We turned onto the beech-lined drive and issued a collective sigh of longing as our home for the weekend, a stately red brick Georgian structure, came into view. No one could argue the sheer beauty of its setting.
We arrived after everyone else, so the first thing we did was go to the garden so we could catch the last rays. As the sun disappeared at the edge of the cornfield beyond the garden, I sipped wine and watched the girls, just released from the three-hour car ride, romping and shrieking on the lawn.
A couple of months ago, Donna, an old school friend, had pleasantly surprised me by asking me to be her maid of honor. However, I quickly came to the realization that this was actually a byword for ‘hen-do organizer’. Being that I have never organized a hen night in my life, I turned to friends for suggestions.
Most shared with me cautionary tales of town center calamities, exclusive guest lists that left hens with nowhere to party, and fatal, drunk-driving accidents.
A friend told me to ‘never, never assume that the hen will want a stripper.' The stripper she provided had reached success in bringing her bride-to-be to tears with his hyper dance routine. Insightful words indeed, and I was driven to make my maid-of-honor duties a success. I carried a plot to cosset everyone away in a luxury country retreat - very far away from the hazardous town centers. But how can this be done with style? And more to the point, how do I do it on a budget?
Thinking they would have been booked up months ago, I was sure that most big country houses would not be available, especially during the summer. However, I was shocked to find how many of them had last-minute cancellations and would provide a good weekend rate. Something else worth mentioning is that a lot of places gave a 10% discount, especially if we agreed to use one of their providers for catering or activities.
I felt that finally, for once, the credit crunch was working in my favor. One owner told us that the bookings for the year were low. People who typically go for at least two weeks are opting to stay at home in order to save money. For me, some great opportunities to bargain were provided.
The Internet was an excellent source for locating properties, and I found a good number of websites committed to locating places in which to hold very large house parties and even larger houses for rent. Among these, www.thebighouseparty.com, www.thebigdomain.com and www.groupaccommodation.com were all very helpful.
Some sites did not clarify the size of the house or how many guests could be accommodated. When searching for houses, it is very important to take note of what exact facilities you will be in need of. With a strong checklist, I became well skilled at rapidly scanning the sites for my hen needs.
I knew that I desired a peaceful, rural location for the house. It had to be a place large enough for everyone to have her own personal space; (key, I thought, for having a successful hen break). I desired large communal rooms for drinks and dinner and, additionally, an afternoon ‘grazia-tea-time’ room for relaxing in.
I eventually came across the website http://www.countrycottagesonline.net and, lo and behold, before my eyes was the beautiful Barrington House. Once I had chosen the property, the owner, Margaret, was very helpful in organizing and making helpful suggestions for the weekend.
It was excellent, to be able to pass on the reins to Margaret and allow her to plan the bulk of it all. Barrington House provides a concierge service with a completely staffed and catered dinner, as well as the organization of local outings, such as kayaking in the river Wye. With great trepidation, I made mention of being a part of the “dreaded hen group,” but Margaret seemed okay with it, especially when I made it clear that we simply wanted a relaxing break and nothing too wild or - dare I say it - drunken!
But I had not foreseen the influence that the fifteen girls would have on one another once they were all turned loose for the weekend. I was happy to see that, without having to worry about closing time or angry boyfriends, we were all able to relax and have a good time. It was not at all as I had imagined, but it was spacious and private and offered us just what we needed for a weekend of girlie antics.
Barrington House echoed with giggles, and guffaws sounding from the bedrooms where girls doubled up for late night gossiping. Mornings were deathly silent as we catered to hangovers, and evenings were as wild as they come, with water fights, fancy dress, and midnight outings to the outdoor trampoline.
Luckily, our excitement did not cause any damage, with the exceptions of a few broken glasses and dresses stained with wine. Jeannie, the owner of Frome Wine Vineyards, served us a gorgeous, delicious lunch, which helped sober us up a bit for an information session on the growing of grapes and the production of wonderful English rosé and white wines
Barrington House showed itself to be exactly the perfect location for our antics. A spacious kitchen with two dishwashers provided plenty of space for late breakfasts and afternoon snacks. Margaret had given us food to warm up, which took away from the hassle and stress when it came to dinner times, thereby leaving us girls with plenty of time to catch up.
