Planning a party for the winter season? You’ve found the right spot! This article will tell you about some tips and tricks to host any event in the winter season when the weather can be challenging.
Planning events in the summer can be a walk in the park compared to the winter when the days are short and the weather is anything but predictable. How can you accommodate all of your friends and family? What entertainment can you provide? Where should you host your party? These are all questions that can be challenging to tackle. Read more to find out some answers.
Venue
Whenever I help a customer with the event planning process, I always like to start with the biggest pieces and then gradually work my way down to the small pieces. This makes it easy to see the event come together and to start envisioning what the final product will be.
Let’s face it, the winter can be dull. Rain, clouds and short daylight all contribute to the less-than-ideal party conditions. You can’t rely on the weather cooperating, and if you are planning any sort of evening event you can guarantee it will not be light out. Generally, this limits your party venue to an indoor location. This can be a rented venue, your house or even a tent structure (I will discuss this a bit later). These 3 options come at very different budgets so in this case, I would choose your desired venue style based on your budget:
Rented Venue: The budget range for a rented venue varies drastically depending on the size and luxury. You can rent community center rooms for a couple of hundred dollars if you are having a small gathering, but renting upscale venues for a wedding can run you between 5 and 30 thousand dollars. So if you have a budget of over $200 I would entertain the idea of renting a venue if you do not have the available space.
Home Party: This is the easiest venue to secure with the lowest cost as you already live here! Of course home parties don’t come without their downsides. A few things to consider include the size of the guest list, available social space and clean up involved. We all know guest lists can get out of hand, especially with +1’s. You just want to make sure that you can comfortably hold all of your guests in your home with this option. The other important thing to consider is the clean-up you may incur. If you have a busy schedule and don’t have time to clean up after your party you may even end up paying more for a cleaning service than you would have renting a small affordable venue.
Tent Party: If you have a little more budget to spend and you don’t want to have all of your guests in your home you may want to consider an outdoor party under a tent. We have Marquee tents available that provide shelter for up to 100 guests. With tent wall options available you can ensure that the temperature will remain comfortable with the addition of some heating options. This can provide a happy medium between the rented venue and the house party that can keep that intimate feeling without having to leave the comfort of your own space.
Entertainment
Now that you’ve decided on a venue let’s talk about entertainment. After all, you and your guests need something to do during your big party. Here are some of the most popular types of entertainment you can provide and what you will need:
Dinner Party: The most popular types of parties generally involve some sort of food whether it be basic appetizers to full-catered dinners. The great thing about a dinner party is it provides entertainment for a long time. Now what you will need for a dinner party: You will need the basics for dinner service (plates, cutlery, linens, tables, serving dishes and utensils, glassware). If you own enough of all these items, then you are set! If you need more than what you own, you can rent all these items in many different styles. The beauty of renting these types of items is customizability. You can rent items for your specific needs to help you get exactly what you want. You can also add specialty items like chafing dishes, kitchen equipment and pipe and drape to help elevate your event and customize it to your desired feel. If you want to take your dinner party to the next level you can hire catering teams which Lions Events can help you with!
Cocktail Party: Cocktail parties are great for keeping people entertained without having to provide much additional entertainment. The drinks can help people loosen up and will add to the social atmosphere. You can also make cocktail parties as basic or as elaborate as you would like based on your budget. Providing basic drinks like wine and beer is sufficient for any party, or you can upgrade your party by having full bar set-ups and even hiring a bartender. You can also add the cocktail party to a dinner party if you want an extended evening of entertainment.
You will need the basics for a cocktail party (glassware, cocktail tables, linens). If you would like to elevate your cocktail party you can get portable bars, drink-making supplies (strainers, shakers, glass rimers) and specialty drinks. Once again renting these supplies can help you customize your event to exactly how you want it.
Additional Entertainment: Here are some ideas of things you can add to any party or event to add some entertainment for you and your guests:
Dance floor: Dance floors are great for giving your guests something to do once the evening starts to get exciting! Our dance floors range in size anywhere from 9’x9’ up to 20’x20’. This means they can be set up in many-sized spaces. You can also have dancefloors set up outside if you choose to have a tent party. They are very versatile and are guaranteed to spice up any party or event!
Party Games: Party games give guests something to do between mingling with friends or adding some friendly competition among guests. We offer many different games so that people won’t get bored with the same ones over and over again. Our most popular games are cornhole, Giant Connect 4, Giant Jenga, basketball toss and putting greens. We also offer giant scrabble, axe toss and bocce if you have a bit more outside area available!
Music: Speakers can be added to your event to change the dynamic and give guests something to listen to. Speakers pair with our dance floors to have an experience like a proper dancing event! A bonus is they are super easy to set up and control which means no need for expensive DJs or audio technicians which can add costs quite quickly.
Photo Opportunities: Your guests will love it if you have a photo area set up for the theme of your event. For Christmas parties, you can add a backdrop with our LED arch to make a photo opportunity that will create lasting memories of your party. You can do the same but replace the LED arch with props for a New Year’s Eve party! No matter what type of party you’re having you can set up photo opportunities to give your guests something to do and make sure they keep you in mind when party season comes around next year.
Now that you have some ideas for your next event, let us help! We can provide all of your party rental needs as well as help you find the ideal venue or catering. You can reach out for a free consultation for your next party or event to info@lionsevents.ca or by hitting the “contact us” button our website.
Happy Holidays and good luck planning!
