Office Christmas parties creep up fast. One minute it's October, the next your boss is asking where the end of year do is happening and how many people it needs to fit. If you're organising a Christmas function this year, whether it's a relaxed drinks evening or a full sit down dinner for the whole team, the marquee and furniture setup you choose will make or break the night.
At Marquee Hire City, we supply Christmas function marquee hire across Auckland, Rodney and the Waikato, along with all the tables, seating and bar furniture to go with it. Here's how to think through your options.
Start with your guest count, venue and event style. A smaller marquee can shelter catering or a bar, while a seated dinner needs room for tables, serving space and clear walkways. For a standing function, combine shelter with bar leaners and wine barrels. Confirm the layout with our team before booking.
What Size Marquee Do You Need for a Christmas Party?
The size of your marquee comes down to your guest count and what you actually want people doing under it.
A 6x6 marquee works well if you need somewhere to keep the food dry and shelter a smaller group. It's a solid choice for grazing tables, a dedicated bar area, or a catering hub alongside an open outdoor space where most guests will be mingling.
A 6x15 marquee is the better fit if your Christmas function is a proper sit down meal. It gives you room for rows of tables, a clear path for staff to serve, and enough breathing room that guests aren't elbow to elbow. Most businesses booking a Christmas dinner for their team land on something in this range.
For a bigger crew, say a team of around 200, a 10x40 marquee gives you the scale to do a lot more than just seat everyone. Think a dining area, a separate bar zone, space for a dance floor or entertainment, and room to move between it all without the night feeling cramped. It's the option for businesses wanting their Christmas function to feel like a proper event rather than just a big dinner.
These are starting points, not fixed guest capacities. The final fit depends on your furniture, catering, entertainment and venue layout. Explore our marquee sizes, or send us your guest numbers and we'll talk you through the right layout.
What Furniture Do You Need?
Once the shelter's sorted, the next decision is furniture hire, and this is where you can really set the tone for the evening.
Standard tables and chairs suit a traditional sit down Christmas dinner. They're easy to dress up with tablecloths, centrepieces and a bit of festive styling if you want the night to feel a bit more formal.
For something more casual, our Bavarian picnic sets bring a communal, laid back feel that suits a Kiwi summer Christmas down to the ground. They're long benches and tables that get people talking to whoever's sitting nearby rather than sticking to their usual desk mates, which tends to make for a better party.
If you want the whole event to feel more lounge than function, bean bags are worth throwing into the mix too. They're an easy way to create a relaxed chill out corner away from the tables, whether that's for guests to sink into after dinner or as casual seating around the edges of a standing event. They also work well for a daytime Christmas function with kids around.
Bar Leaners and Wine Barrels for a Standing Function
Not every office Christmas party needs a sit down meal. If you're planning canapes, drinks and a chance for people to circulate, bar leaners and wine barrels are worth having on the quote.
They take up a fraction of the floor space of a full table setting, so you can comfortably fit more guests and still leave room to move. They give people somewhere to rest a drink without locking them into a seat for the night, which keeps the energy up and the conversation moving around the room. Dotted through a marquee or spread across the lawn, they're one of the easiest ways to get that relaxed, standing Christmas party feel.
Mixing It Up
Most of the Christmas functions we help set up use a combination of these. A 6x6 running as the bar and catering hub, with wine barrels and bar leaners spread across the garden. Or a 6x15 split down the middle, tables and chairs at one end for the meal, a Bavarian picnic set area at the other for drinks afterwards.
There's no single right way to do it. It comes down to your guest numbers, your venue, and how formal (or not) you want the night to be.
Book Your Christmas Function Marquee Early
December fills up fast, and marquee hire across Auckland, Rodney and the Waikato gets booked out well ahead of the silly season. If you're planning a Christmas function this year, get in touch with the Marquee Hire City team and we'll help you put together the right marquee, tables and bar setup for your event, before the good dates are gone.
To help us plan your quote, tell us your event date, venue, guest numbers and whether you're organising a seated meal or a standing function.
Get a quote for your Christmas function today. Or call 0508 462 778.
