A Wacky Wheelers 5 Star Party Venue is one that we think comes together really well, and scores highly in each of our key categories. You can pretty much be guaranteed that your party will run smoothly at a 5 star venue, and that not only will you find it a breeze to set up, but your guests will also find it to be a great place to relax and watch the party unfold.
The areas we look at are size of hall; access to hall; acoustics; catering facilities; ease of booking; general condition; and separate party room for the food.
Size of Hall
Our tracks are quite large, so often take up a whole hall – which isn’t ideal, as you need some space for the kids to wait their turn, space to play table football or other activities, plus ample space for the parents to watch, support, and enjoy their kids having fun. So to get a 5 Star rating, there needs to be ample space for at least a 5 Jeep party.
Access to Hall.
We cart around a lot of kit. We find that a lot of architects that design halls do design fabulous buildings, but seem to neglect the fact that suppliers to those buildings need to get in close with their vans. So they either don’t provide any wide access at all, or it’s up steps, or down long alleyways. Every metre counts as far as we’re concerned, and the doorways need to be wide enough to get our jeeps in – double doors are ideal. To get a 5 Star rating we need to get close to the doors with our vehicle, and to have our own access (so that we don’t get in the way of your guests when we load or unload).
Acoustics
This is important. Many halls have dreadful acoustics – that just echo. So add blowers for the track, music form our PA, parents chatting and kids squealing with excitement, and you cannot hear a word that’s said. And for a driving party for kids, where there are instructions being dealt left right and centre, that’s not good. Some architects went out of their way to reduce the echo, and have done a great job. Others not so…
Catering facilities
We like to see good clean kitchens (not that we use them – that’s for the parents), so that it makes the host parent’s life easy. And that means being able to get the children’s party food on the table in time, safely.
Separate Room for Party Food
This is not essential, but unless a hall has adequate space to set up tables in the same room as the Jeeps, then a separate party room is optimal. We particularly like it as whilst the kids are having their slap up birthday tea, we can get on undisturbed and pack up the Jeeps and track.
Ease of Booking
Some venues are booked through a third party, and these third party companies vary hugely. Some are almost impossible to get hold of, or are very slow in responding – which is not good for parents stress levels. Mind you, it’s not just 3rd party companies, some local halls can be equally frustrating in the comms department. For a 5 star rating, we’re looking for excellent communications, ease of booking, and those staff who go the extra mile. Good websites count in this too – particularly for venues we don’t know. Often they say the capacity in numbers of people a hall will take, but that is very subjective. Sometimes they quote the square metres – which is more helpful, but still not what we need. How hard is it to actually quote the dimensions? Simple really…
General Condition
This speaks for itself. We’re looking for clean, looked after venues, that are welcoming, bright, and that you feel comfortable in. QED.