Holiday Party Planning Tips
With holidays fast-approaching, parties are in full swing. Whether you’re hosting a party for your friends or family members, it’s vital to keep in mind that such events offer perfect moments for building connections and lasting memories.
As such, you should strive to deliver the best experiences to your guests. In this regard, you need to plan for the holiday party adequately. This includes choosing a date that accommodates your guests, sending invites early enough, and finding the right venue.
In this post, we’ll share some exciting tips on planning your holiday party. Hopefully, this helps you through the entire process of planning.
Importance of Planning Parties
Everyone wants a smooth and fun party. The last thing you want is to get caught up in the last-minute rush. Planning helps you to find the best places for the party. It gives you time to visit and assess different venues.
It’s also essential to plan in order to get the details right. Little things, such as music, decor, and party activities, do matter. Planning helps you know your guests’ headcount, which allows you to plan for food, space, and logistics if necessary.
Tips Before the Party/Make a Timeline
It’s easy to miss some detail when planning for a party. Whether small or big, missing something can affect your party in one way or another. As such, creating a timeline checklist lets you stay ahead of every detail or activity.
Month Before the Party
This is the decision-making period. You need to decide on the venue, guest list, entertainment, and the theme for the party. Set your desired budget and choose the best date and time for the party. This is also the ideal time to book the venue and arrange entertainment. If you’re making your own decor, you should order supplies a month before.
2 Weeks Before the Party
Start sending invitations to your guests during this time. Don’t forget to include the RSVP deadline to give yourself time to prepare. This period is also enough to give your guest ample time to respond.
You’ll also need to decide on the menu and make food preparations, such as hiring a caterer, during this period.
1 Week Before the Party
A week before the party, be sure to confirm your guest list with the caterer and the venue manager. Organize your decorations and assemble the centerpieces if needed. Identify the best activities or games for the party, and confirm the availability of every service you’ve hired.
1 Day Before the Party
Ensure the venue is cleaned, well-prepared, and arranged. Set out every essential item on the table, including napkins, serving ware, plates, flatware, platters, and cups. By midnight of this day, food should be ready, and you should also have enough drinks in stock.
Day of Party
Take the time to ensure everything is in the right place and finish any food prep tasks. You’ll need to get ice on this day. You can also drop your pets at a friend or neighbor’s house. Place signs if necessary, and set up games or other activities.
Let the party begin!
After the Party
Clean the house or party area, or hire someone to do it. Make sure you store decorations and gift bags for future use. Return any rented equipment, and settle all bills with venues, caterers, and entertainers. Remember to write and mail thank you cards within a week or two after the party.
Other Useful Tips
Still, there are even more ways of delivering a pleasant experience while learning something new yourself. Apart from the tips above, here are other useful ideas and suggestions to keep in mind:
Make a Great First Impression
It’s not about throwing a good party, but the best party. People tend to remember the first 5 to 10 minutes of a party, so you want to make it count. Make it easy for guests to get into the party. Start on a high by greeting guests as they enter and offer them comfort food and drinks to make them feel at ease.
Ask Questions/Receive Feedback
Don’t be afraid to ask your guests or party planners questions. The more you learn, the better. You can use the feedback to make future holiday parties even more fun. You should also observe the party. For example, lots of empty plates mean the food was delicious.
Take Down Notes
While asking questions, be sure to take down notes on the likes and dislikes of your guests based on their experiences. This is particularly important if you hired a party planner, entertainer, or caterer. You’ll want to opt for another service provider in the future should any of the parties fail to offer quality services.
Make a Great Last Impression
Be the perfect host by making a great last impression. Give a witty toast or encourage funny toast from guests. Use party favors to share a piece of memory of the event with your guests. Have a great photographer take fun photos at the end of the party. You can share the pictures with your guests. Also, a good DJ or great music should make the day even more memorable.
Final Note
Pulling off the best party ever isn’t a difficult thing - all you need is proper planning. Of course, you’ll also need the right people to help you with making the arrangements. It’s essential to stay organized and tackle one task at a time or assign tasks to people you trust.
Bear in mind that everything is just as important - from the decorations to the food. You want to give your guests the best experience and make lasting impressions. As the party host, it’s your day to create memorable moments.
Resources
Event planning checklist and tip sheet
Queensland Government
https://www.health.qld.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0022/431293/eventplanlist.pdf
Event Planning Checklist
University of Nevada, Las Vegas
https://www.unlv.edu/sites/default/files/page_files/27/GetInvolved-EventPlanningChecklist.pdf
Katherine E. Holley - AN ANALYSIS OF SUCCESSFUL EVENT PLANNING
Texas Tech University
https://ttu-ir.tdl.org/bitstream/handle/2346/23287/31295017977934.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y
Rashelle Isip - The 10 Lists You Need to Make to Plan a Great Party or Event
Lifehack
https://www.lifehack.org/articles/lifestyle/the-10-lists-you-need-make-plan-great-party-event.html
EVENT PLANNING
The South Dakota School of Mines & Technology
https://www.sdsmt.edu/uploadedFiles/Content/Campus_Life/Student_Activities/Organizations/Planning%20an%20Event.pdf
Event Planning
Academia
https://www.academia.edu/10306504/Event_Planning
Laura Woods - October 2, 2020 - How to Plan a Holiday Party in COVID Times
Employers Council
https://blog.employerscouncil.org/2020/10/02/how-to-plan-a-holiday-party-in-covid-times/
October 3, 2018 - STRESS-FREE HOLIDAY PARTY PLANNING TIPS
The Thrasher-Horne Center
https://www.thcenter.org/blog/stress-free-holiday-party-planning-tips/