With summer fast approaching, it’s the season for vacations and days filled with sunshine, but it’s also a season in which people tend to plan their most important and special events. Summer puts everyone in a great mood because of the weather being fantastic, having the time to enjoy some much-needed time off, and lots of quality outdoor time, too. It’s the perfect time for outdoor events, and people plan these events as such.
The nicer the weather, the greater the draw to a big event that will be hosted outside. Think about all the weddings that happen in June, or retirement parties, reunions, pool parties, music festivals, and the like. It’s best to host parties like this in the summer so you can be surer that the weather won’t impede your good time. It’s also a great way to get a nice tan and have some equally exciting outdoor activities that your guests can enjoy.
Remember that a large event will take much more time and adherence to details than a simple backyard bbq will. You might even need some professional staff to help you pull it all off when it comes down to the day. Depending on how much money you have to spend as well as how spectacular you want the food, beverages, and decor to be, you might want to be extra diligent in the details as well as dealing with the many aspects of planning.
If this is your first time planning a large-scale event, don’t be afraid to dive in and get as creative as possible, just make sure that you’re just as realistic, too. If you need help, don’t be too afraid to ask, and make sure that you have a solid and reliable crew that you can rely on when the big day comes.
Whether you’re planning an unforgettable wedding, a massive family reunion, or a huge party, you’ll need all the help you can get to make it an incredible experience for you and all your guests. If you are planning a large-scale event, you’ll need all the prep and all the help you can get.
The Planning Stage
This is the part of planning that is the most essential. Planning, especially down to what could be brushed off as minute details could help you out in the long run. For example, on the day of the event, you’ll probably be dealing with a bunch of stressors all at once. You want to add to your load details that could have been taken care of long before the day of. Planning will save you time and spare you headaches.
Party Planners Pros and Cons
If you’ve never planned something like this before, and depending on how big your budget, you might want to research a party planner. The good news is that there are a ton of different party planners out there, whether for parties or specialty events. You’ll have a lot to choose from, and likely won’t have much trouble finding someone who will work within your budget.
That being said, you do get the kind of work you pay for. If you choose a party planner who’d price is too good to be true, their skills might not be up to par. In a similar vein, you don’t want to pay an astronomical price for something you could have gotten done yourself. That’s why you’ll want to research in various ways before settling on a party planner.
The good news is that there are various ways in which you could find the party planner for you. Perhaps the best way is via word of mouth or recommendation. If you know someone who is a party-planning aficionado or has connections in the party-planning world, then it’s probably best to ask them about a recommendation.
If you don’t know anyone personally that you could ask, then the next best thing is to do your research online. There are a number of party planning services, companies, and individuals to look into. There will likely be reviews on the business’s website as well as reviews online that can help you to narrow down who would be the right service to use. You can also interview some of these individuals to get a feel for how they work or what kind of ideas they already have for your event.
If you find that your budget can’t accommodate the hiring of a party planner, then you could always recruit other people you know who may be willing to help you plan. If you know anyone particularly creative or naturally good at planning events or parties, have a meeting and gauge their interest. Even if you don’t know someone like this, you should have at least one person but preferably a few people who are willing to help you with planning.
What is the Most Important Part of Your Party?
Once you’ve settled on a party planner, recruited some friends who are willing to help, or decided that you want to research and do the party planning yourself. You need to decide on what will be the most important or some of the most important details in your particular party.
For example, are you surrounded by a bunch of foodies? Will they be expecting delicious food that’s also a sight for exclamation in the presentation? Well then, you have quite the job ahead of you. If food is one of the main details you want to get right, then you should make sure that you have everything in place for it to go off without a hitch.
Food Can Make or Break the Party
Food is perhaps one of the essential parts of a party. If you’re planning a party during a time when a meal is not essential, then you stand to save a little more money than you would otherwise, but generally having snacks or munchies at a big event is always a good call.
People get hungry, and when they get hungry, they get cranky. You’ll want to avoid that at all costs, so your guests are mainly having a good time. Depending on the theme of the party, as well as dietary restrictions and preferences, you can outline a nice menu for your guests. If you’re not sure where to start, then consult your party planner, your caterer, or any chef that you will be using. Their ideas can help you to have a more fully-formed menu to go off of.
Once the menu is taken care of, you’ll need to figure out how the food is getting to your guests and where it will be prepared. Depending on your set-up and your space, you can get food served to many guests in a number of ways. While many people choose to hire catering companies to handle this, there are other ways in which you can present and serve food.
For very large events, and to ensure freshness, you might want to have a fully-stocked kitchen on-site if you’ve rented event space. This can also ensure some gourmet items on the menu if you also have a high-end kitchen staff or chefs coming in to cook (which is something that could also be planned and researched via personal connections or word of mouth).
These types of kitchens can be accessed through services like https://www.craftsmenind.com/commercial-mobile-kitchen-trailer-truck. You can also order for delivery, cook the food yourself, or get a special rate depending on the venue’s rules and regulations (and hopefully for you, they have a special deal for the event space and the food together!).
Beverages Will Keep Your Guests from Getting Parched
While the summer is a great time for parties, it’s also a time when people need to stay hydrated as they will be outside in the sun. Ensure that number one; you have plenty of shade for your guests to be able to cool off and stave away a sunburn. Also, ensure that you have enough water for everyone, especially if it’s due to be an extra hot day.
This is also the time when you will need to decide if you’re serving alcohol at your event. If it’s an event that will have many children attending, or if the service of alcohol would be frowned upon, then you can decide not to serve alcohol. If it seems as if it’s an absolute essential, then make sure you go about the serving of alcohol in the right way. You won’t want to spend thousands on alcohol when you have a limited budget. For example, you might want to serve only certain types of alcohol, like beer and wine, while hard liquor can be purchased at a cost. You might choose to have an entirely open bar or a cash bar that your guests will have to pay to drink at. Whatever you decide, make sure that your guests are drinking safely.
