Backyard Parties and Your Budget
This is what I would call a nice tent!
Well, it happened again: I am back from spending a lot of time helping my clients. But every time I take a deep dive into a job like that, I learn or remember something of importance. This time, I was helping clients with their big, tented backyard wedding reception, so I did some serious thinking about that process.
My clients were a suburban couple with a large yard that had just enough room to hold a tent where they could entertain about 130 people. It was a big tent–or, really, one very large tent and a series of smaller tents to fit the shape of the space. I helped them find a really good tent and rental company, which was also able to provide lighting, fans, tables and chairs, a generator, and draping for the legs of the tents. It looked stellar (see the photo above!)
These clients didn’t want to talk budget with me too much, so I don’t know if their choice to have the party at home was motivated by financial concerns, but I do know that a lot of people consider having a tented party at home because they think that they will have more control over the costs than if they rented a venue.
What I’m here to do today is debunk that idea completely. If you are looking for an affordable venue, you are much better off renting an all-inclusive hall (that will provide tables, chairs, and dishes) than setting up a tent in your backyard. Here’s why:
When you use your yard as your party venue, you basically have to import an entire infrastructure to support your event. You’re putting up the hall (the tent); providing electricity (probably a generator unless your house has a lot of excess electrical capacity (most don’t)); decorating (okay, so you might do this, anyhow, depending on the hall); providing restrooms (unless, again, you have a lot of those in the house); renting all the furniture; and possibly also providing garbage disposal. With the possible exception of decoration and, sometimes, furniture, those are all things that are provided gratis by pretty much any event venue. You also have to think about parking, which is often also part of the package when you rent.
Not only are all those things a lot of work, but they also can cost a substantial amount of money. The smallest high-quality generator I could find for an event was over $2,000. If you add the price of an onsite technician (which I highly recommend), you’re at close to $3,000. And that’s just for the electricity, alone!
By comparison, there are very nice venues that rent for a six-hour event on a Saturday for just barely more than what you’d pay for a generator alone. The one I’m thinking of includes in their rental price: all tables and chairs, including highboys and cabaret tables; all dishes and silverware; a commercial kitchen; newly renovated restrooms; a stage; portable bars; wi-fi; parking; and air conditioning. For very modest fees, you can also add: a sound system, a projection screen, a baby grand piano, and a fire in their wood-burning fireplace. If you add it all up, in this scenario, renting the hall would be exponentially less expensive.
I’m not saying there aren’t good reasons to have a tented backyard party. Sometimes, that’s the thing you want for whatever reason, and I’ll always be happy to help you arrange for whatever you need to make it happen. Just don’t go into it thinking that it’s the least expensive way to have your party.
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