Marquee Wedding?! Any Feedback please!!

suzins89

Hi All

Thinking of having a marquee wedding this summer!
Not into a big massive fancy wedding to be honest!
Am sure I can just look up Marquee company's, but what about the likes of Tables and chairs etc?
And does anyone no anything about Marquee weddings like overall price range after everything?
Does it work out cheaper than a hotel?

Thanks Guys

lazygal

A friend had a marquee wedding. It is not a cheap route to go down. First, you need to find a location large enough to have the marquee, then you have to hire one. Then you have to rent all the furniture, lighting, down to cutlery and glasses. You will also have to organise catering and bar facilities. You will need to provide all booze free of charge or else arrange a drinks licence (can be difficult and expensive). You'll also need to think about other standard wedding costs on top of this, band/DJ, cake etc.
With the deals to be had at weddings in hotels I would not think it will be cheaper to have a marquee wedding. It will be significantly more expensive and more work to organise as well.

suzins89

Thanks for the info! Im still looking into it, going to get prices for everything first!

Thanks

SBWife

I had a marquee wedding at home as did my brother. It probably works out about 50% more expensive than having the same number of guests at a hotel, but it's much more flexible and you can really put your mark on the event.

superman123

Was at one last summer. There was a strong wind and I thought it was going to blow away. You can't be too careful with Irish summers.

slowmoe

I was at a marquee wedding last year. Tbh it wasn't great because the toilets were those portaloo things in a caravan which weren't exactly glam or smell free for everyone done in their best. There was really heavy rain which meant the kids couldn't go outside so everyone was jammed in the same room nd as the day went on their were kids crying.running/getting hurt and howling etc and they weren't be allowed play even at a reasonable volume because it impacted on the meal/speeches. Felt sorry for them really. And there were 3 or 4 babies there and no where for their morto parents to change them privately.

There worst part though was the rain, it was torrential. People were getting concerned that the marquee was going to fly away or collapse. A few of the lads were pushing parts of it up with sweeping brushes-and this was in photos! lol! Also a couple of cars got stuck in the mud, and many peoples shoes/bottom of trousers/dresses/legs got mud on them just coming from the car to the marquee.

To be honest it seemed like so much stress and hassle i wouldn't consider it, but i had assumed it was a fair bit cheaper than a hotel wedding. In shock that its much more expensive!!!

suzins89

Thanks for all feedback guys!
Hearing a few negative things which is good for me to no though!
I would definitely have it beside a house or something so guests could use the toilets there and not those portaloos!
I am still trying to get prices for everything at the cheapest i can and then i think i will make my decision.

Thanks a mill!

littleredspot

Unless you're getting caterers in you really have to think of everything, salt and pepper, napkins, toilet roll, soap, ash trays etc. Barman, cleaners etc. It's a lot of work.
You also need to make sure there's something magical about it being in a marquee and not just like a cheap tent, it's not an easy thing to do.

SBWife

Although we were in the garden at home we hired portable toilets. They were what are referred to as an executive block and were of very high standard, there was no issue with smells etc. In fact we used them again the following day when we hosted a BBQ for family and close friends.

There were very few children in attendance. For our wedding my husband's nieces and nephews remained in the house during the meal and speeches, we hired a couple of babysitters and ordered pizza for them.

The weather may well be an issue. It rained heavily the evening of my brother's wedding but there were no problems with the marquee. We ran outdoor carpeting from the driveway to the marquee on both occasions to protect both peoples shoes and my father's lawn, and when it rained we had a bunch of golf umbrellas in an urn at the door of the marquee and a further urn for holding them out side the loos.

A great marquee wedding takes an enormous amount of planning and foresight. It sounds like quite a few aspects were neglected at the events mentioned above.

just pete

Marquee for weddings are a fantastic idea. It's a much more personal event than the usual boring hotel wedding.
Marquees can be expensive to have for your wedding, but you will most likely have it to use for the weekend so the party can keep going :-)
I hate it when the hotel shuts down the music/bar at 2.30.

How many people do you hope to have both sit down and afters?

Bride2012

The weather for me was the deciding factor against.

On the cost issue; a poster suggested this to me on boards before that you could have a donation box for drinks and suggest €2 each or whatever other breakdown. This means that you won't need a license because you're not actually selling them and you won't be lumped with a huge bar bill because most/all will donate accordingly. I was looking online for kegs of beer and they were expensive but (again suggested by another boarder) you can get much better deals from local breweries in your area. They'll be glad of the publicity etc.

sweetie

My wife and I had a marquee wedding in 2008. It worked out more expensive but we were happy with it. We never considered the fact the weather could be bad and had the best day of the summer! We used an excellent caterer Natasha from Honeydew events/Kildare Kitchen and hired Lisnavagh house for the weekend. We had fillet beef cooked to order and the music went on past 4 o clock in the morning. We hired a barman and bought lots of spirits, cans of guinness and bottles of beer with a donation suggestion of 2 and 3 euros for these. I do realise we were very lucky with the weather and we had alot of hard work in the organisation and preparation too but we loved our different day.