The property included an expansive garden that was perfect for relaxing during the day and for adventures after dark, while being sufficiently rural so that our shrieking and delighted screams did not disturb neighbors. Every person had a bedroom in the house, and the rooms were made up with crisp sheets and an abundance of towels. There was even a slipper bath in one bathroom if you wanted a relaxing soak.
The spacious dining room easily accommodated us all for the civilized hen dinner I had made plans for, which rapidly fell into wild confetti throwing (of course!). Prior to the return trip to London, Margaret had also sagely hired beauty therapists for Sunday morning to provide manicures, soothing facials, and ache-reducing massages.
What was excellent about the hen party was that it was was divided among fifteen of us, so the weekend became highly economical, especially as the beautiful garden meant a money-saving afternoon playing rounders. Eating, beauty treatments and town trips were less expensive than in London and nobody had to spend a lot of pocket money, which is easy to do when hen parties are uncontrollable. It is a great treat when you have your own privacy and luxury.
THE MONEY
I reached my goal of keeping the weekend under a £250 budget. The main expense was the accommodation, which was around £190 each, as Margaret had provided us with a reduced rate for last minute booking. After that, there was an additional charge of £6.50 per person for wine tasting and lunch, £10 for hot dinner and pudding made in advance for us.
It would have been much more expensive to make use of the Barrington House chef services and I was quite pleased that we made the choice to keep the group to ourselves. Money that was extra was used to stock up the house with necessary items such as wine, crisps, and chocolate. If we wished to go kayaking, the cost would have come to around £16 per person. Beauty treatments were extra, for those who desired it, and the rates were very reasonable at £48 for a full body aromatherapy massage and £29 for a full pedicure.
THE VERDICT
Donna gave me a hug as we returned to London and thanked me for the most fun she had experienced in a long time. In her praise, I basked, not wishing to add that I had planned her hen night for her to unwind. We were grateful to Barrington House and felt comfortable to have a lively hen celebration since we didn't have to be concerned about anything or make plans; this permitted us to spend our time enjoying ourselves and playing games.
On the positive side, Margaret was skilled, but when I started out, I felt unsure about letting her have too much responsibility, since I felt like I gave up my tasks. I had hope that she would complete the task and she did it. There were some insecure moments (like when she was out of touch, or some food item was changed at the last minute) and when this happened, I believed the hen was unmanageable, but in the end, everything was alright.
Being able to call someone who knew about the area, from fun things to do to how to get there, was great.
At the end, I felt that I could have called on Margaret to organize anything... she made suggestions of sumo suits for garden wrestling which, looking back, might have been a good idea... I had my hen do last weekend and it was tons of fun! This was, so far, the best weekend I have ever had with the girls!
We had a girls' night in on Friday; had a Singstar competition on the Playstation, drank wine and ordered takeout. The majority of the girls crashed overnight. I was really surprised when they bought me a sash and decorated my home with balloons and banners; one of my friends had borrowed a key for easy access.
Saturday morning we took the train to London where we were met by friends who brought along the requisite veil, sash and badges to publicly announce my position. After we checked into the hotel, we grabbed lunch and then headed off to Vinopolis for an excellent champagne tasting. We went to a Japanese restaurant for dinner, we got dressed up in 80's style (I was She-Ra the Princess of Power!) when we returned to the hotel. We had our own teanyaki style chef, who was so funny and so much fun. The restaurant had our table and booth all decorated with balloons and confetti, etc. too. A surprise limo was booked by the girls, so after dinner we went all around London for about an hour or so, which was so much fun! Before returning to our beds around 4am, we fell over a lot when hitting the roller disco.
It really was a fabulous weekend - I cannot recommend a hen do much better! You'll feel like royalty because everyone treats you so well. With me were my best friends, my mum, and my future mum-in-law and they all had an excellent time.
I have so many great memories and I feel emotional still reminiscing about just how much thought and love was put into making sure I had the best time of my life.
