Weddings in Marquees?

Jan_86

I'm getting married this summer and the venue i really wanted wasn't available for the day i wanted... but the date meant more to me than the venue so I found the answer to all my problems! I'm going to hire a marquee! Has anyone done this before? It actually doesn't work out as expensive at all and you can rent the tables, chairs, linen etc exactly how you want them and the colours you want... how come I never came across this before?!

Any thoughts?

NextSteps

It actually works out very expensive in my experience. You need to think about hire of some or all of the following -
Marquee
Heating (diesel or generator)
generator for lighting, band etc
sound system for speeches
lighting
tables, chairs, bar, etc
cutlery and crockery
kitchen tent with kitchen equipment
water and electricity for kitchen
access - pathways etc
Possibly toilet trailer
stage
Plus the usual decoration etc.

Also you need to bring in a caterer. I suggest doing some sums before you go too far with the idea!

ThePiedPiper

I did quite an amount of research on pricing on marquee weddings before ditching the idea. Any companies offering all-in packages were coming in at around €100 per head. This included all the items listed by the previous poster, and all the food and wine. Additional on that would've been the band, DJ, dresses, etc. etc. so to be honest, it was much too expensive to consider.

As a comparison, hotels would be anything from €35-€70 per head.

Southsider1

Not necessarily if you do your planning properly and shop around. See notes below.

UB wrote: »

It actually works out very expensive in my experience. You need to think about hire of some or all of the following -
Marquee
Heating (diesel or generator) Not too expensive these days -Hire shops generator for lighting, band etc are full of them!!

sound system for speeches You can use the band/DJs PA

lighting
tables, chairs, bar, etc Should come inclusive with Marquee

cutlery and crockery
kitchen tent with kitchen equipment
water and electricity for kitchen Caterer should have all this incl in his price

access - pathways etc Marquee comes with flooring and externals

Possibly toilet trailer Not overly expensive - may not be necessary if planned properly!
stage Marquee co. should have one

Plus the usual decoration etc. Doesn't need to be too pricey.

Also you need to bring in a caterer. I suggest doing some sums before you go too far with the idea!

You can make it as expensive as you want to but you can do it very reasonably as well.

sweetie

we did it before the recession hit and whilst it was expensive we wouldn't change a thing! I'm sure there are better deals to be had and if you are in the kildare/carlow/wicklow area I can give you a lot of contact details if needed.

FDL

Agree with Southsider1. It can be a good option.

Having room in your own garden cuts out toilet hire costs.

Hog roasts are cheaper.

And you can do DIY decoration if you are organised.

This page

http://www.countymarquees.com/pricing/quote.htm

is English but it does online quotes and you can see quickly where the costs come from.

NextSteps

FDL wrote: »

Having room in your own garden cuts out toilet hire costs.

Depends on numbers. If you have 180 people for example, will one loo or maybe two be enough? And are they accessible from the garden? You really have to think it through, is all I'm saying.

ThePiedPiper

FDL wrote: »

Having room in your own garden cuts out toilet hire costs.

Are you serious? Would you really be happy with 100 odd people using your garden as a toilet for a full day with possibly nowhere to wash their hands, etc? Maybe I'm reading it wrong?! Equally, would your house not get completely filthy if 100 or so people were going from most probably a wet, muddy garden into the house to use the loo?

ericsmith

Hi Jan,
We are getting married this September on her birthday. We have not yet decided the venue but it's fix that it would be a marquee reception. One of the strongest reason behind it is I am in the profession of hiring marquee. Besides there are a lot of advantages of marquee over a hotel.

killiank

My Familys experience was that it worked out significantly more expensive that going to a Hotel. Im getting married myself in November & well lets just say its not even up for discussion. Granted November wouldnt suit a marquee anyway. I guess its all down to how fancy you want to make it. Plus you have all the hassle of organising things yourself. There were a number of issues then between different suppliers that complicated things, basically blaming each other for various things.

NextSteps

killiank wrote: »

My Familys experience was that it worked out significantly more expensive that going to a Hotel.

That was our experience too, and we were very careful. There are a lot of unexpected costs.

mrs2be.ie

I agree, there can be lots of hidden expenses with having a marquee wedding.

FDL

Don't really know about hidden costs - guess that depends on the supplier.

But the loo worries are definitely unfounded for up to 80 people at least.

I had a marquee in my home last year for that number of guests and they used the house loo. There was a little walkway connecting the house to the marquee so there was no mess.

And I dont remember any queues outside the toilet at all. People just don't go to the loo that much.