Planning a surprise trip away for the bride-to-be? Organising the hen night is one of the bridesmaid’s most important pre-wedding tasks and can be great fun. However, trying to make plans that will please everyone can be a royal pain.
And in 2022, with the options limitless and expectations sky high, but with prices rising and restrictions still in place in many corners of the globe, organising a hen party can be an incredibly difficult balancing act to manage.
Let’s be honest, no one really enjoys an itinerary of organised fun that involves male life drawing classes, wearing the customary ‘L’ plates and being forced to spend money on a less than glamorous hotel.
However, most people do enjoy a weekend break away (heaven knows we all need one after these last couple of years) where you have the choice to relax and do very little but celebrate the upcoming wedding nuptials together as a girlie gang. Enter the option of a gorgeous rental house in the UK, and things start looking very rosy indeed.
Yep, it’s high time to ditch the stereotypical hen parties and gather the girls together for a long weekend at a rental house. Whether you’re after some countryside comfort, a fancy farmhouse or have your sights set on something a little more chic, there’s a house rental out there to suit every taste.
Still need convincing? Here are 5 IDEAL reasons to rent a house for your hen party.
Spend Less, Enjoy More
Let’s face it, hen parties and weddings are expensive for both the bride and her hens. If you’ve never complained about the cost of a hen do, then you’re a better person than us – and almost certainly, in the minority.
According to a recent report discussed in the Mirror, the average cost of attending a hen party in 2022 is £242 (up 60% in ten years) with accommodation and meals out accounting for the biggest costs.
We’re honestly surprised that average figure isn’t even higher; we’ve heard anecdotal evidence (and spent it ourselves) of people spending as much as £1’000 during a stag or hen event.
Indeed, Harpers Bazaar agrees that “a hen do that costs around £150-£200 is now seen as the lower end of the chain, which gives you an indication of how utterly ridiculous this has all become”. That’s a lot of money, indeed.
One way to save on these costs is to book a rental party house, which, when compared to booking a hotel can be amazingly cost effective. We’ve seen great deals for as little as £20 per person per night if you fill them up including gorgeous Georgian manors and stately homes set in historic estates. Yep, you could barely get a hostel for that!
What’s more, having a kitchen at your disposal can instantly cut your costs (most welcome when you consider the rising cost of living and the price of ingredients going through the roof) and add to the fun of the event. You can stock up on food, snacks and take as much wine and prosecco as you can carry. Even if you go out in the evening, you can make breakfast, lunch and midnight snacks, which will save some serious pennies.
Communal Fun
The whole point of a hen do is for the bride-to-be to enjoy one last night – or weekend, or week – of freedom with her friends. If you’re in a hotel scattered across separate floors (or worse in different hotels altogether), it’s hard to spend quality time together.
However, with a rental house, you’re not restricted to a single hotel room. You’ll have plenty of space to spread out and enjoy time with the other hens. Whether that’s in the dining room for boozy brunches, outside on the veranda with a cocktail in hand or with an epic house party – it’s totally up to you.
Read: 9 cocktails are super easy to make at home
The Comfort Of Home
We’ve all been spending more time at home in the last few years, as the global pandemic locked us down, and re-entering the world can bring out a little trepidation even in the boldest of people. Having home comforts close to hand can make a hen party in the current climate a much more inclusive, welcoming affair for everyone; and that’s what it’s all about, right?
And the micro details are often better catered for in a rental party house, too. Need a corkscrew to open that bottle of wine? Want to ask another hen if they have a spare hair grip without having to face strangers in the corridors? Prefer to share a room with other hens and gossip late into the night in your PJs?
Renting a house offers you privacy and the amenities of a regular home, but still with that sense of adventure of being somewhere new. You can kick back, relax and not have to spend the day after the night before cooped up in a hotel room, or worse; in public.
Make Your Own Schedule
In a rented party house, you can create your own fun, in your own time. You don’t have to deal with the hassle of getting a group of girls to a dinner booking on time. You don’t have to get up in time for the hotel breakfast (which have been, incidentally, vastly weakened in quality due to the pandemic) if you’re hungover.
You don’t have to be disturbed by the hotel staff cleaning your room. If the bars shut, you can take the party home instead of dealing with sticky dance floors. And if busy bars and clubs aren’t what the bride has in mind at all, then you can easily have a pamper and prosecco session, at any time of day.
All The Extra Perks
Planning a wedding – let alone a hen do – is stressful, but booking a house enables the bride to totally de-stress. If you’re lucky, you can even book a house that’s got a pool, which you don’t have to share with other guests. The same goes for a sauna and steam room, as well as a gym. A house will bring a whole new dimension to your hen party, making it more memorable for everyone involved. And that’s why you’re here, right?
