Having a dry hire wedding?
Things to consider when having a dry hire wedding.
Thinking of having a dry hire wedding and don’t know where to start? I’m going to try and do my best to break it down and give you some food for thought! First thing we should probably discuss though is the question you may be thinking “What is a dry hire wedding?”
Typically a dry hire wedding is at a venue that is essentially a blank canvas, this could be a barn, warehouse, village hall, tipi etc. You hire the actual space but don’t get the “add on’s/all inclusive” nature that you would get from a more traditional wedding, generally giving your more flexibility to your date. There are as always pros/cons to discuss for both!
When you book an “all inclusive” style wedding in say a manor house you’re probably getting catering included, staff will be booked to work, there will most definitely be toilets and you won’t have to take rubbish home with you!
When you book a dry hire venue, especially a tipi in a field you may have to think about hiring in your own posh portaloos, contracting staff and taking your rubbish home at the end of the night. This could potentially work out more expensive, more planning time and a bit of a pain if you have to then find somewhere to dispose of rubbish. So definitely a bit of a con to consider…
However when it comes to positives there’s definitely a lot of advantages to having a dry hire wedding. You can bring in your own caterers, so if you’ve dreamed of a mexican feast, maybe a huge McDonalds order, a paella or a few food trucks you’ll definitely be able to do this with a dry hire venue. A lot of all in style venues like to stick with their recommended caterers who may just provide typical wedding grub.
You can mostly do what you like! There may be some guidelines to follow in terms of hanging things, moving things etc. But on the whole dry hire venues allow you to be way more creative in making the space totally yours and going whichever theme you want to.
There's no corkage - dry hire venues let you bring in your own bars or own alcohol (just make sure to check the Ts&C’s of this with them) which can probably save you a fair chunk of money if you’re not having to pay £10 per bottle opened.
If you’re having a non-traditional ceremony chances are a dry hire venue will offer you a lot more flexibility with your ceremony space. A lot of dry hire venues won't be licensed for legal ceremonies but you can of course get a celebrant or a friend/family member to do the ceremony for you, so if you want to do it in the woods you can, if you want your celebrant to dress up as a dinosaur… you also can… if they’re willing!
Other important things to think about are:
Vendors (who is going to organise them on the day)
Staff (Will you need to hire in staff or will your caterers/bar provide you with them)
Parking (Does your venue have a dedicated car park? If in a field do you need to take this into consideration?)
Set up (Can you set up the day before?)
Toilets (Do you need to provide these)
Lighting (Is this provided? Do you need to hire this in?)
Power (Is there power provided? Will you need a generator?)
Bins (Will the venue dispose of waste of do you need to take this away?)
Ice/water/Fridge (Is there a safe water supply? Are there fridges or do you need to provide these? Can you get ice delivered there?)
And last but definitely not least, the best piece of advice I could offer if you’re having a dry hire venue is to hire a wedding planner/on the day co-ordinator. They are worth EVERY penny! Will liaise between your suppliers, check on staff, help you plan your schedule, know the contacts and things to consider. This blog post is long enough but I’ll be doing a whole post on why you need a co-ordinator soon!
If you have any questions leave them below!
Chloe
