Party All Night

Keep the celebration going after your reception ends by planning an after-hour soiree at a local lounge. Put a friend in charge―you'll want to sneak off to your honeymoon suite.

Bridal Essentials

Instead of a traditional shower, have a "get the bride ready" party, where guests give the soon-to-be-wed gal essentials such as a garter, stockings, and frilly underwear.

Back to School

Take a trip back to your college campus for your bachelorette party to visit your old haunts until the wee hours of the morning.

Slam Dunk

Pro-level gyms like Chicago's Lakeshore Athletic Center will rent a basketball court to your group for about $300 per hour. There's even a rooftop party area for post-game cocktails.

Slumber Party

Plan a bachelorette party that recalls your elementary-school sleepover days. Unroll sleeping bags, heat up cocoa, watch Grease, and play Trivial Pursuit.

Spa Escape

Spend a blissful day at a local spa with your bridesmaids in lieu of a club-hopping bachelorette party.

Weekend Retreat

Plan a laid-back long weekend with your girlfriends in lieu of a party-hearty night out. Camp out at the beach, rent a mountainside cabin, or chill at a yoga retreat.

Femme Fatales

Bond with your girls during a sex-toy party. Invite a saleswoman to present the toys and other erotic products (like chocolate body paint) to ensure a great love life for years to come.

Field of Dreams

Pack up your buddies and go to games at as many major-league ballparks as you can reach. Try the Toronto-Detroit-Chicago-Milwaukee axis, or roll from Boston to New York to Philadelphia and Baltimore.

Food Fest

Take a culinary tour for your bachelorette party. Start off at your preferred pub for cocktails, then have appetizers, main courses, and desserts each at a different restaurant.

Get Into the Groove

Head to Absolution, a West Hollywood loft-style gym, where Madonna's former movement coach can teach you and your gal pals some hot dance steps (310-657-7878).

Home Essentials

Pick a room in your house and ask guests to bring befitting shower gifts. Think a spice rack for the kitchen or towels for the bathroom. Or, assign a different room to each guest.

Home Improvement

Have a fixer-upper shower, where guests help fix up your new home. Everyone's gift to the couple is time—but other great presents include tools and discounts to hardware stores.

Home Indulgence

Let the spa come to you! Relax and Rejuvenate, a mobile spa, delivers all of the essentials, from soothing music to plush slippers to Baltimore-area homes (relaxandrejuvenate.com).

Informal Gathering

If there's more than an hour between your ceremony and reception, ask a friend to host a get-together with snacks and wine that you've pre-ordered.