Whether you’re the bride or the bridesmaid, organising a hen party is an exciting milestone on the road to getting married.
But it can be a bit stressful to take charge of the celebrations if you’ve never done it before.
With endless activities to choose from, financial obligations, and ensuring everyone stays on the same page, arranging a hen do can be pretty overwhelming.
Luckily, our team of expert hen party planners have got you covered with the ultimate guide to hosting the perfect celebration.
In this article, we’ve compiled a checklist of the most important things to remember while organising the event to make it truly unforgettable.
7-step checklist for planning a hen do stress-free
1. Speak to the bride
If you’re planning a friend’s hen do, it’s important to have a conversation with the bride-to-be first before getting the party started.
Take the time to understand her vision for the event and what type of hen party she prefers.
You can also ask her about her ideal activities, favourite hen party theme ideas, and specific requests to help you tailor the celebrations to her liking.
It might also be worthwhile to get her thoughts on hen party accessories to determine if she would enjoy them or not.
Not only will this help you determine the tone of the event, but talking to her also ensures that the party is something she’ll actually enjoy.
Pro Planning Tip: Get the bride’s list of ‘hard nos’. When you’re talking to the bride about her hen party, it might be a good idea to compile a list of her ‘hard nos’. These are things that she definitely does not want to be included in the celebration. Knowing what to avoid will help you tailor the event perfectly. Common hard nos include things like male anatomy-shaped decorations, strippers, and hen party games, but can also extend to activities like going club-hopping or hiking. The bride-to-be might also want to avoid potentially tacky decorations like hen party sashes or something similar.
2. Compile the guest list
The next thing you need to do is to compile the guest list. An easy way to ensure you invite everyone the bride wants to celebrate with is to ask her who she’d like to attend.
It’s important to do your best to ensure the guests have a good dynamic. This helps to keep the party atmosphere just right, so try and choose people that you know will get along well.
You can even have her make a text messaging group with her preferred guests. She can leave this group afterwards and make you an admin to keep the plans a secret.
Pro Planning Tip: Consider having separate celebrations. If the bride has a couple of different friend groups that wouldn’t necessarily get along, consider having smaller and separate hen celebrations. This helps to keep the atmosphere at the party upbeat and fun while ensuring that no one special is left out of the event.
3. Choose the party date
Once you’ve compiled the guest list, it’s time to choose the date for the hen party.
The best way to pick a good date is to ask the bride which one suits her first. Ask her to choose two to three possible dates that work for her, then relay these to the group.
You can create a poll on WhatsApp or Google Forms for the hen party group to vote on the dates that suit them the best. Then you can pick the one with the most votes.
4. Determine the budget
Establishing a hen party budget is the next important step in planning this event. Find out the overall cost by breaking it down into different categories, such as:
- Accommodation
- Activities
- Transportation
- Meals
- Decorations
This breakdown doesn’t have to be absolute, and you can adjust it as you continue planning.
However, it’s always a good idea to see what you might be spending, even if it’s just an estimate.
When creating the budget for the hen party or weekend celebration, consider how much money each person can contribute.
It’s vital to strike a good balance between the cost of the activities and creating a memorable experience for everyone involved.
5. Plan the hen party activities
After determining the budget, you can start thinking about the specific activities you want to host during the hen party.
While planning, the most important thing is to keep the bride’s interests in mind and to do things that she would enjoy.
We also recommend pairing your activities with the location you’re in. Travelling for hours isn’t always a great way to kickstart a party, especially if it’s only for one day.
For example, if you need to take a four-hour train ride just for one activity, it might not be worth all of the effort. See if you can find something similar in your area instead.
If you’re planning a weekend-long hen do, it’s essential to have a range of activities that can keep you busy throughout your visit.
Include a variety of things to do at home and in the area where you’ll be staying for the best of both worlds.
Pro Planning Tip: Don’t forget about hen party accommodation and transport. Although it can be easy to get swept away by all the fun activities you’ll be doing at the hen party, don’t forget about other important elements like accommodation and transport. If you’re going away for the hen weekend, ensure that you book suitable accommodation before planning too many activities. Many vibrant locations across the country offer great options for hen party houses. You can also visit Flock for inspiration. You should also check the transportation options and how close you’ll be to local towns or points of interest. This will help you to plan appropriate activities and factor in the time you may need to travel there, ensuring an obstacle-free hen party.
