's birthday wonderful. Add your birthday boy's name to the front and order them along with your custom invitations. Have him write a meaningful note thanking guests for their gift. Seal the envelope with a Cars Sticker for extra racing flair.

Send thank you notes with a photo finish!

Party photos are a great way to make Cars Thank You Notes extra special. During the party, take a shot of each guest posing with the birthday boy, the Lightning McQueen Life Size Cut-Out Decoration or with their gift. This clever trick makes it super easy to remember who brought which gift – plus the photos make awesome party keepsakes. Finish each one with a little Cars Confetti and a Sticker.

Put a Cars spin on pinata time and start the race for candy!

Tell the kids they are part of the pit crew with the Cars 3-D Pinata or the Cars Pull-String Pinata. Let them take turns pulling strings until they find the one that releases the goodies. Trick out your pinata with Kiddie Mix candies and favors like Compass Rings, Bounce Balls, Sport Whistles, Mini Discs and Cars Lanyards. Give each child a Cars Loot Bag so that when the candy flies, they're geared up and ready to go.

Let guests downshift with the Cars party game

After your little racers have had their engines revving for a while, shift your Cars party into lower gear with the Cars Party Game. In this scavenger hunt, players follow Lightning McQueen's journey down Route 66, all the way to Radiator Springs, and meet the whole Cars gang along the way. The game, which works for up to eight players, includes a game board and Lightyear spinner.

Let them pick their treats with a Cars favor bar

Racecars need to make lots of different decisions about how to win a race. So why not let your party guests make a game out of picking their own party favors? Set out a Black Compartment Tray, then fill it with toys like Cars Kaleidoscopes, Compass Rings, Cars Mini Discs, Sport Whistles, Bounce Balls, Wristbands and Mini Paddleballs. (Wristbands available soon.)

Make the winner's circle the place to be with cool prizes!

Being the best racer at a Cars party is lots of fun – especially when it gets you a trip to the winner's circle. Reward the good sports with prizes like the Speed Zone Drag Racer, Cars Paint-by-Number Kit (available soon), Paddleballs or Cars Bubble Wand Set (available soon). And you're sure to get a roar from the when you pass out this Jumbo Trophy Cup.

Give each guest a Cars tool bucket full of fun!

A tool bucket full of Cars goodies is a first-place way to thank your guests for coming. Start with Cars Favor Buckets (available soon) and line them with Yellow Crinkle Paper Shred. Now top them with goodies like Cars Jumbo Crayons, Cars Markers (available soon) and Yo-Yos.

Make Cars party cups do double duty as favor containers

Who wouldn't want to take home a Cars-themed plastic drinking cup that they get to use over and over? Here's a great favor idea that stars our Cars Party Cup. Fill the cup with Red Crinkle Paper Shred. Top it off with a Cars Mini Paddleball, Compass Ring, Cars Pencils, a Wristband (available soon) and Memo Pad. Slide the filled cup into a Clear Large Party Bag and tie it all together with Yellow Curling Ribbon.

Pick custom favor containers for unique Cars take-home goodies

Lightning McQueen is a fully customized racecar, so why not make your Cars party favors just as unique? Party City offers many favor containers that can't be found anywhere else. For your Cars party we suggest a Favor Ball, Folding Favor Box or Favor Bucket in coordinating colors. Whichever favor container you choose, deck it out to go with the Cars theme:

• Fill your favor container with Crinkle Paper Shred, and decorate the outside of the container with Cars Stickers.
• Add themed favors like Cars Wristbands (available soon), Cars Memo Pads, Tattoos, Compass Rings and Cars Yo-Yo's. For taller favor containers, add these awesome Cars Pencils or Clip Pens (available soon).
• Be sure to add some sweets, like Kiddie Mix Candy or other value pack candy!

Finish prepping at top speed with Cars favor value packs

Need favors that are ready to go for race-day action? Make up to eight favor bags on the double with the Cars Favor Value Pack, which includes fun favors and cool loot bags. Your guests will love their new Cars favors, and you'll love how the value pack makes prepping faster than Lightning McQueen.

Transform your party room into a thrilling foreign race course!

Transform your party room into an exotic foreign raceway with the help of the Cars 2 Scene Setter. Make the scene more race-way ready with a 1st to the Finish Custom Banner with a message for the birthday boy. Set it off with Cars Dangling Cut-Out Decorations and a Checkered Flag Pennant Banner. The whole scene is quick and easy to put up and take down after the party when you use Sticky Tack, which won't mark up your walls. Keep reading for great ideas for table decorations and balloons.

Set a table for international dining adventures

Dining around the world is a big part of the Cars 2 movie story. Help your little racers explore the cuisine of the world by setting a party table fit for winners.

