Our family seems to go to LOTS of birthday parties so most of these we have experienced first-hand. We think these are some of the best vendors in Jacksonville!
Mom Tip: You can often get a glimpse of what party vendors have to offerย by checking outย Family Nights at local restaurants.
Spacewalk
Hands down our favorite bounce house rental company! Competitive pricing, clean bounce houses, but best of all great customer service. We have Spacewalk at most of our birthday parties and love working with Gus. I have used him for other events – he gives a discount to churches, schools, and other non-profit agencies! In fact, my first experience with Gus was when volunteering for a Christmas party for foster children at the zoo! Not only do they offer bounce houses, but they also offer concession machines and party supplies.
Mom Tip: Make sure that the bounce house rental company leaves a tarp in front of the entry to the bounce house.ย This helps keep the bounce house a little cleaner and provides a spot for kids to leave their shoes. Not all bounce house companies do this, but Spacewalk does!
Little Barrels of Fun
Perfect for a choo-choo train party – a fun little train that comes to you, Little Barrels of Fun! At the party we attended, the train just did laps on the streets around the house. The driver, wearing his engineer’s cap, was as nice as could be. Here’s their Facebook pageย for more info.
Wild Wonders – Animal Show
We’ve seen owner Michael Rossi twice now. Once at a Birthday party and once at a Jack Russel park event. This is an exciting and educational program that the kids love! Micheal brings out at least 10 different animals–from ferrets to huge snakes! He is a storyteller and the kids are just enamored with him! Check out his Facebook page here!
Twist of Fun Balloon Art
We love Twist of Fun Balloon Art! Justin is an elementary school teacher and father, making him great with the kids. He is fun, patient, and super talented! Parents and kids all love him! I feel like he can make ANYTHING out of balloons. My kids alone have gotten a frog with a long tongue complete with a fly on it, a wiener dog, a panda, a giraffe, a rocket, a penguin, a tiger, a Scooby Doo, a bomb, a lion, a coiled-up snake, and a ladybug. He always makes a balloon that fits the party theme. Once he did ALL of the Yo Gabba Gabba characters, and at another party we attended he made the dad an awesome beer mug! I love the fact that he is NOT dressed up as a clown.
Mr. D, Caricature Artist
Mr. D (Bob Drost) does amazing artwork. We usually try to make on ofย Mr. D’sย Chick-Fil-A family nights, but we also recently had the pleasure of attending a birthday party. And it goes to show that family nights are just a GLIMPSE of what these vendors do for parties because we liked him even better after seeing him at the party. After the party, he gave the birthday girl a collection of caricatures of all the guests at her party! Call or email Bob at 904-349-2177 or [email protected].
Mom Tip: When our caricatures are finished, weย like toย makeย photocopies and let the kids color them!
Bricks 4 Kidz
Perfect for that birthday boy or girl that is intrigued with Lego bricks!ย Bricks 4 Kidz providesย Lego games with energetic host/hostesses. At the party we attended, the kids built their own vehicles and raced them down a track. They also did a relay raceย with buckets of Legos. The host even turned cleaning up into a game! We also attended a special group event hosted by Bricks 4 Kids. It was not a birthday party but an interactive Lego experience. My big kidsย got to try out the motorizedย Lego bricks to put their creations into motionย and my little one used Duplo blocks to make an alligator.
Debra Heuskin, Face Painter
Wonderful face painter – we met her at a family night at Zaxby’s. The first person to paint my babies’ faces. She does “Disney quality” work. These are faces you would pay $15 or more for at Disney. A mom herself, she is great with the kids and always amazes me with her patience!ย Check her out onย facebookย or go visit her at Riverside Arts Market!
Mom Tip: We use baby wipes to remove face paint from those cute little faces!
Captain Character
Captain Character brings loads of entertainment. He’s basically a one-man showย with puppets and magic. He also does balloon twisting, face painting, andย evenย passesย out cotton candy!
Pinto Ponies
A friend of mine just threw a party for her six-year-old daughter who is really into horses right now. She was very happy with Pinto Carriage Works, and believes without a doubtย that thisย was a party her daughter will never forget! The guests fed the ponies carrots and allย enjoyed several rides. Theyย were even allowed to hold the reins making it seem like they were real cowboys and cowgirls. Yeehaw!
