Party City

It’s a great store to get party decorations as you already know… They usually have a good inventory and the workers are friendly and helpful.

First time here and I walked in knowing exactly what I wanted to finish my costume. It was packed which I would expect so close to Halloween. Luckily I found what I needed fairly quickly and jumped into the long line that was growing. The employees all seemed really frantic and disorganized. Maybe they were short handed? Took a while to check out but we made it. While in line we saw an opened bag of candy marked 25% off… Not sure if I would buy that to give out to kids or for myself. Get in and get out. Prepare for a wait around the holidays especially Halloween. Party supplies, balloons and costumes.

I’m obnoxiously festive and spend way too much money on any holiday. Halloween is my favorite when it comes to festivity… so, of course, I have to make something Halloween — themed for all 96 of our employees every year.
This year, I decided to give out some treat bags, and have lunch and dessert for them. I went to party city after looking online and seeing the supposedly «wide selection» of Halloween party supplies. Okay, really? I went there overzealous and excited to get all my shopping done in one place. I left with napkins and cups… woo. Over priced but pretty cute. Then we look for what they call «loot bags.» THEY DIDN’T HAVE ANY. Seriously party city? You’ve gone way downhill.
We asked 2 employees where we could find these «loot bags» and both just gave me a blank stare and pointed to an aisle… an aisle that didn’t have them… Once we found the cups and napkins, there was no price tag. So we asked a third employee who was really sweet and helpful and she figured it out for us.
The place seems decently organized, but very cluttered. It also used to be extremely exciting to go when you were a kid, but now I have no clue how I ever liked it… It’s alright if you’re willing to spend an excessive amount of money for the same stuff you could get at Walmart, and they do have some cool stuff. Just try to find a better store before coming here.

So I get it, this is a big box store that will always get people coming in for their party needs but it doesn’t excuse how rude they are. Honestly I have been there several times for various things and I have yet to have a good experience. But my most recent time took the cake. I went in looking for Halloween items. This is the 3^rd time in the past few weeks I’ve been there looking because they haven’t been getting things up on the shelves. Even this time they were still putting things up and we are 3 weeks from Halloween. So I tried on a few costumes. There appears to be no regulation on costumes except when a worker sees you randomly. I decided on 2 different costume ideas. So I went up to the counter to buy and one of the items didn’t scan so another worker had to go a double check the sku. I was well into $ 150 on my purchase when she totaled it without my item. I asked and she said she wouldn’t sell it to me– without explanation. Finally after playing 20 questions with her I found out the sku wasn’t coming up and it said that it wasn’t in the computer. I told her that there were about 8 on the shelves but she said nothing. Even after speaking to a manger she said no. I took that whole costume out of my basket just because of that. Then I asked for the military discount. The cashier said I had to sign up for their rewards doe that which is a lie. She wanted my phone number which is unlisted. I told her this and she was about to deny the discount so I called a manger over. The manager said I didn’t have to sign up for anything for the discount. I think the workers need more training and definitely some tips on smiling and being nice to customers.

My review will be on their customer service. really bad customer service. The girl that helped us yuliana or yulissa was super rude, zero custumer service skills, she failed to greet customers and when I was trying to explain something to her, she made faces. Please hire someone that is qualify for the job or train them on the importance of customer service. Or maybe train the store manager who doesnt know how to hire good employees. I have been to other locations and they are extremely helpful but not this one.

I went in here with my daughter who is 5 and wants to try everything on look at things. We went in here to try and find white tea party gloves. They had them but they were $ 8 for 1 that was falling apart. So I didn’t buy them because of the quality and the adult sizes were cheaper than the kid sizes… which is weird. But I was followed around the store by a RUDE employee. She told my child to not try anything on. Hello? We are at a party store. I gave her the «look» and she stopped following us. After roaming around with no luck on anything tea party I went up to the front and asked a manager and before I could even finish my sentence she said «NO» very rudely. I could not believe the customer service here. IT SUCKED. I really like coming here and buying my costumes that I have parties for a couple times a year-​but I WILL NEVER come back in here. I wish I would of asked for their names (since none of the employees were wearing name tags.) because this seems like a corporate issue. The whole store need new jobs and fun people need to be hired. It is a party store geeez.

Customer service was really great. I came in to buy some candy for my friends and Angela went the extra mile for me. They weren’t in stock of what I wanted, but she was able to find the closest store that did and had them put it on hold for me to pick up later. Thank you!

