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A Merry Melbourne Xmas Party

There’s no denying that Melbourne is an amazing city at Xmas time, every inch of the city screams festive cheer: the Christmas lights on Bourke Street, the numerous trees in Fed Square, the giant baubles in Crown Casino and the huge decorative ribbons on the bridges – all these sights and more, are enough to make anyone excited for the silly season.

Now a lot of companies may think that organizing an Xmas party for their office is a waste of time and money, but here at GoBananas we beg to differ.
At the end of hard year, when your staff are starting to feel a little lethargic and in serious need of a re-boot, a well planned Xmas Do will be like a breath of fresh in to your work place.
Not only does it make your employees feel appreciated and valued, but it’s also a great way to improve work place relationships and let colleagues build up a rapport – something that is especially important for larger companies. And besides, even the boss needs a break sometimes.

However, because Melbourne is such huge city, the number of Xmas Activities available can be somewhat overwhelming. If you’re the “lucky” person who has been selected to throw together this years soiree, the thought of trying to pull off something fun and exciting for a large group of people is probably enough to make you tempted to reach for the box of Christmas booze early and hide out on your couch until the ordeal is over.

But here at GoBananas, we’re here to tell you that piecing together an Xmas party is not something to fear, well – it’s not when you let us help.
We have a fantastic range of day and night time activities to keep the masses entertained, and since we work only with the best venues and suppliers in the city, you can be confidant that you’ll be getting great value for money.

And since we’re so nice here, we’re going to give you a sneak peek at some of the awesome options we have available:

Boat Cruise – The crème de la crème of Xmas party options. You can’t go wrong with this choice, just picture cruising along the Yarra River in the warmth of the afternoon sunshine, a cold drink in hand, relaxing and chatting with work mates. You’ll be sailing away from all your work place woes – literally.
Function Room – Ideal for the group that has a few members with unsteady sea legs. We have a wide range of fun and sophisticated venues available for exclusive hire by your company. Rock up, grab some good drinks and food and settle in for a night of fun and frivolity. We can even arrange some extra activities to take place such a Murder Mystery game or Casino tables.
Cocktail Class – A fun and instructive activity that everyone can get involved in. Your group will get their own experienced bartender to show them all the flashy tips and tricks that go into making these delicious drinks. Who knows – maybe you can even stage your own cocktail party in your office afterwards where everyone can relish in their new-found skill.

This is just the tip of the ice berg when it comes to Christmas Party options in Melbourne, so if one of these takes your fancy or you want to see what else is on offer, call the office today on 1300 635 462 or visit our website.

It’s Xmas Party planning made easy!

Top tips for the Hen Organiser

Wish I had known all of this before I organised a hens party. When you are organizing a hens party there is a lot to think about (or in most cases a lot to stress about) and naturally you want it to be the best send off into married life for your bestie. So here at GoBananas we have come up with some tips to help create the most memorable party that your hen is bragging about for years. These are tips relating to the early stages of the party planning. http://au.gobananasworld.com/hen-party/

1. Pick a date and send out invites early. As most weddings are during the summer months it

means that you are competing with many other groups to secure bookings so get in early so

people have it in the calendar. At GoBananas we have noticed that numbers tend to drop by

about 10-20%, so keep that in mind when you are organizing the activities. A good idea here

as well is sending out a primarily invitation to save the date and also get an idea of budget.

Ask them what they are happy spending.

2. Listen to your Hen!! I know that this is a fun time and it is easy to get carried away with

activities that may embarrass your hen, but if she is not into it then she won’t enjoy it. What

we mean is if she is not into having a stripper give her a lap dance in a skimpy g-string – then

don’t get her one. Save yourself the money and do something she will enjoy.

3. Don’t have too many chiefs – you can’t please everyone. Please the bride and involve the

other bridesmaids, they know the hen too and they may have some fantastic ideas. Then

just keep the rest of the group in the loop, so that they know what the plan is and can decide

if they wish to participate. If they are a good friend they will be there!

