In the case that you and your friends share the same interrests there is always the possibility to skip the usual loud music, alcohol, chips and "embarrasing fotos that should never have been brought upon this world" routine for something else.
If you for example like acting you and your friends might enjoy a trip to one of the big theaters (the ones with tuxedos, ties and definitely NO popcorn).
Or if you enjoy the arts you might also enjoy a trip to some famous museum (although I find these museumtrips quite tiresome (at least until everyone is in position and we can pull of the heist)).
And then there is always the nerd-solution of having a LAN-party with coke and selfmade pizza (being a girl is no excuse for not being a proper nerd these days).
The problem is that this will only work with a few close friends and shared interrests, people who are expected to invite half of their school as friends might be restricted to the classic houseparty drill.
Of course these ideas might be not suitable nowadays, my experiences with "getting 18 partys" are - well - literally "last century".