• Set a table for adventure by starting with a Cars Table Cover topped with Cars 2 Lunch Plates, matching Cups, Napkins and Red Forks.
• Add some racing flair with the Cars Birthday Champion Balloon Centerpiece. For more pizzazz, fill Cars Favor Buckets (available soon) with black and white Checkered Streamers and top them with matching Gumballs.
• Give each little racer his own gear by decorating each setting with Cars Blowouts, Wristbands (available soon), Fiesta Color Sunglasses, Cars Cake Toppers and Paddleballs.

Make your decor "float like a Cadillac" with balloon bouquets

Balloons are an inexpensive way to boost your Cars party decor into the winner's circle. It's so easy to make a big impact with little effort by using balloon bouquets. Anchor this awesome five-piece Cars Balloon Bouquet that includes a Lightning McQueen balloon, two Cars balloons and two red metallic star balloons, to a Checkered Flag Balloon Weight. Or pick up a hilarious Cars Singing Balloon or a Tow Mater Supershape Balloon. Whichever one you choose, you'll need helium! Pick up a tank at your nearest Party City store. To inflate your balloons at home, order our Helium Tank Kit.

A Cars costume puts the guest of honor in the driver's seat!

The car isn't the only thing that gets tuned up before the race. Drivers need special duds too! Your Cars fan will feel extra-special tearing into the party wearing a Lightning McQueen Costume. Or if his favorite character is that lovable Southern tow truck, he'll adore this Tow Mater Muscle Costume. Either way, he'll be dressed for action.

Give him race driver flair with a Cars ribbon

If your little one wants to have his party in his own favorite outfit, make sure he's set with a pair of Fiesta Sunglasses and a Cars Award Ribbon – the ultimate guest of honor accessory! He can wear it during the aprty and keep it as a special keepsake that he can wear over and over!

Welcome guests to the Rust-Eze racing team with Cars accessories

Give your racers a grand entrance by handing out Cars accessories at the door! They can look just like Lightning McQueen's pit crew by giving them Cars 2 Hats shaped like Tow Mater, sleek Fiesta Color Sunglasses and Cars Wristbands (available soon). They'll be in the fast lane and feeling like World Grand Prix champions.

Make flashy Cars cupcakes that are flat-out easy

Lightning McQueen is a sweet looking car – just as sweet as Cars birthday cupcakes you bake at home! Bake his favorite cake in Cars Baking Cups, frost and decorate with Cars Icing Decorations and Sugar Sprinkles and a few Checkered Flag Picks. Pile them on this impressive Cars Treat Stand and you'll have a memorable dessert table. Add a Cars Lightning McQueen Candle to the one for the birthday boy. Serve your cupcakes on Cars Dessert Plates with Cars 2 Beverage Napkins.

Let them trick out their own cupcakes with sugar and sprinkles

Customized cars with special designs and features are all the rage in Cars, and your party guests will love personalizing their own cupcakes. Bake up a couple batches of cupcakes in Cars Baking Cups then frost them. Set out Cars Icing Decorations, Cars Cake Toppers, Sugar Sprinkles, Color Mist Spray and Rainbow Nonpareils. Give each child a Cars Dessert Plate to work on and then let them go to town. Be sure to have some Cars 2 Beverage Napkins to take care of any spills.

Get their engines going with this international Cars menu!

The World Grand Prix takes the Cars characters to England, Japan, France and Italy and so will your menu of international snacks. Thread cherry tomatoes, basil leaves and baby mozzarella balls on Checkered Flag Picks for Italian caprese, then add English fish sticks and chips, kid-friendly Japanese sushi like a California roll and French mini brie wedges with jam, mini croissants and fresh grapes. Serve your feast on Cars Lunch Plates, along with matching Napkins and Red Forks.

A Cars cake will win the dessert Grand Prix!

Here's a great way to invite Lightning McQueen to your party's dessert table. Bake the birthday boy's favorite cake in a Cars Lightning McQueen Cake Pan. Let it cool, then tint the frosting and decorate your cake with the Wilton Basic Cake Decorating Set. Add a Cars Candle then serve your cake with Cars dessert plates, napkins and Red Forks. For more detailed cake decorating instructions, download and print the Cars Cake PDF.

Cars Cake PDF

Fuel up with Piston Punch!

Racecar drivers get awfully thirsty with so much high-speed action going on, so why not give them something healthy and refreshing to help them keep burning rubber? Combine equal parts of cranberry apple juice with natural lemon-lime soda in a Ringed Bowl. Slice strawberries, lemons and limes into rings and add them to the punch. Ladle the Piston Punch into Cars Cups and serve with Beverage Napkins.

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