Keeping A Surprise Party a Secret

When you're planning a surprise celebration for someone, the last thing you want is for them to arrive on the night and quite obviously feign surprise at the sight of the assembled guests and party decorations. But just how do you prevent this happening? Is anyone ever really genuinely surprised in those situations or does it all just turn into an embarrassed - and obviously untrue - gasp of "I really had no idea!"

Preventing the party's star guest finding out before the big night might seem like a Herculean task - and you might even resign yourself to them 'suspecting something' even if they don't know the full details. But with a bit of know how, you can successfully keep the whole thing a secret. How? By becoming a master of stealth and an expert at cloak and dagger operations! In short, you have to know exactly how to keep a secret!

Learning How to Keep Quiet

Most people only have themselves to blame when cats get let out of bags; in other words, we are generally our own worst enemies when it comes to not keeping our mouths firmly shut. Riding along on the crest of a wave of euphoria when we've been successful in an endeavour, or pulled something off we didn't think we could, we sometimes just can't help sharing our good news - even though in our heart of hearts we know we should be keeping completely and utterly schtum!

Organising a party is chaotic and stressful at the best of times, and under normal circumstances you'd be letting the world and his wife know that the entertainer, venue and caterer have all come together perfectly - and probably doing a lap of victory around the room too, simply because the elation of having it all finalised would be such a weight off your shoulders. But when you're working undercover, you have to be slightly more discreet. And that can be tough.

Get Help from Friends and Relatives

Roping in a right-hand man (or woman) from the start can help take off some of the pressure - both of the actual organising and keeping it quiet. Be warned: it will be nigh on impossible to organise an event single handedly and not involve other people. You will need a sounding board, ideas generator, confidante and punch bag. Get them on board from the offset. If it can be someone outside of the family or away from your main guest's immediate circle, all the better. Let them be the main contact for the professional services you are using - suspicions will be aroused if you start getting umpteen phone calls a day and mysterious letters through the door. And if your partner/friend/relative doesn't cotton on you're arranging a party, they might suspect you're up to something much worse! So keep as much of the correspondence and contact side of things away from your home phone and computer!

Cover Your Tracks

We live in an age now where technologically gives us 'instant' everything - from text messages to email and live computer chat, and although that means we can arrange things in a matter of seconds, it also means we leave a trail that's around for a little longer! If you absolutely have to make bookings and enquires from home, don't leave a series of obvious clues in your wake! Clear your browsers on your computer, delete your text messages and wipe the answer tape after you've listened to your messages!

So cover your tracks, get some external help, and don't get too carried away on wanting to self-congratulate your successes and we'll guarantee your guest will have the surprise of their life!