Wedding tents have expanded in style, selection, and more over the last decade. With COVID safety and general trends making outdoor weddings even more popular, we’ve brought in an expert to help you understand everything you need to know about wedding tent rentals.
Q&A with Tent Rental Expert, Jennifer Rodriguez of Marianne’s Rentals
In her role as General Manager at Marianne’s Rentals, Jennifer Rodriguez has helped to coordinate wedding tent rentals for events both large and small. We’ve asked her to share her insights on current wedding tent rental trends and planning tips.
Photo by Ryan Ray Photography
What are the primary perks of having a tented wedding — especially for couples getting married in a post-COVID world?
The outdoors have always been something that has drawn couples when planning their weddings. Oklahoma has some of the most beautiful weather in the spring and in the fall. We do have our fair share of extreme weather, however, it is really rare. The beautiful weather on a beautiful property can really set the tone for a wedding that you and your guests will never forget.
When you add in the struggle of planning around COVID, the outdoors adds a layer of safety that couples are starting to insist on. You have an open
Most outdoor properties have the additional space where you can factor in a contingency plan if you need more room. You can plan to have the guests more spread out and in case of bad weather you have the option to bring them all in a little closer to rescue them from the elements, should that be necessary.
Photo by Mark Boatright Photography
Can you share a few different wedding tent styles and options you think couples or planners should look into and why?
Over the last 5-10 years, the tenting industry has really become more versatile and Marianne’s continues to invest in new products. There are several types of tents that are available and inside each
Understanding what you want your overall look of the event to be is important before deciding on a tent style. Also, it is important to understand what obstacles you may face on the property as this sometimes dictates what tent you need.
Frame Tents
This is what most people would consider the “typical tent”. They are most commonly seen in the public for corporate use and also for weddings. There are different top options, you can choose from stripes, solid white, or even clear. Then you can go beyond that with draping or a tent liner, fun lighting, and even flooring to really create an outdoor room.
Structure Tents
These are really the
Sailcloth Tents
These tents are a new focus for the event industry. They are beautiful pole tents that bring in the light to really make for a romantic and magical reception. Pole tents are limited as they can only be installed on grass; however, the lighting and draping options with this tent create a stunning event.
Most tents have additional options for draping, lighting, floor
Make sure to consider function and comfort as well. If
What are some tent rental trends that you see coming down the pike for 2021-22?
I would say the structure tent and the sailcloth tent are tied for most popular. The more modern bride/event will be drawn to the structure tent but the more romantic boho client will fall in love with the sailcloth tent.
Photo by Aaron Snow Photography
What are some myths about tents that you can dispel for couples and vendors? Any misconceptions that people are surprised to learn about?
The common misconception is that tents are super expensive. While they can be with all the trimmings, the base model is often what the brides want to rent to begin with. Not everyone wants or needs all the extras. Many are surprised to find out how affordable tenting can be. This is why we made the tent rental packages for weddings of 50 guests. It helps shed light on how affordable they can be.
The other thing is that clients sometimes find themselves a little nervous to try to figure out how to make the tent idea work. They feel intimidated by the idea. But most event professionals that we work with on a regular basis have had events in tents and are experienced with those types of challenges.
Our company stays up to date on the safety and training with products and our crew. Our sales staff is expertly trained and can walk with any client to help them think through what they need to know for renting a tent. For clients that are unsure or nervous if the tent will work the way that they imagined, we offer site visits. A member of our team can go out to the venue and meet with the client directly and talk through the event with them to make sure everything will fit.
Photo Courtesy of Marianne’s Rentals
What are a few things couples/vendors should know before booking tent rentals?
Tent Rentals Are A La Carte — The thing to know about tenting is all the options are a la carte. Because there are so many options for tenting everything is rented by the item. The price of the tent is the top only. Then you add on walls, lighting, flooring, draping, etc. All tents and their accessories include installation and removal.
Think About the Guests’ Experience — Another big thing is to really walk the property to determine if it will work. Think about the guests’ experience from where they enter to where they park and how far they walk to get to the tented area.
Take Weather Into Consideration — You need to know how your property reacts to weather that might be common to the time of year you are getting married. For example, if it is a really rainy season you will want to know where the water drains when it rains. Knowing these types of details will help you make the best decisions when determining where you put your reception or wedding.
The sales team is trained to walk the clients through every option for the event they are renting.
One thing to remember is that when you come to your appointment to talk about the wedding tent rentals you need to make sure you give yourself plenty of time. Tent appointments are normally at least an hour.
If the event is larger and other items need to be selected, we might schedule a follow-up appointment to finish the details. Sometimes when the appointment is longer, you get decision fatigue and need some time to process the information before you continue on.
Do most couples you work with use tents for the ceremony as well as the reception or one or the other?
We see it all ways. Clients sometimes have a church wedding and a tented reception. We also see where they get married on the property not under a tent and then a tented reception. But there are times where they want 1 big tent for both or 2 separate tents.
Photo Courtesy of Marianne’s Rentals
What other events are couples/individuals renting tents for? Anything that includes pre-wedding celebrations?
Rehearsal dinners really have a lot of fun and tenting is a great way to incorporate that. It is often at the groom’s parents home and they need the tenting to help accommodate the additional guests.
Is there anything that couples might not know about Marianne’s Rentals tent services or resources that you think they should?
I think the most important thing to know is that we will help you every step of the way. We are used to working with budgets. When clients know what their rental budget is we can really help them make sure that they have what they need first and then work on the wants.
We have highly trained team members that can help guide them through the process from the very beginning idea of a tented event all the way through the installation and removal. We have worked in all types of weather and know who to navigate those types of challenges or anything else that might come your way. We really partner with you to make sure that your event is a success.
Thank you to our wedding tent rentals expert, Jennifer Rodriguez of Marianne’s Rentals for sharing her insights.
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Written by Corrie McGee
Photo by Aaron Snow Photography | Courtesy of Marianne’s Rentals
