How to plan the perfect hen or stag party in Newcastle 💍🥳

Planning a hen party can be a pretty monumental task, so we’ve put together this handy guide to help you get started!

1. Remember, it’s all about the bride or groom 💍

When you’re planning a pre wedding party, it can be a bit overwhelming to find a location, activities and accommodation to suit everyone, but if you keep in mind that it’s all about making sure your wonderful BFF has a great time it can help ease the need to please everyone.

A good place to start is by asking your bride or groom some simple questions:

- Who’s invited? You can also check who are the priority guests, the ones who simply must be able to attend. Ask for full names, numbers and emails of everyone invited.

- Create a list of possible dates. Consider the time of year and how that may affect the budget/availability of your guests.

- What’s the budget? Your bride or groom is likely the only person who knows all the guests, what they think guests would be willing to spend is very helpful before you start planning activities and accommodation.

- Is there anything they REALLY want to do? Are they after a party-gal weekend, a wholesome affair or perhaps they’d like a spot of pampering. It’s easier just to ask then try and pick up on subtle clues!

- Is there anything they REALLY DON’T want to do? I was once hosting a hen where all the activities were surprises for the bride, the hens were super excited to reveal the next activity was going to be a pole dancing class, turns out that was the brides idea of a nightmare activity and things got a bit awkward 😬

- Location, location, location! Are we talking a staycation, a UK city break, or a trip abroad? Is there a city they’d love to visit? When considering your destination it can be helpful to think about your guests - if family/older relatives attending is a must, then choosing somewhere within easy travelling distance of their home could make the chances of them being able to attend much higher.

2. Create the group chat 💌

After your chat with the bride / groom, you’re armed with all the info to start planning the celebrations - you’re at the reigns of this party wagon and it’s important to pick a platform that helps you stay in the driving seat.

Choosing a platform that allows you to post a ‘poll’ can be very helpful, this way you can gather opinions on your chosen topic, without muddying the waters with too many well-intentioned opinions. I’d also heavily advise choosing a platform that you have the option to ‘mute’.

Once you’ve got the chat up and running, start by checking the dates people can make. It’s a good idea to let them know the possible location of the celebrations and a rough budget so guests can decide early on if they want to come.

3. Decide on a date and location (and stick with it) 🌎

Research the location of your celebration thoroughly, key things to consider are:
Transport: Is it possible to get there via public transport? Is there parking for those with cars? How will you get between activities / accommodation?
Activities + accommodation: The last thing you want is to be stuck in the middle of no where with nothing to do, check out possible things to do and places to stay before you make the your decision. There’s only so many games of spin the bottle you can play! Is the area and it’s activities hen or stag party friendly? Just because there’s apartments and activities, doesn’t meant they’re always welcoming to hens and stags - it’s worth reading the fine print.

To save you some time, we can confirm that Newcastle is totally hen party friendly, with loads to do during the day and in the evening, plenty of tasty food, and great transport links 😉

4. Plan the activities 🎨

If you’re looking to delegate some tasks, this is an easy one! Put a call out in your group chat for activity ideas in the chosen area, just make sure you research the suggestions to check they fit with your plans - you’ll always get someone who suggests somewhere a 2hr drive from your accommodation. Consider the physical limitations of your guests and if anyone in group is pregnant. We’d always recommend booking where possible to avoid disappointment, be prepared to be asked for deposit if there’s a large group of you.

It can be tempting to try and fit as many things as possible into your celebrations, but limiting yourself to 2 or 3 activities a day, can avoid rushing cram it all in. Another helpful hint is to choose activities close to each other so you don’t end up wasting too much time/money travelling back and forth between venues.

Check-out our ever growing list of Newcastle based hen and stag party ideas - with everything from bars, to restaurants to a throwing lesson!

5. Collect the money! 💰

By this point you’ll probably have a rough idea of how much your hen / stag do is going to cost, work this out on a per person basis, add on a bit extra to cover any mishaps and ask for money - you can always divide up any money that is left over after the weekend. Send people your bank details along with how much they owe you, and set a deadline for it to be paid by.

Not only does asking for money up front reduce the likely hood of you being left out of pocket, it will also help you confirm numbers as it gives those who have decided not to attend a chance to give their excuses and drop out. If you do have to pay for anything before you have chance to collect money, you may wish to do so on a credit card to give you chance to collect the money before you actually pay.

6. Confirm your bookings 📞

Now that you’ve got the money it’s time to get booking! Make sure to check cancellation/refund polices in case anyone drops out. As a small business, we beg that you cancel any reservations you no longer need so that the business doesn’t miss out on taking other bookings. Whatever you do, don’t leave it to the last minute!

7. Send your guests an overview of your hen or stag party 📝

This doesn’t have to be anything fancy, just the essentials: the address / check-in/out time of the accommodation, and the timings of the activities you have planned for each day. This should hopefully help your guests organise themselves/ arrange their transport so they arrive on time 🤞 (which in turn will help you relax and enjoy the party!).

8. Breathe 🙌

You’ve made it this far, you have done SO WELL. We’re so proud of you. Organising a hen or stag party is like herding cats and you’ve done it! WOO! Go you. You’ve done all you can, now make sure you take some time to yourself, mute that group chat for a bit and clear your mind. It’s time to remember that the actual party weekend is going to be fabulous, and you’re going to have a great time celebrating the future wedding of your BFF.

9. The finishing touches 💅

These are by no means essential, and are again, another great task to delegate! If no one wants to do them then 🤷‍♀️ everyone will still have a great time. You might want to set a price limit / ask for purchases to be run by you if they’re coming out of the budget.
Ask around to see who wants to organise:
- Hen party games / a get-to-know-each-other activity (we know you’re imagining a cringey icebreaker, but something as simple as sharing your favourite memory of the bride/groom will help your group gel, especially if you’ve gathered family, childhood friends, colleagues and uni friends 👀)
- Finding hen party accessories for the bride
- Decorating the hen party house or hotel room
- Ordering hen party t-shirts / sashes
We hope that when planning these little extras you’ll consider the impact of single use plastics on the environment - remember that image of the turtle with a plastic straw up its nose? Imagine if it it was willy straw. Poor turtle 😔

10. Enjoy the party! 🥳

As the organiser, it’s your job to make sure the group stays together and on time, but you’re also there to have fun! Once you’re settled in your activities, relax, sip some bubbley and enjoy spending time with your bestie and your gang!