Discuss the idea of a Quinceañera with your parent(s) or legal guardian.

You will need their approval and possibly a budget for the party’s finances. You will want to start planning your Quinceañera at least 6 months to a year in advance of the date, with enough time to make sure that everything can be taken care of.

Choose the party‘s date.

You may want your Quinceañera to be near the time of your birthday; however, consider that you may not want to have your party during winter or spring break or near any other holidays in which you feel your family and friends will most likely be unable to attend if they are out of town. If your birthday is on a weekday, then you could plan your Quinceañera for the Saturday before or after your birthday.

Choose the location to have your Quinceañera.

Commonly a reception hall (similar to one used for weddings, anniversary parties, sweet sixteen’s, etc.) You will want to identify your price range for the reception hall, and find out how many people the hall can accommodate. Your parents should be able to help you with this.

Choose the time your Quinceañera begins and ends.

This can be a difficult decision due to the fact that once the party starts, it’s so fun it seems to never end.

Consider the fourteen (or less) couples and the escort of your Quinceañera.

An escort is the boy to do just that, escort the birthday girl throughout her night. At a Quinceañera, there are traditionally the birthday girls’ closest fourteen girlfriends and closest fourteen boy friends who dance together several times throughout the evening, plus often during a surprise dance as well. You may also invite cousins to fill this role as well, or have a smaller variation, such as only seven couples, or only asking girlfriends to dance, etc. This is your party!

Choreography is important for your fourteen couples.

Traditionally, there are two to three dances with the fourteen couples. Start practicing at least two months before the Quinceañera. You may want to think about hiring someone from a local dance studio to help you learn the dances for the first four to six weeks. There is also traditionally a father and daughter dance. If your father is not present at your party, then you could share this dance with your godfather, grandfather, uncle, or the most important male figure in your life. You can also feel free to skip this dance if it makes you more comfortable to do so.

Consider the outfits for the fourteen couples and for the birthday girl herself.

You will want to have everyone’s measurements, heights, sizes, and shoe sizes taken down. Depending on where you live, the dress for the birthday girl may need to be bought as early as six months in advance because it may take a while to make all of the needed adjustments and possibly ship the dress after it is tailored.

Send reply cards and thank you notes after the event.

Whether you are ordering or creating these cards, it is easiest to order & create all of the stationary from the same place and at around the same time. Your invitations can be traditional or modern so long as you have the who, what, when, where, and why included. You could also include a schedule of the night, the names of the fourteen couples, as well as the names of the people who helped financially, such as godparents, along with a poem or prayer dedicated to someone close who passed away. You should send out invitations six to eight weeks before the Quinceañera (to those nearby) and around ten weeks prior for long-distance guests. Reply cards almost always include a box where each guest will indicate how many people will be attending. It is very important to have a deadline date for the return of the reply card. Also, remember that the thank you notes sent afterwards should be written by hand by the birthday girl. To add a fun twist, you may wish to send a picture card including a memorable picture from the Quinceañera. Thank you notes should be sent out within a month of the event itself.