Questions you’ve always wanted to ask (aka FAQs)

We don’t charge any mileage for parties within a 20 mile driving distance from our base. Any more than that we charge a small amount to take account for the extra time and fuel. It’s a bit more for larger parties as there may be more staff!

We have a huge database of venues so its quite likely we will be able to recommend a venue near to you. But as we cover such a wide area – your local knowledge may be better than ours, indeed, you might know of an alternative venue that we don’t! In that instance we’d be very happy to comment on its suitability – although site visits are not viable unless we make a separate charge.

In short, you do. We can advise on suitability, but because we are already juggling availabilities and venue suggestions for dozens of parties at a time our resources are short, and we’d worry that if we had to book the venue too then we might drop the ball… and it would end up in tears. So we stick to what we do best – concentrating on supplying the party entertainment.

However, we do have a database of thousands of venues across the South, so can usually recommend where to book, and offer further info on a particular venue (access, space etc). 

We don’t put a floor covering down as in general we don’t need to! As with much of the Jeeps, we have modified the wheels too – so that where they meet the floor – instead of hard plastic they have a soft velvety finish. Of course when we’re doing outside events we remove the soft finish and put on a rugged one – a bit like wearing wellies! So whether the floor is a brand new sprung wood one, a tiled one or one made of marble – we’re confident that no harm will come to it if the drivers obey the instructions! We have even done a party in the ballroom of the Mandarin Oriental Hotel, where Queen Elizabeth II was taught to ballroom dance!

A caveat though.  We are very hot on getting the kids to take their feet off the pedals when they stop at an obstacle. This is because if they sit stationary with their wheels spinning, the friction is bound to cause a small mark, no matter how soft the surface. To that end, if a child repeatedly ‘drives on’ after numerous repeated instructions to take their foot off the pedal, we reserve the right to ask them sit out for a turn or two. 

We need about 30 mins to set up – however our record is 7 minutes, so if for any reason we are delayed – don’t panic as we should be able to get the party moving in no time at all! At the end, assuming if it takes you 30 minutes to get all your guests collected and all your bits and pieces back in order, we’d suggest you only need to book the venue for 3 hours. A sample timing would be – if a party was due to start at 10.30am, we’d arrive at 10,00, the drivers briefing at 10.30 (if everyone turns up on time), driving finale ends at 12.00 when birthday lunch starts and we commence packing up our kit. The party would finish at 12.30, we’d be ready to leave along with the guests, and the remaining 30 mins would be left to you to get the dining area etc all shipshape and also giving time for those mums and dads who want to chat a bit longer to stay.

The first things to consider are which size track is being used, and how many people are coming? First, take account of the track size, then think about the space needed to wait/eat etc.
Small Party – we do have a track where the  size is flexible, generally about 10m x 12m. We can take bits out and add bits to make this track fit, but don’t really like going narrower than 8m. However, this track is now rarely used – and only for special circumstances, so the space for a small party is as a standard, below. 
Standard Party – this track is about 10m x 15m, or about 1.5 x badminton courts. We can squeeze it a bit so can use less than 10m width, but bear in mind this will then make it longer than 15m!
Large Party – this can be as per the standard track, or adding in a couple of metres length – according to availability of space at the venue. So if there’s space, we can be up to 10m x 17m
Supersize Party – we sometimes use 2 tracks here, or our special supersize track – so will move to fill the space available, but would recommend a minimum of 12 x 20m.

Now the next thing to consider is how much waiting space is required.

Are the parents staying or is it a drop off party. Will you be providing food in the hall or in an ante room? We also need some space for the waiting chairs (as many as there are jeeps) and also for the table football games. So for example, for a 24 child party with standard jeeps and eating in a separate room, there will be 14 waiting. So probably about an extra 10m x 3m is ample. If you’re not sure – just ask and we can help!

Our parties differ from the average party. A magician comes with quite a few boxes, but a juggler comes with very little. One major party company in London (who mentioned Sharks?) only come with a small backpack. We, however, just about manage to leave behind the kitchen sink. There’s the track, jeeps, PA system, table football, blowers, batteries… need we go on? Suffice to say we don’t turn up in just a Ford Fiesta!  For that reason we need good access for either our van or trailers, plus we prefer not to have to move them once parked in the loading area (time!). 

Important: If we can’t get our vehicle up to the door, it adds time.  If the door is far away from the space where the party takes place, it adds time!   So we do need to know in advance (preferably at booking) if the venue is not straightforward, because we make calculations about arrival and departure time based on reasonable access.  Every metre counts!

Similarly, doorways should be at least 1m wide (so double doors are great).  We can usually get through smaller doorways but this might mean dismantling the jeeps, and guess what? That adds time.   We do allow a reasonable time for loading and unloading, but if the venue presents challenges that are above and beyond what’s reasonable, we may have to put a surcharge on (or be a little late in starting).  A major challenge (which may be a step too far :) ) would definitely include a staircase for example! Of course, if we have already been to the venue we would usually know the layout.

Well, the simple answer is… we get wet! Being very British and all that we just get on with it (although we may discuss it quite a bit as Brits are wont to do). However, we are aware of the inherent risks in torrential rain (not to mention the displeasure of the drivers) so we won’t operate if it is absolutely bucketing down. The other thing to beware of if you are thinking of booking an outdoor party and it does go all wonky weather-wise, is that we may have to make a cleaning charge, as the track can get muddy when packed away, as well as the jeep wheels, as the next venue we go to may be indoors so we have to be careful. In the Summer though, there’s obviously less risk. If you are at all concerned please talk to us.

Please note, due to the weather, we only consider outdoor parties between March and mid September.

The great things about our Jeeps being electric is that because they don’t have smelly engines they are equally at home indoors as outdoors. In fact, we think they run better indoors. The party is more contained indoors, and the floor smoother than outdoors (therefore less rolling resistance) and there’s no lumps, bumps or slopes to slow the Jeeps down. Having said that – you can’t beat an  outdoor kids Jeep Party if the sun is shining!  We now generally restrict outdoor parties to the warmer months or March to mid September (although can do them outdoor by special arrangement on the condition that if the weather is bad there may be a cleaning and drying charge). One further tip for outdoors (as we’ve discovered during this hot summer -2025) is that if there is little or no shade, the kids can find it a little hot on the jeeps for our normal routine, so it may be a little more relaxed.

We don’t put a floor covering down as in general we don’t need to! As with much of the Jeeps, we have modified the wheels too – so that where they meet the floor – instead of hard plastic they have a soft velvety finish. Of course when we’re doing outside events we remove the soft finish and put on a rugged one – a bit like wearing wellies! So whether the floor is a brand new sprung wood one, a tiled one or one made of marble – we’re confident that no harm will come to it if the drivers obey the instructions! We have even done a party in the ballroom of the Mandarin Oriental Hotel, where Queen Elizabeth II was taught to ballroom dance!

A caveat though.  We are very hot on getting the kids to take their feet off the pedals when they stop at an obstacle. This is because if they sit stationary with their wheels spinning, the friction is bound to cause a small mark, no matter how soft the surface. To that end, if a child repeatedly ‘drives on’ after numerous repeated instructions to take their foot off the pedal, we reserve the right to ask them sit out for a turn or two.