Birthday Party Decorations, Goodie Bags & Party Timeline at Off The Wall Kids (London Ontario)
The Pinterest board looks amazing. Then someone texts: "Can we get into the room early to set up?"
We hear decoration questions every week at Off The Wall Kids (**539 First St, East London**, Argyle near Fanshawe College). This is the straight guide for birthday party hosts — what you can bring, what we provide, how the **90-minute party room timeline** works, and how to avoid the cleanup surprises that slow down the next family on the schedule.
Party packages and booking: offthewallkids.ca/kids-birthday-parties-london-ontario
Official party policies: offthewallkids.ca/manage-your-party
Party food rules (cakes, outside food): offthewallkids.ca/kids-activities-blog/birthday-party-food-at-off-the-wall-kids-outside-food-cakes-allergies
"Can we bring our own decorations?"
**Yes.** Most parties are **DIY decorating** in your booked party room. Tape is on one of the party tables — if you do not see it, ask staff for more. Use **facility-provided tape** for hanging items in the room.
You may bring **air-filled or helium balloons** yourself. We can also provide balloons as a **Bookeo add-on** — options appear in **post-booking emails** and can be added through the booking site: bookeo.com/off_the_wall_bookings
Keep balloon arches and large decor **minimal and portable**. We do not have storage for oversized pieces. Plan to carry items in when you arrive and carry everything out when your room time ends.
"Can we get into the room before our start time to decorate?"
We will **do our best**, but **early room access is not guaranteed**. It depends on whether the room before yours is cleaned and ready. Our team uses time between parties mainly for cleanup and turnover.
Your **guaranteed party room entry** is your **booked start time** — for example, a 10:00am party means room access begins at 10:00am on schedule. We are not trying to make decorating harder; that is simply how back-to-back party days run in a busy indoor playground.
Optional **live party host** add-on: a host can help decorate, wrangle kids for food time, serve food, lead Happy Birthday, help with cake and presents, and assist with room cleanup. Ask when you book.
"What's not allowed in the party room?"
**No piñatas.** Kids swinging sticks in a shared facility is a safety issue — and piñatas are full of outside food we cannot allow.
**No confetti guns, bombs, or shooters.** Confetti can take **30 minutes to hours** to fully clean. When it gets wet, it sticks to floors and play surfaces. We have applied our **cleanup fee** when hosts leave confetti behind — we would rather you skip it entirely.
**No face paint** brought by hosts — it ends up on the play structure and adds major cleanup.
**Sparklers** are only for the **cake moment**, not as toys for kids to play with.
**Goodie bags:** no **food or candy** inside if you are handing them out in the room while food is being served. If there is food in the room, hand goodie bags out **as guests are leaving**. Zero-food goodie bags (small toys, activities) are fine in the room.
We prefer **no slime or Squishmallows** in goodie bags — they have exploded on our play structure more than once and required additional cleaning.
"Balloons — popping them safely"
When balloons pop in the party room, small pieces can end up in the play structure. We have **stopped multiple choking situations** with smaller children chewing balloon fragments.
Best practice: stick the air- or helium-filled balloon **into the garbage can**, then pop it there so all pieces stay contained.
"Decorations in the general eating area"
Some families celebrate in the main eating area before or after room time. **Presents and balloons** are fine there. **Outside food is not** — our health unit partnership requires outside food to stay in an enclosed party room, not the public eating area. Even permitted birthday cake from a party room cannot be consumed in the general public eating area.
When it is busy, tables in the eating area follow a **30-minute courtesy rule** — please do not hold multiple tables for hours if other families are waiting. Pushing tables together is possible; just be mindful of other customers.
"The 90-minute party room timeline — please follow it"
This is the section hosts skip most often — and it causes the most stress on party day.
Standard packages include **90 minutes in the private party room** on your booked schedule. A typical flow:
**~First 30 minutes:** play time, guests arriving, settling in.
**~30 minutes after start:** food is delivered to your room.
**Food, cake, and presents** happen within your remaining room time.
**Before room time ends:** guests return to the **indoor playground** for unlimited play until we close. **Party room access ends** when your 90 minutes are up so we can prepare for the next booking.
Where parties run over: sending kids **back out to play after food but before cake and presents**, then trying to round everyone up on a short clock. There is often **another party directly after yours**. We do not have flexibility to extend room time — please complete food, cake, and presents **inside your allotted window**.
Party room vs. facility play: offthewallkids.ca/kids-activities-blog/which-birthday-party-package-12-24-36-kids-off-the-wall-kids-london
"Cleanup and the $25 fee"
You are responsible for removing **all decorations**, including balloons, at the end of your booking. We take care of dirty tablecloths, dishes, food plates, and drinking cups.
A **$25 cleanup fee** applies if decorations are left behind or if prohibited items (like confetti) require extra staff cleanup.
After your room time, guests keep playing — **donut slide**, **ballistics arena**, jumping pillow, ninja course — until we close. That is one reason families choose us for **things to do in London** indoors: celebration and play in one stop.
London families have voted us **Best Indoor Playground** two years in a row through **Community Votes** — and **Best Children's Entertainer** two years in a row as well.
Decorations rapid-fire
Early room access? **Not guaranteed — booked start time is guaranteed entry.** Bring your own balloons? **Yes — air or helium. Facility balloons via Bookeo add-on.** Piñatas or confetti? **No.** Goodie bag candy in room? **No if food is being served — hand out on exit.** Slime / Squishmallows? **Please avoid — mess risk on play structure.** Timeline? **Food, cake, presents inside 90 minutes — then back to play.**
Submit your guest list before party day: offthewallkids.ca/party-guest-list
Book a party: bookeo.com/off_the_wall_bookings
More **things to do in London** with kids: offthewallkids.ca/things-to-do-with-kids-london-ontario