Your average big box party supply store. Yes they have a huge selection of all your basics — balloons, crêpe paper, streamers, paper goods, etc. they aren’t the cheapest, but they aren’t crazy expensive either. Right in the middle. When I am throwing a party, I order online for more unique items, but usually end up here for all my basics.
This particular location is not their best. I much prefer the Encinitas store, but I was in the area, so I stopped in.
On a weekday morning the place was PACKED with customers and only 3 people working the entire store, all at the registers. I should have just turned and walked out, but I powders on. I needed a piñata, which are all in the top shelf and you have to get employee assistance, so I got in the super long and slooooooww moving line. After about 5 minutes I got to the front and said I needed help with piñata and the girl came back to the aisle with me. She then disappeared for a few mins and came back with a ladder, climbed up, brought the thing down, handed it to me and said, «here you go» and then started walking off. «Do I have to get back in line?» «Yeah» in a super rude tone. This, to me, was super annoying. I had already waited in line once, because that’s were all the employees were to get help, and this girl couldn’t go back to her register to help me? So back in the even longer line. Customer service is clearly not their strong suit.
I’d like to think this is a one off, but the few other times I have been in, the employees have been aloof, at best.

It’s a party store… balloons, decorations, etc. Workers seem friendly. It’s close to my house so I find myself there whenever I need some party decorations BUT…
Check out the 99 cent store (or is it Family Dollar?) on Rancho Santa Fe. You can find themed paper goods for almost nothing compared to the costs at Party City.

This is your basic store to gather all the necessities for any party that you are planning on throwing. It is over-​priced in my opinion. The selection is wide but I wish they had a bigger selection for the baby shower themes.
The customer service is extremely lacking in all aspects.
I needed to grab some balloons for the party I was helping throw and I was unsure about the prices and how it worked (do I pay before I pick up the balloons, do I need to order online, are they in stock?, etc.) I waited patiently for one of the workers to help me. I even went to go find someone to help me and all they said were to gather the balloons I wanted and to bring it to the cashier. Not helpful whatsoever when I needed answers regarding prices among est other questions. When I did get the cashiers attention, she spoke to me as if I were a burden to her rather than actually trying to help me as the customer. I was extremely agitated at this point seeing it was taking 30 minutes to get help about balloons. I doubt I will be back, no assistance when needed and you have your chances elsewhere.

My experience at this Party City was absolutely wonderful. I just had a 50^th birthday party for my husband and I ordered 33 balloon bouquets from this Party City. It was a large and complicated order, which Included a total of 154 balloons, 7 different bouquet configurations (different numbers of balloons, different color combinations, specific balloon bouquet layouts, etc). I was hesitant to use this location because of the negative reviews on Unilocal.However, since they were close to the venue, I took a chance. I’m so glad that I did. Each person I interacted with during the process (there were several) was helpful, pleasant and went out of their way to make sure my order was correct and on time. They got the balloon order exactly right and made my hectic day of party set up much easier and smoother. The balloons looked amazing and I received many compliments on them. It’s been 6 days and I have some of the leftover bouquets at my house and they’re STILL floating high (both the latex and mylar). I never would have thought the latex would still be floating, but they are. I highly recommend this Party City and would use them again in a heartbeat.

I recently purchased a bouquet of balloons for my mom’s birthday. I went to Party City with the intent of paying more money for balloons but getting something that would last longer and be better quality. I was wrong. As soon as I arrived there was one person employed by Party City in the store. She was busy texting on her phone, so I awkwardly stood in front of the register waiting for her to finish. I had already had the colors I wanted picked out (browsed the selection on my phone prior) and gave her the numbers to the balloons I wanted which consisted of one plastic balloon and 4 four rubber balloons. She picked them out and asked me what the balloons were for. I informed her that my family and I were celebrating my mom’s birthday the following day and wanted to surprise her in the morning with a decorated house. She then relayed to me that the balloons would probably last 6 – 8 hours with just helium, and if I paid extra she could put some type of air chemical (not too sure what she said) in the balloons so they would last a couple days. Stupidly, I did not think twice about paying the upcharge of 15 cents per balloon and walked out thinking I had gotten a great deal. The next morning I woke up to find all of the balloons that I had purchased the night before almost completely deflated and on the ground. They did not even make it to 8 hours. The next day I was at a Dollar Tree and purchased another balloon bouquet to replace the one I had purchased from Party City. I knew it would be less expensive and figured it couldn’t be any worse than the Party City balloons. I was wrong. I bought them January 22, 2015 today is January 28, 2015 and they are still floating in my kitchen in the same condition as the day I brought them home. No fancy air chemical was needed. The difference in cost was $ 7.00 a little over half of what I paid to get the balloons from Party City. So the next time I plan a party or want to decorate for a special occasion I will definitely keep in mind the balloon fiasco and drive straight to the Dollar Tree.

This place is VERY frustrating!!! I know it is the only Party City in San Marcos, but why is it, when there is no competition nearby, a big chain store like this can be filled with such rude staff?
There are some things that I just have to go to Party City for… and I hate to even do that because I believe the supplies that they have are beyond overpriced!
Well, I have finally had enough horrific experiences here that I chose to write a review today… There was nobody available to help me looking for NUMBER ONE… even if you go find someone, they act like they have zero clue about what is going on and where to find something. FOR TWO… this last time, I was checking out and the two girls at the checkout were gossiping about a fellow employee. They were using fowl language and calling her bad names, etc. This alone is gross, but the fact that I had my daughter by my side just really infuriated me!
I will be driving to Escondido in the future for all my Party City needs!

