Tips for planning a hen weekend
A-Z of Planning a Hen Weekend
Daunted by the prospect and responsibility of organising your friend's or your own hen weekend? There's a lot to think about and arrange before the weekend even starts. Here's a few tips to help get you started!
A is for Accommodation
Choose from budget or luxury hotels or alternatively fantastic self catering accommodation.
B is for Budget
The hen weekend needs to be affordable for the majority of people. See if you can make the weekend a bit flexible so that people can do some of the activities but not necessarily all of them if money is tight.
C is for City Centre or Countryside?
Do you want to stay right in the heart of the action in a city or relax somewhere in a countryside retreat?
D is for Date
Normally the hen weekend will be a few weeks before the big event itself, but just ensure you get the date in people's diaries early.
E is for Entertainment and Activities
There's a whole range of things you can do during the day and at night, the hardest decision is choosing between them.
F is for Food
Plan where you're going to eat at each meal time. Check whether food is included with any activities or in your accommodation.
G is for Group size
How many people are invited to the weekend? For most activities, you need a minimum number of people so you need to factor this in to your numbers.
H is for Hen
Don't forget it's all about the Hen, so try to tailor the weekend to her preferences rather than what you'd like to do yourself!
I is for Invitations
Don't forget to tell all the girls when they need to RSVP by and when they need to pay their money.
J is for Joke presents and forfeits
Get each person to come up with a forfeit for the hen that she must do at some point during the weekend. You might also ask everyone to buy a small gift for the hen - the funnier the better!
K is for Key information
Make sure that everyone has as much information as possible including accommodation address, your phone number, directions etc. Then if anyone gets lost on the way or heaven forbid during the weekend, they are armed with the necessary information.
L is for Location
Where do you want to go? Hen party activities vary by location so if you've got your heart set on a particular activity, this may determine where you go.
M is for Mums
Will the bride's Mum or even Grandmother be invited to all or part of the day? If so, the activities need to be suitable!
N is for Night Time
Make sure you plan the entertainment for the evening to ensure entry. Choose from comedy clubs, shows and nightclubs.
O is for Online Banking
Probably the easiest way to get everyone to pay you their money. Try to collect money from people towards the end of the month when most will have been paid.
P is for Photographs
Everyone is bound to have a camera but you may want to assign one person as main photographer for each activity to ensure you get shots of the whole event!
Q is for Questions
Be prepared to be bombarded from those who are invited as they're bound to have questions about the activities, accommodation etc.
R is for Rail or Road
You'll need to make sure that everyone can easily get to the hen weekend location either by train or car.
S is for Surprise
Will you keep any of the activities secret from the bride to be so that there are some surprises along the way?
T is for Themes
Choose a theme for the hen weekend. This can be as simple or as elaborate as you like. Don't forget to bring along a costume and props for the hen to wear!
U is for Unforeseen events
Be prepared for unforeseen events. People may have to drop out at the last minute etc. so you need to factor this in.
V is for VIP
Make sure you're all treated as VIPs when you hit the night clubs in the evening with VIP Guests Lists and access to private booths.
W is for Weather
With the English weather so unpredictable, it's advisable to ensure you have contingency plans if the weather is bad.
X is for Xtras
There's all the other extra little things as well like ensuring everyone knows what they need to bring with them, what to wear for each activity etc.
Y is for You only get one chance
It is a responsible job being the organiser so plan, plan, plan to ensure you get it right as you only get one chance to make this 'last weekend of freedom' as memorable as possible for the bride-to-be!
Z is for Zzzz
Sleep well after the event is over knowing you've done a great job!
Still daunted by everything that you need to do to organise a hen weekend? Then let Adventure Connections take away the stress and do the planning for you. They can organise everything from the activities, to the night time entertainment, to the accommodation.
Get in touch today on 08450 251 251 or take a look at the full range of hen party activities and start your quote!
For more tips and advice on planning a stag weekend, take a look at the AC Blog.
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