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Posted by Sherry Howell on April 5, 2026
If you operate an indoor or outdoor FEC, Mother’s Day and Father’s Day are too often treated like simple promotional weekends. You might create a discount, promo, or graphic, or maybe someone throws brunch on the menu, and then you all hope for the best. But these holidays can do a lot more for your business than fill a few extra tables or drive a little added traffic.
Mother’s Day 2026 falls on Sunday, May 10, and Father’s Day 2026 falls on Sunday, June 21, so there is still time to build something that feels intentional instead of last-minute. To help spark some creativity, we pulled together this list of tips to help you plan memorable family holidays this year.
Did you know that last year, a National Retail Federation report found that 61% of US buyers planned special outings for Mother’s Day in 2025, with nearly half saying that finding something unique or different mattered most.
Father’s Day wasn’t all that different, with over 50% of buyers planning special outings and most of those wanting something unique or that would create a special memory. Enter: YOUR FACILITY. Start thinking about how your facility can help them answer the questions “What should we do with Mom/Dad?” When you build your event and its marketing around togetherness, recognition, and a little novelty, your offer gets much stronger.
Let’s face it. You’re competing with established restaurants and bottomless mimosas, so you need your venue to feel like a major player in the holiday game. A themed experience is more compelling because it gives people a picture of how the day will feel before they ever arrive.
For Mother’s Day, that might mean a Mom’s Day Out event with brunch, light entertainment, keepsake photos, and activities kids can do with her, instead of just near her. OpenTable’s 2025 data showed that brunch dominated Mother’s Day bookings, and experience driven add ons like buffets, tasting menus, and live entertainment were especially popular.
For Father’s Day, the theme can lean more interactive. Perhaps Dad and Me Challenge Day, Backyard Legends Weekend, or Father Figure Field Day. The idea is to create a reason for dads to participate rather than just supervise. If the day feels built for shared competition, skill, or relaxed fun, it becomes much easier for families to say yes.
For years, I thought Mom wanted to go to the restaurant, and Dad wanted to go to the FEC. But it’s really about giving both of them events and activities that can help them bond together in an easy, fun, and inviting way that celebrates their role in the family.
For Mother’s Day, that could look like parent-child craft stations, family mini golf scorecards with silly awards, tea and treats in a decorated lounge area, a build your own bouquet bar, or a short family trivia session where the questions are about Mom. You could even party rooms into keepsake-making spaces. If you have outdoor space and the weather is nice, consider picnic-style experiences, garden-themed photo moments, lawn games, or other activities facilitated by your party hosts that are lighthearted and fun.
For Father’s Day, maybe host family competitions, arcade tournaments, pickleball or basketball shootouts, or even brackets, barbecue, wings, or pizza tastings, or even a parent-child obstacle course or game room scavenger hunt. If your venue has attractions that naturally fit competition, use them. If it does not, invent it anyway. A leader board, a simple emcee, and a few well-placed prizes can make ordinary activities feel like an event.
Mother’s Day has a strong food and beverage component, no matter what kind of offering you have, with data (and me, of course), suggesting there’s a strong brunch demand and meaningful traffic throughout early dinner as well.
That does not mean your FEC needs to become a full-service brunch destination. It does mean you should think like a host. Consider what might add a special touch to make her day special, such as:
Small touches like these can elevate the day without forcing you to overhaul your operation.
Father’s Day can support food and beverage too, of course, but it tends to work especially well when the day has a built-in activity hook. Many Dads are usually not asking for anything elaborate. They want time together that’s easy and enjoyable.
That gives you a lot of room to build a day that is lower pressure but still highly marketable. Consider events like a Dad and Me Unlimited Play session, a family barbecue/grill food offering and game card package, or even a workshop-style event where kids can build or personalize something for Dad before playing.
Consider things like arcade contests, bowling formats, racing experiences, or timed attraction challenges. The format matters less than the fact that the parent is actively part of it.
Just like with anything else you sell, don’t make the guest do too much work. The more your marketing makes it seem like they need to piece the day together themselves, the weaker the offer becomes.
Instead, package it clearly. Give the event a name. Set the time window. Define what is included. Show the value. Explain who it is for. Tell them whether it is best for toddlers, school-aged kids, multigenerational groups, or families with competitive teens, and be clear about what’s included and special.
This matters even more because Mother’s Day planners often book ahead. OpenTable found that nearly 60% of Mother’s Day bookings in 2025 were made at least four days in advance. Now’s your chance!
In other words, do not wait for the week of the holiday and then toss out a vague graphic. Build the package early and make registration simple. These are exactly the kinds of events people will commit to in advance when the concept feels well-planned and inviting.
When you promote these events, resist the urge to lead with price. Lead with the picture of the day. For Mother’s Day, show moms being included, celebrated, and relaxed. Use language about family time, memory-making, and doing something she will genuinely enjoy. The research supports that approach because both shoppers and moms themselves are clearly signaling that connection and memorable outings matter.
For Father’s Day, show participation, laughter, and shared activity. Position your event as a better answer than another tie, mug, or last-minute gift card.
Special holiday events should be designed to generate the kinds of photos families want to keep and that your team can use later. That does not mean staging something fake, mind you. Create “photo-worthy” experiences and atmosphere and you’re well on your way.
For Mother’s Day, that might be a flower wall, a spring table setup, or a child-made card handoff moment. For Father’s Day, it might be a winner photo at the tournament board, a family team shot, or a branded “Dad crushed it” backdrop.
This matters because these holidays are built around memory-making. The more visible that becomes inside your facility, the more valuable the experience feels in real time (and the more useful your content becomes when you market the next one!)
The smartest version of these events does more than produce one good day of revenue. It introduces new families to your facility, gives existing guests a different reason to visit, and opens the door to future birthday, summer, and group-event business.
So, as you build your Mother’s Day and Father’s Day programming, think about the next step, too. Capture emails. Offer bounce-back incentives. Make it easy for guests to book another event before they leave. Train your team to talk about summer passes, memberships, camps, parties, or upcoming themed weekends in a way that feels natural.
The bottom line is to get with your team, dip into your creativity, and then plan, execute, and deliver the best holidays ever, so you can help even more families in the year that follows. Good luck!
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