to try and dissuade DD from a Soft Play birthday party?

[PennyHasNoSurname]

She turns four the week before Christmas, so who is going to have time to bring the kids?

The food prices at these places are a joke.

Im.not a People Person

She will want the whole class to come, at Pre School, and her closest friends there change week on week.

But would an empty hall with our own buffet and party games be enough to keep a bunch of 3/4yos happy? At least with softplay (private room), I wont have to entertain

Another vote for softplay. My DS was in kindergarten last year, and all but one party was softplay. The kids get to run around, and the parents get to drink coffee and chat. A real win-win!

The only 4th birthday party I've been to so far was a whole class one in a hall, they hired an entertainer who was great, he ran the whole thing for them. No idea what he cost, though. Obviously they then had to do food themselves, but that can be quite cheap if you go to Lidl or somewhere, and the kids will eat less than you think, anyway.
If you do go the entertainer route I would get one booked quickly, as I imagine they get really busy around Xmas.

We've done softplay, hall and home. Softplay was the easiest by a long way. Our house is too small to have 8 DCs playing musical bumps etc comfortably and the one time we did party at home a child threw up in the middle of the living room. Hall parties are hard work as PPs have said.

Have the softly, and do a little picnic in the party bags, so they can all eat at the end, just sandwich, cakes and carrot sticks etc

softly?? soft play, obviously