4. Budget – keep in mind that every ones budget may be very different. Some groups may be

happy spending $150 per person, other groups are more like $50-60per person. Keep this in

mind when organizing activities and whether do to a day or a weekend away. Perhaps

consult the bride – she knows the people coming and roughly disposable income. The more

expensive your plans are the more people will drop off. At GoBananas we find that people

spend anything from $60-$250pp on the hens party.

5. Create a theme. If you have a fun theme for the night it is easier to plan the whole thing,

from the decorations to the activities and the outfits. Check out our article on hens themes

and get inspired. Do keep in mind however that you dress theme may restrict what

activities you are able to do. Ie. Fine dining restaurants aren’t going to be too keen on a

naughty nurse sitting in the main dining room. Also themes can put the budget up as well so

think about that as well.

6. Do something special. This should be a memorable event and you want your party guests to

be talking about it for ages but don’t go overboard. If you have too many events you may

find that you are rushing too much and well we all know how a bunch of ladies get once they

have had some drinks and they are catching up with friends. Also make sure you plan the

activities so that the raunchy stuff or the stuff that involves the most drinking happens later

in the day, that way you can drop the mother in law off on the way or any under ages.

7. Share the cost. You should not feel bad about expecting all of the guests to pay their way for

the day. But do keep this in mind when planning the activities, not everyone can afford to do

a day at the spa followed by 5 star dining so keep to a budget (but don’t be a tight arse

either) A good idea would be to set up an account and ask everyone to pay a month in

advance that way you’re not still chasing people on the wedding day and it’s not awkward

when someone turns up in a brand new dress but hasn’t paid for their part of the party.

8. Ensure that at some point of the day you are eating. Especially if the hens party is starting

activities early in the morning, you don’t want to have people or the whole group turned

away from activities because Aunt Mary has done a bit too much celebrating and hitting the

champagne a bit hard.

9. Plays games or at least one game. If you are looking for game ideas then check out our

website. Games keep things fun and keep people laughing.

Hens Party Games

At GoBananas we are happy to organise the venue, activities or entertainment, but sometimes it is difficult to come up with ideas for hen games, that are going to entertain and keep the bunch laughing, so we have come up with our top 5 hens party games. Check them out and enjoy:

Pin the Penis on the Man

This Hens party game is a laugh once the girls have had a bit to drink or as an ice breaker.

What you’ll need:

A pin up picture of a naked man – It could be fun to put a picture of the husband to be head on the body.
A picture of a penis
A blind fold

So this game works like the traditional game of pin the tail of the donkey but with a few alterations.
Blind fold the lady and arm her with the picture of the penis, spin her around and let the laughter flow watching her struggle to find the right spot. Everyone takes a turn, remember to mark where everyone lands and the closest is the winner.

Hands free shots

Get everyone up and on their feet and set the mood for a fun filled evening.

What you’ll need:

Two sets of dress up clothes
Two forks for each team
A bottle of booze per team
A shot glass for each team (you may want to have spares as this can get messy)

Divide the hens party into two teams and watch the competitiveness of the guests come out. The aim of the game is to dress up in the clothes, run (a short distance) to where the shot is waiting but instead of picking the glass up with your hands you need to use the forks provided. Once you have completed the shot, run back and dress your next team member. The team who gets everyone through the fastest is the winner.

How well do you know the bride

A great way to get to know the hen a bit more, maybe find out a few embarrassing secrets…

What you’ll need:

Pen and paper for everyone in the party (you may want to split into teams if you have a large group)
Questions that have been answered by the bride before the hens party

Ask the group the question and see what they think the bride answered. This game can be lots of fun when it comes to the bride having to fess up to the truth. Eg. What age were you when you lost your virginity? To make the game a hit, ensure you ask questions that are hard, things that not everyone will know about.

Dip the Tampon in the drink

This might not be the type of game you want to play with your future mother in law as it can get rude but if she is that way inclined then go ahead and get the fits of laughter started.

