How to Celebrate Birthdays in Animal Crossing: New Horizons

Birthdays are one of the countless holidays in Animal Crossing: New Horizons, and the game has plenty of ways to celebrate them. Because you and the villagers have different birthdays, this holiday is one of the few that happens on different days depending on the island. No matter when the celebration takes place, be ready to have a blast celebrating with in game items like cake, balloons, and party poppers!

Part 1

Part 1 of 2:

Celebrating a Villager's Birthday

1
Find out when the villager's birthday is. You can do this by looking it up on the internet by searching up your villager and finding out whenever their birthday is. You can also check your bulletin board whenever there is a bird or an owl perched on top of it, meaning a new message. Tom Nook will write an announcement that the villagers birthday is soon, and he will also write down the date for you.
- If you play on a daily basis, Isabelle will also say that it's their birthday in the morning announcements.
- Note that in rare cases, you may end up with two villagers with the same birthday, but this is very unlikely, as most villagers do not share their birthday with anyone else.
- A few days before a villager's birthday, other villagers might even mention that their birthday is soon.
2
Open up your game on the date of their birthday and find a present. When you open the game, Isabelle will do the morning announcements, and she will announce that it is the certain villager's birthday, as well as any other news she may have. Once you have opened up the game, go and find a present to give them.
- For a nice touch, you can also give them a present that has been wrapped up with wrapping paper, which you can buy at Nook's Cranny.
- Remember that since the Animal Crossing: New Horizons day starts at 5:00 am in the morning, you cannot celebrate their birthday until that time, even though it is technically their birthday at 12:00 am.
3
Visit their house. On a villager's birthday, they won't leave their houses and go outside, as they normally would. This means that to visit them, you have to come to their house. To do so, simply walk up to their door and press A.
- You may also notice that another one of your villagers is neither outside, shopping, in the museum, or in their house. This means that they are with whoever is celebrating their birthday.
4
Give them a present. This works the same way as if you were giving them a gift at any other time. You just talk to them, and then you give them one of the things in your inventory that can be given as a gift.
- Make sure that you have a present before you enter their house and talk to them. When you first talk, they will say something about presents, and you have to either give them a present or say that you forgot.
- While giving them a present works the same way as when you give them a gift, giving them a birthday present has more of a positive effect on your friendship, even more than what you normally get giving them a present on any other day.
5
Stay at the birthday party as long as you would like. The party will last until night, so you have all day to stay with them.
- You can also speak with the villager that is at the party, but they will only talk about the party and the birthday villager.
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Part 2

Part 2 of 2:

Celebrating Your Birthday

1
Open up your game on your birthday.
- Like with villager birthdays, the game doesn't count it as your birthday until 5:00 am, because the "Day" starts at 5:00 am in the morning, and not 12:00 am.
- If you put in a random birthday, but you forgot when that was, a week before you in-game birthday, Tom Nook will post that your birthday is coming up on the bulletin board.
2
Wait for Isabelle to announce your birthday in the morning. Once the announcements are over, a villager will tell you to go inside. They will lead you inside, where a few other residents are waiting.
- You will also see that the villagers have decorated your house birthday-themed, which includes items like cake and a happy birthday sign. This is not permanent, and it will go back to normal once you leave your house.
3
Do all the celebrations. Once you are inside of your house, you will get to blow out the candles, and even hit a special piñata, which releases birthday cupcakes. You will also receive some birthday flooring.
- Even after the celebrations end, you can still enjoy your decorations as long as you want, but once you leave the house, they will be gone.
- The birthday cupcakes that come out of the piñata are intended to be shared with your residents, but you don't have to if you want to keep them.
4
Go outside and check your mail. In addition to your mom giving you presents every month, she will also send you a letter on your birthday. This letter even has a homemade cake attached.
- The kind of homemade cake you get will be different for all the players, as there are a lot of different potential cakes, including a carrot cake, chocolate cake, and even a strawberry cake.
5
Check your Nook Miles achievements. After celebrating your birthday on the island, you will get a new Nook Miles achievement that will get you 2,000 Nook Miles.
- Remember that you will only get this achievement the first time you celebrate your birthday on the island, so if you already have, this step will not occur.
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