Hosting A New Year’s Eve Murder Mystery Party

What’s one way to count down to an unforgettable New Year’s Day? Throw a murder mystery party! With a little planning, this twist on a traditional new year’s eve party can be a fun evening for everyone.

Choose a Theme

There are a lot of murder mystery party themes available, from Cowboy Western to supernatural Ghost Stories. However, since this is NYE, you may want to think about a more glamorous party theme like:

• the Great Gatsby
• the Golden Age of Hollywood
• James Bond at a Casino
• a Prohibition-era Speakeasy

If you’re not interested in creating your own mystery, you can find kits online.

Send the Invitations

When creating the invitations, let guests know this is an Adults Only night. After all, the party is themed around a murder. Give parents on your guest list enough of a head’s up that they can arrange for a babysitter.

A murder mystery party is a great way for people to relive one of the best parts of Halloween: the costumes! Write the theme on the invitation so guests can get creative with their looks. Anyone playing a main character should be told who they’ll be. That way, they can get their costume just right.

Plan the Evening

Have a sit-down dinner with multiple courses. That way there’s enough time for each act of the murder mystery. This will also give guests time to talk about their theories with each other. Give each table prepared murder questions for the group to discuss if they get stuck.

You can also break up the pace with a wide variety of activities or contests. Think about:

• Combining the mystery with a casino and poker night.
• Setting up a tournament for one game. The winner can choose a charity for an end-of-evening donation.
• Hosting a costume contest.
• Creating a paper wall where people can share their New Year’s resolutions. Set out crafting supplies like markers, glitter pens, colored paper, and glue. Encourage them to get creative as they personalize their resolutions.
• Hiring a photo booth or a photographer for an evening. Let guests wear props matched to your murder mystery dinner theme. This will let everyone take home photos of the evening as mementos.

Whatever happens, make sure you have fun!