What you’ll need:

A tampon for everyone playing
A string long enough to tie around your waist and drop to your knees
A bottle with a smallish opening (not too small that the tampon won’t go in without force) for each team
Some liquid in the bottles (it should be coloured so that people can tell once you have dipped)

Get everyone at the hens party to tie a tampon onto the long string and then around their waist so it hangs to around their knees. Split into teams and line up not far from the bottles. The aim of the game is to get the tampon into the bottle without using your hands. Stand above the bottle and squat. The fun part about this game is watching the techniques used. It can be quite difficult so keep the encouragement flowing. The tampons also make for hilarious decorations once the game is over.

Find the bling in the cream

If you’re a hen who is up for a challenge and is not afraid of getting messy than this game is sure to entertain your party guests.

What you’ll need:

A bling ring for the hen to wear as a souvenir for the rest of the night
A container filled with cream or jelly

This game is one that is a specific challenge for the hen, she needs to retrieve the ring from the cream dish with her mouth, no hands allowed. Its harder than it sounds and makes for some great photos, but perhaps a messy bride…….

http://au.gobananasworld.com/hen-party/

Games for Hens Parties in Australia

Looking for some great Hens party games ideas for your hens party? We are Gobananas can help you out with ideas and also plan your day. Check out our party favourites below, a mix of naughty or nice, so you decide how you want your party to run.

Need help with your activities and where to do your hen games – check out the rest of the website.

Pop the Question

Think about all the things you want to know about the bride or better yet think about what you know that you think will be funny for everyone else to know…

What you will need:

Enough balloons for everyone to have one each
A small piece of paper for every hen
A pin for the bride

Give everyone in at the hens party a piece of paper that is small enough to be rolled up and put inside the balloon, take the time to write your carefully thought about question for the bride to be. Once you have decided and written it down, roll it up, put inside the balloon and blow it up. Put all the balloons in the centre of the room, let the bride lose with the pin, whatever balloon she pops she needs to answer the question, if she chooses not to she has to complete a default penalty.

Toilet Paper Runway

The most common hens party game out. It’s easy, it’s fun and creates a lot of laughs

What you will need:

Rolls and rolls of toilet paper

Divide your party into even teams. Probably best to limit the group size to around 4. Each team will select a model, the rest of the players need to design and create the best wedding dress they can using only toilet paper. Give them a time limit of say 10 minutes and then the models can strut there stuff down the run way while there team mates describe the dress, the inspiration and all the selling points. The Bride can choose the winners.

Ice Cube Melters

Who has the ability to think outside of the square? See who can come up with the most creative way to melt ice cubes.

What you will need:

Ice cubes – enough for each team to melt 5 ice cubes each

Split your hens party into groups, it’s up to you how many ladies per team it may depend on how big your group is. You need to select one person to be the referee. To play, the referee hands one ice cube to a team member, it is then up to the team to melt that ice cube using only skin contact – it cannot be put in your mouth or using any external props. Once you have melted your ice cube the referee will hand you the next cube. The first team to melt 5 cubes in the quickest amount of time is the winner. The referee can decide the penalty for the losing teams or the prize for the winners.

Peggy Sue

This is a great hen game that lasts the whole party or for however long you want it to. It is sure to keep everyone on their toes and in stitches laughing.

What you need:

A clothes peg

The aim of the game is to get the peg onto an unsuspecting hen without her knowledge. Once you have attached it to her (the trickier the spot the better so think outside the box, eg. Clothes, hair) without her catching you out shout “Peggy Sue” and then begin a countdown from 10-1. Everyone at the hens party then needs to check themselves to ensure they haven’t been caught out. If the hen doesn’t find the peg before the countdown ends then she has to face a penalty at your discretion.

Maltesers

A simple hen game that gets everyone involved and includes chocolate, what more could you want?

What you need:

A big bag of maltesers
Enough drinking straws for everyone at the hens party
A big bowl and a small bowl

Place the bag of maltesers in the big bowl in the middle of the table and watch your hens crowdaround. Give everyone a straw, what happens is everyone takes turns to use the straw to suck out as many maltesers as they can in 30 seconds. The Hen with the most maltesers at the end is the winner.

http://au.gobananasworld.com/hen-party/

Hens Party Themes

Make your hens party one to be remembered by giving it a theme. Dressing up is always fun and once you’ve picked your theme you’re free to let your imagination run wild when it comes to decorations, games and activities. It can also help with deciding on a venue.

