Did you ever go for slumber parties growing up in Lagos? I didn’t! Slumber parties were not exactly a Nigerian thing. They still aren’t. Our parents were/are pretty paranoid. If you ask a Nigerian parent (most of them) to sleep over at a friends place you’ll likely get an answer such as “is there something wrong with your house or bed?” “You like going out too much” or “stay at home and play with your brothers and sisters”. And that is that. Asking them to host your friends to a sleep over is a totally different ball game. Do not even go there.

Growing up, watching shows and movies with little kids going for slumber parties always made me wonder what a slumber party felt like. I wouldn’t call it a bucket list item, but it’s something I’ve always wanted to do. I finally had the opportunity to organize one last week. It was definitely one of my best weekends in Lagos. I got three things I absolutely cherish in one trip; The beach, 90s Music and A slumber party!  Myself and my travel soul sister Lola put heads together and planned a girls only 90s weekend at a beach house in Ibeshe.

It was a 90s themed slumber party where the girls got manis and pedis, endless food and drinks, listened to 90s music and watched 90s movies/shows all night. The most exciting part for me? This was all at a 5 bedroom beach house and we had the entire place to ourselves. However, we did not use any of the rooms because slumber party! Everyone was pumped and excited to sleep on the deck of the beach house. We moved all the mattresses, pillows and blankets to the deck and slept there. Right before that we watched Pretty Woman, 10 things I hate about you and a few episodes of Martin. The sound of the waves crashing in set the mood right; tranquil and serene.
 

PLANNING YOUR OWN BEACH SLUMBER PARTY

Planning this trip was no walk in the park. Lola and I planned this trip over one month in advance and we were still worried till the very last day. Beach parties in Lagos can get really expensive so you need to budget properly and charge the right prices. It can also be a logistical nightmare. I’ll take you through what you need to plan your own sleep over/beach party in Lagos.

We are also open to planning this for people and you can get in touch with either of us. It’s a great bridal shower, birthday and farewell celebration idea. You are sure to have a great weekend and you know what they say about when girls gather….they change the world!

CREATE A CHECKLIST

Checklists have saved my entire life and will save yours too. We sat together and did a checklist of everything we could possibly need for this slumber party; leaving no stone unturned. We put the event into categories such as transportation, food, drinks, games, etc. Sharing responsibilities also made things easier and this helped avoid any clashes. I was responsible for the beach house food/drinks and transportation. Lola sorted out the mani/pedis, movies, shows and games.  

So don’t forget to do a checklist and write everything possible under each category. If you are planning this alone, get someone else to look through and help you go over your checklist. You just might have missed something.
 

HAVE A THEME

As lovers of all things 90s, we knew we wanted to have a 90s themed party. The girls only idea obviously came from girls trip, the movie. We decided to throw in the mani/pedi as extras because every girl needs a bit of TLC. Your theme could be centered around colors, movies, shows, or even holidays i.e Christmas day.

DRAW UP A BUDGET
 

Your checklist will help you with a budget for the entire party. Make sure you get prices for everything on the checklist (even if you are getting sponsored) and charge based on your budget. If you are organizing this privately, send the budget out to everyone coming for the slumber party and let them know each person’s commitment. Also budget some money for miscellaneous expenses. When we got to the bank of the lagoon, the kids in the community helped us transport our food, drinks and boxes to the beach house and we had to tip them. Expenses like that add up so you should put that in your budget. 

PROMOTE YOUR EVENT
 

No one is going to attend an event they know nothing about. Promoting an event is extremely important. In addition to our platforms, we spoke to Lagos centered social media accounts to help list the event on their platform which they graciously did. FOMO Lagosand Nothing To Do In Lagos (NTDIL) are great places to list an event in Lagos. Our blogger friends Ajala Nene, Maggie and Amarachi also helped us promote the trip too. We do have a great travel blogging community in Nigeria and we support each other so much. Love it :). 

HUNT THOSE SPONSORS

This tip is specifically for trip planners/tour operators. I remember the first experience Lola and I planned together. The trip was to the majestic Kajuru Castle.  It was the first group trip for Naija Nomads and we needed to make the package as affordable as possible. We decided to contact brands all over Nigeria to sponsor us with drinks, snacks, food, transportation and every possible element of the trip. We wrote at least 40-50 sponsor emails and most of them were either “not open to sponsoring at the moment” or not responding to our emails. Finally, we got some brands to sponsor us and that trip was the beginning of the Nomad trips! Well, look at us now.

This is a not-so-humble brag but we were contacted by all the sponsors on this trip! They all wanted to be a part of it which made us feel like we were doing something right. We say a special thank you to Mega Sea Foundation, So Yummy Popcorn, Mrs Kush, Truffles, Love Fitness and the Potato Twirl Company for all the goodies! These are all excellent brands with top quality products. They went all out to ensure our bellies were fed. Some of us were eating burgers at 3.00am in the morning! One weekend of extra calories never hurt nobody.

*If you are planning a private event, source vendors within your budget and get in touch with them!

KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE

…and manage their expectations. During this trip, we knew we had to come correct with our venue and our means of transportation i.e the boat. We got a really nice boat and a beach house to match. We were so particular about these things because of our clientele. They are always willing to pay extra for maximum comfort. If your audience does not mind banana boats or classroom boats please go for it! The trip will end up being more affordable for everyone. We encountered a few issues at the beach house; some switches were not working and the shower not running in all the bathrooms. Let’s just thank God we had no drama queens on the trip.

AND FINALLY…

Shake off those nerves and be sure to have a great time. People are more understanding than you think. A few hitches are bound to happen but don’t let them weigh you down.

We hope you’ve found this post helpful and are ready to plan your girls trip! Your venue does not have to be the beach nor your theme be 90’s. Like we said in this post ; every woman (married, married with kids or single) NEEDS a girls trip! We all need that place where we can be vulnerable, let our guard down, not judged and have a wickedly good time.