It’s an increasingly busy world out there and so naturally pressures on time are often immense. However that shouldn’t mean that exacting expectations couldn’t be met.

Of course time isn’t the only consideration when deciding to use an Agency to organise your stag and hen weekend. What you’re buying into is the Company’s levels of experience and expertise; you are in effect tapping into their contact list and with that taking advantage of their negotiated discounts.

They’ve done the research. Have the local knowledge. And have years of experience.

As Mike Wood, MD at Freedom Ltd put it “We currently offer over 90 day time activities and a further 40 plus for the evening, in 15 UK destinations and 10 locations across Europe. That results in an astronomical number of options, it really is all about the choice we can offer our clients as we’ve done all the hard work.”

It’s unfortunate, but true, that stag and hen parties are no longer welcome everywhere and that can certainly put an unnecessary dampener on your celebrations. However using an Agency’s service you are assured a very warm welcome at your chosen hotel, activity centre and more importantly nightclub – often with VIP entrance.

Finding stag and hen party planners is the easy part. Organisations such as Freedom Ltd, Maximise and Red Seven first established themselves as party agencies in 1996, but now a simple search such as London hen party on google will bring up a plethora of choice.

Then comes the difficult part …. Choosing who to trust with your precious weekend of revelling. This no-nonsense checklist should point you in the right direction.

• Find out what date they were first established – this indicates their level of experience.
• Find out the number of customers they cater for each year.
• Try to find valid feedback and references from previous customers - it’s not a good sign if they don’t post testimonials on their site.
• Use only a Limited Company. At www.companieshouse.gov.uk you can buy accounts for a little as £1 that could be a worthwhile investment.
• Check out how financially secure they are, you and your mates really don’t want to lose your deposits and be left empty-handed at the eleventh hour. You need to check that your money goes into a U.K. holding account that is then held securely until the date of your event.
• Do they have links (on their website) with reputable sites – this would indicate their standing in the industry. For example www.freedomltd.com has an exclusive agreement with lastminute.com for all their stag weekends and hen nights.
• Call and ask to speak with a consultant – you will be able to gage a lot from a telephone conversation about their product knowledge.

You Stag and Hens are busy, you’re getting married soon for goodness sake, doesn’t get much busier than that. However, you still want and still deserve a stunning send off into your journey through marriage.

Let an Agency take the load, relieve the stress. They can suggest activities (some that are not available without their help), accommodation, restaurants, and even party novelties.

You provide a list of ‘wants’ and they’ll come up with a weekend perfect for you.