When is the best time to book the work Christmas party?

When is the best time to book the work Christmas party?

Published on Apr 22, 2019

One of the most commonly asked questions that we hear as professional event organisers has to be when is the best time to book the work Christmas party? We always recommend booking your tickets as soon as possible and there are a whole bunch on benefits for doing so that you might not even know about.

Looking for a party: View our top shared Christmas parties

Setting a Christmas party date that the majority of your colleagues can attend is often a time consuming and frustrating task. Because we’re realists, we know not everyone is going to be able to make the same date. So, imagine finally settling on a date after weeks of sending out doodle polls and email reminders to find out when everyone is available for the Xmas party, only to be told that your date is completely sold out. That’s a huge amount of time and effort wasted.

So how do you avoid that disappointment? Don’t leave it to the last minute! A lot of Christmas parties tend to be announced around April and May. We know that might seem ridiculously early but when you take into account that some venues have a capacity of 3000+ and thirty Christmas parties taking place between late November and December, you’ll appreciate that a lot of planning and organisation is needed in order to make those events successful and memorable.

Bearing in mind when these parties go on sale to the general public, we recommend you start looking into booking your work Christmas party around the summer. Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays tend to be the most popular Xmas party dates and can sell out months in advance, so if you’re planning your work do for one of those prime dates for a large groupmof people then you really need to be booking your party as close to summer as you can.

View: Top London Venues

Another reason why the best time to book your work Christmas party is months in advance is because organising an end of year celebration isn’t always quick and easy. We know from working with thousands of clients over the years that planning a Christmas party is stressful and doesn’t always pan out the way you imagined it.

On top of finishing all of your work on time so that you can enjoy your Xmas holidays without the nagging thought of that report you didn’t quite complete, do you really need dietary requirements, food allergies and drink orders looming over you as well? We thought not. Get all of those nitty-gritty details signed off early so that you don’t have to collect that information in the midst of the December chaos.  

So what are the other possible benefits to booking the work Christmas party so early in advance?

By booking early enough, some venues and parties may offer you a small discount or an incentive to secure your booking. You might be offered a few bottles of complimentary bubbly for each of your tables, extra dodgem tokens (should your party include the good ol’ fashioned bumper cars), or even free professional photographs to hang in your office so that your company can remember your party antics for years to come.

An additional bonus of booking your Christmas party sooner rather than later is that you may be seated closer to the stage so that you have front row seats for the extravagant performances set to take place. Alternatively, if you don’t like queueing for your winter cocktails you could also request to be seated next to the bar. By booking last minute, you don’t have these options and we know from experience it’s the little touches that make your Christmas party that extra bit special and memorable.

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What happens if you book your Christmas party and you want to add on extra guests at a later date?

The important thing to remember is that all tickets are subject to availability. Event organisers cannot hold or secure tickets without a deposit or full payment. This means that there is a risk that there might not be any tickets on your party date left over for last minute bookers. If you book your party early, you’ve got a bigger time frame and better chance at there being a few extra tickets available for those friends and colleagues that decide they don’t want to miss out on the Christmas celebrations after all.

For those of you hiring a venue exclusively, you might also be wondering when the best time to book your entertainment is. As with the party it’s best to book as soon as you have your venue and date confirmed. You probably aren’t going to be the only company booking entertainment for that date but you’re definitely going to want to be one of the first.

If we haven’t already emphasised enough in this blog, the best time to book your work Christmas party is without a doubt a few months in advance – aim for around August. It’ll save you a ton of stress, you might get a discount on your booking, a few extra glasses of champagne, potential front row seats for the live performances, and you can enjoy the lead up to the party without the worry of having to organise it last minute.

If you’re in charge of booking your Christmas party this year and you don’t know where to start, get in touch with us, Christmas Connections! We’re a free party finding service and our mission is to relieve you of all of the hassle and stress or arranging your Christmas party.