Although outdoor events happen all year round (with proper planning, of course,) the most preferred seasons are summer and fall as the temperatures make outside soirees ideal. Hosting outdoor events has its own set of challenges. Here is a checklist that’ll help make sure you and your event team have all the basics covered to host an outdoor event with success.
- Bad–weather back up: To put both you and your client’s mind at ease, it’s always a good practice to have an indoor or covered space with a canopy or roof where you can move to in case of unforeseen weather.
- Know the rules and ordinances: Unsure of the crowd or noise ordinances for your area? You may want to check in with your local PD or fire department to be familiar with fire and safety codes, or to see if an outside DJ needs to quiet down by a certain time.
- Parking:
Hosting an outdoor event calls for a proper parking space. It varies from party to party. If you have a proper budget, you could get a well-organized service, valet parking, classy, and an overall positive tone for the event.
- Don’t forget shade and water: No matter the temperature, sunny outdoor events can have guests sweating. It’s essential to have a shady area where attendees can retreat to, along with plenty of water on hand in bottles, cups or pitchers, which will help keep everyone cool.
- Source outdoor-friendly menu options: Food that spoils quickly, especially in warm temps, can turn a successful event into a dud. Products like crudites, tacos, and costinis that aren’t too hot or cold to eat will come in handy. Moreover, the dishes are to be served one by one, so everyone is served the dish as fresh as possible.
- Lighting:
You never realize how important lighting is until it’s bad – it can have an enormous effect on how your guests feel. Lighting for an outdoor event can include lanterns, strings of LED lights draped from poles or trees, perimeter lighting under tents, and up-lighting in an array of colors to showcase walkways or buildings. Never forget to light the walkways!
- Inspect the Venue Thoroughly:
The idea of having a small concert in the park might sound like a fabulous idea until you realize there are no public bathrooms and you have to rent port-a-potties at a hefty cost. Some things to consider:
- Bathroom facilities and the cost if there are none.
- Is there electricity available?
- Is there enough room to lay out the areas of the event you need? For example, a staging area, a seating area, and a place for food trucks?
Consider the elements you want your event to have and make sure the venue can handle the logistics.
- Provide Shade and Cooling:
During the summer, days can get extremely hot. The last thing you want is your guests being overheated. You have a few options to keep everyone cool and happy.
- Rent an enclosed tent and air-condition it. This will allow anyone, particularly heat sensitive people, a place to go. Just don’t make it too much fun or everyone will hang out there.
- Put up tarps or drape fabric runners through the trees to create some shade. You can also add misting fans to cool people off more.
- Rent a venue that also has an indoor area where people can cool off and get out of the sun for a bit can be a great addition.
Keeping guests cool while hosting an outdoor event might be a challenge during extremely hot days, but it’s worth the effort to prevent any heatstroke cases. While planning an event can be difficult and attending an event is fun, ensuring the event is successful takes a lot of work. But in the end, it’s worth the effort.
