10 Things to Consider When Organizing an Out-of-Town Party

Organizing out-of-town parties is a great way to surround yourself with fun people from all over the place. You can plan your food, drinks and party games months in advance until everything is perfect. However, no matter how much you plan, there are things that need to be taken care of before your out-of-town guests arrive.

Here are the top 10 things to consider when planning an out-of-town party:

1. Where will the party take place?

This might seem very obvious but it still needs to be mentioned as this probably won’t be at your house. Wherever you’re thinking about having the party might not have what you need or it may not be worth it to get a location. Make sure you’re getting the most out of having your party at this place and that there’s no restrictions on things that might ruin your party. You don’t want to spend hundreds or even thousands of dollars on something and then learn it wasn’t allowed, do you?

2. What kind of food will be served and what does everyone like?

Having a food plan is something that needs to be set in stone before the party even starts. Make sure you have a variety of different dishes, make a list of everyone’s favorite foods and make sure you don’t leave anyone out. If there are vegetarians or people with allergies, make sure to take them into account when picking a caterer.

Want to make the food extra special, you can even hire a private chef for your specific event. For example, you can hire a private chef in Palm Springs.

3. Find out if anyone has special requests or restrictions.

As stated above, if any of your guests have anything in particular, they want at their plate when eating, ask them beforehand so it can be taken care of by your caterer. Martha Stewart recommends asking about allergies on the RSVP card and serving allergen-free food options.

4. What theme will the party have?

Parties with themes are usually more successful than just having random decorations everywhere. It’s also easier to make sure everyone dresses up like you planned it. You’ll need a color scheme, specific decoration and games that fit the theme. Coachella, 1980, tropical, and cars are some themes mentioned by party planners in Stylecaster.

5. How much entertainment is needed?

This goes hand in hand with the food plan as well as the theme of the party. If you’re not into dancing, then hiring an entertainer like a hypnotist or stilt walkers would be very expensive but still fun for most partiers. If having too much entertainment isn’t your thing, why not hire someone to DJ throughout the whole event, giving everyone something great to dance to?

6. What time will people arrive and when can they leave?

This is something that should be planned in advance. People might have something planned on the day of your party so it’s important to know when they’ll arrive and when they can leave. If you want people to stay for a certain amount of time, make sure you pick the right date.

7. Is there anything I can do to help with transportation?

If most of your guests will be flying or driving in from out-of-state, then it might be worth getting someone that specializes in travel discounts if you’re not already signed up for one. That way, they get points towards future flights/hotels stays while my guests get great deals. Another option is asking everyone to book their own travel in advance so when they arrive, they can easily get to your party.

8. What is the dress code?

If you don’t want your guests to dress up at all, make sure you tell them in advance. If it’s black tie, make sure the guests know beforehand so they can buy or borrow the appropriate clothing items for your big event. Make a list of everyone that wants an invitation and then send out reminder emails about what the dress code will be before the actual date of the event.

9. How many people are coming?

This is important because if there are too few or too many people attending, you might want to adjust your food order or change the date of the event altogether. Make sure you have a good estimate of how many people will be attending so it doesn’t become too expensive or embarrassing for you.

10. How much money should each guest bring?

If you want to cover all expenses beforehand, make sure there is a general rule on how much everyone has to contribute rather than picking up the bill every single time. This way, everyone feels comfortable knowing they can still enjoy themselves with everything paid for already.

There’s a lot of things to consider when organizing an out-of-town party, especially if you want your event to be a success. If you plan carefully and pick the appropriate date for your guests, set up the right theme and decorations throughout the house, and hire enough entertainment/catering services, then your party will be fun for all.