Planning an office Christmas party can be a daunting concept, with a lot of responsibility falling on your shoulders if you’re the unlucky one chosen to organise it.
It can be especially difficult if you’ve got no
previous experience of event planning, as there’s a lot to take into
consideration, with perhaps the most important thing being choosing a venue.
To ensure that everything runs smoothly and that
even the Scrooge of the office is up there singing along to Fairytale of New
York, here are some top tips for choosing your Christmas party venue.
Start Early
There’s nothing worse than being the person who
starts pestering everyone about the Christmas party before the clocks have even
gone back, but unfortunately people are planning Christmas earlier and earlier,
which means that the good venues get booked up a lot sooner than you might
think.
Even though people might not want to think about
Christmas so early, try to get a good idea for what kind of numbers you’re
expecting as soon as possible. Not only will you have a much wider range of
venues available to you, you’ll also get a better deal the earlier you book.
In fact, this post from NEC Group suggests you should even look at booking your venue as early as
summer.
Location is Key
While getting a beautiful venue which can fit
all of your guests is important, the location should probably be the most
important thing.
It’s easy to get caught up in things and think
you’ve found the perfect venue, only to realise nobody can actually get there.
If your venue is going to be a fair way from
where everybody lives, then make sure that taxis or public transport are easily
accessible. You don’t want to be having to shell out company money to ferry
everyone to and from the venue if you can avoid it.
Keep Your Options Open
It’s always a good idea to identify a few
different options, in case something goes wrong or your preferred choice gets
fully booked up.
Once you’ve drawn up a shortlist, try to visit
as many of them as you can. Nothing beats seeing a venue in person and there
can often be issues which only present themselves in person.
It’s also a good chance to get to know the
events team at the venue who will be invaluable in helping you reach a decision
(and you might even be able to snag a better deal!)
Check the Food Options
Different venues will all have their own food
menus (some may not even offer food at all), so make sure that they’re going to
be able to cater to your needs before making a choice.
If you’re on a tighter budget, you might just
want snacks and nibbles, but if you’re after a proper hearty Christmas dinner,
you’ll want to head to a fully catered venue or a restaurant.
According to Bella Cosa, an Italian restaurant in Canary Wharf, many office parties are
overlooking the traditional Christmas dinner in favour of varied menus such as
Italian, Sushi or Chinese, seeing as most people will be having a traditional
dinner with their families on Christmas Day anyway.
Of course, the venue is only a starting point
and there’s a lot more to consider, such as the seating plan, entertainment,
decorations and such, so check out this really helpful step by step guide from Event Juice. Just make sure you get that venue sorted as soon as possible!