6. Start booking
Once you’ve finalised the number of people attending and confirmed the budget, you can get to booking everything for the hen celebrations.
Make sure to start booking accommodations and activities in advance, especially if the hen party is taking place during peak seasons or in popular destinations.
You should also pay attention to the terms and conditions, cancellation policies, and any additional requests by the vendor before you make your bookings.
This can help you to avoid uncomfortable situations, like having to pay hidden costs or fines that come from not adhering to venue restrictions.
If you need to travel, we recommend letting every person book their own ticket. Planning hen parties is stressful enough without having to secure transport for everyone, too.
Allowing everyone to make their own travel arrangements also ensures that people can do what they feel most comfortable with.
Pro Planning Tip: If you’re not using public transport, choose your designated drivers before you leave. If you need designated drivers at any point during your hen night celebrations, make sure to organise these ahead of time. Not only does this allow you to sort out fuel costs, but it also helps you avoid a situation where someone feels forced to miss the fun. You can also use transportation services like Uber or private taxis for safe transit. For multi-day hen parties, we recommend switching between designated drivers. This gives everyone a chance to join the celebrations without compromising safety.
7. Send formal invitations
Although everyone will know about the party and the date, it’s always a nice idea to send out formal invitations as a reminder.
These invites should confirm important details like:
- The time and date of the hen party
- Where you’re going
- Which activities you’ll be doing
- Any extra things people should remember to bring
- RSVP dates
You can also send an invite to the bride as a subtle hint of what she can expect, especially if the party is a surprise.
A few more things to remember
1. Decide if the party will be a surprise or not
Traditionally, hen parties are a surprise for the bride, but it doesn’t always have to be that way.
While some people may enjoy surprises, it’s definitely not for everyone. Make sure you know what the bride is comfortable with so that you don’t accidentally cause unnecessary stress.
Whatever the bride decides, it’s important to always keep her interests and vision for the party in mind to plan an event she’ll love.
2. Involve the group in the planning
It can be overwhelming and stressful to plan an entire hen party on your own.
Have the rest of the bridesmaids or friend group help you brainstorm ideas, hen party themes, organise activities, and book accommodation.
Delegate tasks to people based on their organisational strengths or interests to make the process fun for them too.
This way, you’ll have more great hen party ideas to choose from while ensuring that everyone feels involved. You’ll also be much less stressed, and likely more excited to celebrate.
3. Be open about money
Money can be a sensitive topic, but it’s important to have an open conversation about finances when you plan a hen party.
Make sure that you discuss the budget openly with the guests and be clear about any potential costs that they may have to cover.
You can encourage everyone to talk to you or others involved in the planning privately if they can’t afford something. Then you can try and come up with a plan together to ensure that no one misses out on the fun.
However, it’s important to respect people’s financial boundaries too. If the costs are too high for most people, it might also be worth looking into more budget-friendly hen activities.
4. Be strict and stay organised
When planning the hen party or sending out the invites, make sure that you give everyone clear deadlines.
This helps you to plan and sort things, like the number of attendees, out in advance.
Having a deadline in place for RSVPs is also essential for activities that have group limitations or specific pricing.
You also need to be clear about the dates and times of the hen party. If you’re travelling, make sure everyone knows when they’ll be expected to arrive and ask them to diarise it.
Many activity providers are quite strict about their starting times, and this should be communicated to the group to avoid any uncomfortable situations.
Plan her hen party effortlessly with Flock
Although hen party planning can be incredibly fun, it can also be challenging and stressful.
At Flock, we want you to enjoy every second of the celebrations, which is why our expert party planners are here to serve you.
Our team can help you create the bespoke event of your dreams, whether you want to spend a day or a weekend partying.
We work with top-rated activity partners and accommodation providers to give you the best options when planning a hen party.
Not only that, but we can also make expert recommendations depending on the style of your event to help you create the perfect itinerary for the full hen party package.
Plan your hen party with ease by getting in touch with Flock today. Hen weekends from £299pp.