Rollin’ Rita’s
Rollin’ Rita’s we probably know best for their frozen drink machines, but they do have other fun party rentals like chocolate fountains, generators, misting fans, and outdoor heaters.ย ย I learned about Rollin’ Rita’sย several years ago through one of the Junior League of Jacksonville’s annual fundraising events, and now I look for them every year.ย Never disappointed!
Diamond D
Yes, you can have your party at Diamond D Ranch or for a fee they will come to you! Pony rides, petting zoo, and horse drawn wagonย are a few of the options they offer off the ranch. We have had them at school functions and always see them at the annual Hooked on Fishing event in Jax Beach.
Mrs. Bubbles
We used one of Mrs. Bubbles’ bubble machines at a school event, and it was a big hit. I mean who doesn’t love bubbles? Most of her events, she brings music and creates a bubble dance party!
Girly-Girl Partea’ Inc
Girly-Girl Parteaโ Inc has been northeast Florida’s premier children’s event planner, specializing in themed parties since 2008. As a mobile business, they bring the party to you and cover all of your hosting needs from set up to clean up and everything in between. They provide multiple pre-packaged party themes including princess parties, spa parties, classic tea parties and tween parties for the St Augustine and Jacksonville areas. They are also available for custom party themes, designed specifically to fit your needs. Girly-Girl Partea’ is best known for their entertaining and authentic princess characters including the Snow Sisters, Cinderella, Tinker Bell, Little Mermaid and more. They are in the process of expanding into boy party themes as well with hopes to add superheroes, pirates and themed holiday characters very soon. Visit their siteย view package options, pricing, and photos.
Links to other vendors in Jacksonville
Hire A Fire Truckย – Hire a Fire Truck
Sugarplum Entertainment – Princess Parties, Pirate Parties, Clowns, and Magicians
Julius Magic – Fun magic shows
Street Party Game Truck – Mobile Arcade
Mrs. Kate – Sing-along interactive show with puppets
Clix Photography – Event Photography
Still want more? Check out ALL of Jacksonville’s Birthday Vendors in our Family Directory!
Is there anyoneย you would recommend to other moms for birthday parties?ย Let us know by leaving a comment!
Has anyone used Hire a fire truck??
iPhotoBooth is a family owned and operated home grown business started by my husband Walker and I right here in Jacksonville. I love reading your posts and love the community of moms I get to learn from. We would be honored to be a part of capturing the memories for any of your LO’s birthdays or any of you mommies showers. Check out our website, read some of our reviews and give a shot. It is so much fun for all ages and you get a keepsake
Please add your business to our directory! http://jacksonvillemom.com/around-town/add
I am also interested to know if anyone has used Hire A Fire Truck.
I booked them over six months in advance for my son’s birthday party tomorrow. I confirmed on multiple occasions as there was no contract in place. Unfortunately, I got a call from Ray today telling me that they would not be able to come for my son’s birthday party tomorrow ๐ I’m not sure what the reason is but it is definitely upsetting. In the grand scheme of things this is minor but thought I’d reply to let you know my experience.
Wild Wonders Animal Show is awesome! The gentleman that owns/runs it is a teacher and his presentations are simply the best. We had him speak at our Blue & Gold Banquet and they Scouts loved him. He is fantastic!
Mermaid Kelly is an AMAZING party guest! She swims with kids, reads story books, plays pool games, and even leads the happy birthday song! With summer coming up, it’s a great fit! She does regular mermaid character, Princess Melody (ariels daughter), and even princess Ariel! She does pirates for boys too! She’s a good price at $100 for 2 hours of swimming or $50 per hour for dry Appearences, you CAN’T beat that price! You can see her Instagram for photos (mermaidkelly_ ) or her facebook to see all other info or to contact her (Facebook.com/mermaidkelly2015)!!!
My son loves face painting with cartoon characters. This birthday celebration of my 2 year old son i would definitely call Fun Balloon Art entertainer. Thanks for this amazing list Kathy
I really liked that you had mentioned that balloon art was such a hit with the children and your son’s party. I’ve been trying to plan a party for my son and I haven’t really been sure about what to do for all the kids to make sure they enjoy themselves. A balloon artist might be just what we’re looking for, I’ll start looking in my area for one!
Great Idea.
My Child’s birthday last weak i hire bounce house rentals and gave surprise my child and enjoy a lot with my baby.