They dont even deserve a 1 star. Rude employee named denise along with the manager! I’d rather go to encintas and Oceanside than this place! They are horrible! I just needed customer service just to point me in the direction where I needed to be and right away got a stank attitude! And she double charged me on purpose! Watch ur reciepts people! Be sure they charged u correctly! thank goodness I read one Unilocal that said she got double charged too along rude employees. Thank you for that!

Large new location. Lots of variety and even found some frozen items for parties. No customer service was provided and I wasn’t asked if i had found everything I needed or if I needed anything. Good location if you know exactly what you need.

This place is so irritating! The staff (or lack there of) are so unorganized! I was told to bing in my balloons (that I had purchased online at
) with the receipt, to get them inflated with helium for free day of my Boys Birthday Party, and once there they charged us and extra $ 14.00 for the helium and took forever to inflate the damn things! (they told us it would only take a minute to inflate them, but a minute turned into 30!) I hate the Customer service here! This place is a rip off. I’ll be going else where in the future.

Okay, if you’re going to bother buying overpriced party supplies or themed décor for a party, this is the Party City you want to hit up.
It’s bigger than most in the area, so it’s not completely overrun at Halloween time. You can actually still find the rest of the supplies you’re looking for. And if you’re there for Halloween? Even better.
The way the checkout line is laid out bothers me because you’re always having to walk around the people rushing to take your spot (the line seems to be set up backwards), but other than that, it’s a Party City. You’ll pay for what you get, and you’ll usually get what you want, so it typically works out just fine.

Terrible customer service. Watch what you buy and what you pay for!!! The only reason I’m giving them the 2^nd star is because they are loaded with things you can’t find in other stores.
Got cheated there a few days ago. Went there to buy a bunch of things for my little one’s themed birthday party, and even though I bought a lot of things I had a clue about what my bill should have been (about). When she told me the total it seemed a bit high to me. So without making a fuss I paid, and decided to check what I got charged for without leaving the store. So, it happened that I got charged for two things I didn’t buy, totaling $ 5.18. So I went back to the registry (the cashier that did my transaction was busy so another one took care of me) and said «You charged me for two things I didn’t buy. Here are the bags with everything I bought, here is the receipt, you are free to check them yourself. I haven’t left the store».
The original cashier that dealt with my transaction was right next to us and overheard what I was complaining about and just said «Oh, yeah! Ok!» like it was something she was used to. Makes me wonder how often she is caught over charging customers and how often she is not caught.
The one that was doing the refund took the two items that I got double charged for in order to do the refund, asked me to sign the receipt for the refund and said «Done, you are good to go». She took my two items and didn’t give them back. I had to ask twice «Ummm… excuse me, can I have my items back?! I paid for them! You just used them because I got double charged, you can’t take them away». She stared at me and said «Oh, I took them, didn’t I?» Well… you sure did! And I want them back!
Terrible experience in the store. Unfortunately not only this time. We go to that store quite often. I don’t think I’ve seen a happy store representative in there. Not sure why. Cold and rude. Maybe they don’t pay them enough? Or they just woke up on the wrong side of the rock? Or didn’t get laid… I have no clue but someone needs to do something to teach those girls/​women how to smile and how to be nice, friendly and polite… Management?! Wake up!!!
On top of the terrible experience in the store I went back home and started going through the stuff I bought. One of the things I bought was a pack of tattoos that should have been 16 pieces, two sheets of 8. How big was my disappointment to find only one sheet with 8 tattoos in it. Not that it was going to kill me to buy a second one but still, didn’t help my terrible experience. I have no idea who stole the second sheet from the pack, could have been anybody, but… still. Not happy.
I won’t be going to this location again. Over priced store combined with terrible customer service and sloppy cashiers (makes me wonder if it’s intentional or not and how many people they cheat like that)… NO thanks!
Too bad, it’s close to home and is loaded. Terrible experience!

This store is much larger and cleaner than the nearby Encinitas store but what is lacking here is the customer service. No one was friendly during my recent visit here and there were only a few people in the store.
When I went to check out, the cashier really didn’t acknowledge me during my transaction and my biggest pet peeve is when they call «next in line» as your getting your bags together. I think it’s just so rude. I would mention her name here but none of the cashiers wore name tags. Perhaps this is done intentionally?
I’m not sure if it was an off day or not but I was not impressed with this new store that opened nearby. With all the parties that I throw, I’m sure I’ll come to pick up things here and there but if this is any indication on how they operate, I can easily scratch them from my list of retail stores to patronize. Easily.

The newest Party City in North County and in the Grand Plaza shopping center in San Marcos.
Either I am a walking zombie to notice or just plain oblivious to my surroundings but I believe this Party City has only been around for a couple of weeks.
It is supposed to be the biggest Party City in North County. Given it is new– the place is very, very clean and organized. There are a couple of new sections that the other Party City’s lack– the Favor City and the Candy City.
So far so good.