Keep in mind that your theme may limit where you can go and what you can do, for example fine dining restaurants may not want people dressed up as a naughty nurse sitting in the main room. Coming up with a theme is the hard part but we have some ideas to hopefully make it a little easier. Maybe think about including the hen in this decision, so she can spend her last weekend of freedom dressed however she wants.

Personal to the Hen

You could make the party theme specific to the bride to be. Maybe the theme could be the

first letter of her name, her favourite sport or activity, or her favourite place ie. The beach.

Retro theme

Step back in time and break out the bell bottom pants and tie dye. The great thing about this

theme is that most of the outfits from back in the 60’s are back in fashion now.

Favourite celebrity theme

Come along dressed up as your fav celebrity, whether its Madonna, Marilyn Munroe or Lady

Gaga, spend the night living like the person you always dreamed of being.

Naughty and nice theme

Dress up as a naughty nurse, cheeky nun or angel. This theme is sure to catch the eye of passers by.

Coloured theme

This is probably one of the simplest themes for people to dress up for and also to decorate

the venue, pick a colour and get to it. Maybe use the hens favourite colour.

Fantasy job theme

Have you ever wanted to be a police officer, fireman, school teacher well now is your time to

dress up and play the part.

Sex and the city theme

Bring on the cosmos and couture! Dress up like Carrie and the girls and enjoy an evening of

the finer things in life, fancy shoes and lots of bling. This is the night to bring out that piece

of designer clothing that you have never had any use for but simply HAD TO HAVE!

Gatsby hens theme

Get the champagne flowing and the fairy lights strung for this theme. Dust off the

headpiece, bring out the 1920’s dresses and don’t forget the high heels. Dress up like the

ladies in the movie Great Gatsby or ladies in Moulin Rouge Paris. Plenty of inspiration. This is

a fun theme to work with and plenty of activities to go with it as well. Think Burlesque

dancing lesson, cabaret shows etc.

http://au.gobananasworld.com/hen-party/

‘Tis the Season….(to be prepared)

Christmas is a magical time of year, especially for us folks Downunder who don’t have to deal with freezing cold temperatures and snow.
Now there’s no denying that all us at some point in time, have wished we lived somewhere where we could wake up on Christmas morning to a fresh frosting of snow on our front lawn and the dream of sipping hot cocoa by the fire…. but for the most part we love the fact that for us, this festive season means beaches, BBQ’s and booze. And of course: XMAS PARTIES!!!

Some of you might think we’re crazy – bringing up Xmas already when we’re not even out of winter yet, but every good party planner knows that when it comes to the silly season, adequate preparation is imperative!

Just think – out there now is some poor soul who’s fretting over the fact that they’ve drawn the short straw this year and are now in charge of organizing an amazing and entertaining array of events to entertain a bunch of people, all of whom have very different tastes and opinions about the ‘in’ thing to be doing.
Why are they fretting you ask? Surely it’s not so difficult to piece something together when we’re still at least 3 months away from putting up the tinsel? Well fret they must, because even now function rooms, party boats and fun-filled activities are starting to book out for the summer. It can be a lot for one person to take on.

So what should a person in this position do? Book with GoBananas.
Now we’re not saying that we’ve got the Monopoly on all the Xmas party activities in Australia and that your first choice is absolutely going to be available for the time and date that you want it, but what we are saying is that when you book us you get the piece of mind of knowing that your party plans are in very safe hands.

We’ll take care of everything for you, from chasing up venues and suppliers to lock in availability, organizing payments and answering any questions you have, you wont have to do any of the boring work that comes with putting together a large scale party, all you have to do is tell us what your after and then show up on the day and reap the glory that comes from planning such an amazing soiree.

Even if you haven’t the faintest idea about what to do, we can send you through suggestions and ideas that are suited to your group size and budget.

So give a call, flick us live chat or submit and enquiry via our website and we’ll welcome you into the wonderful world of Christmas Parties – Downunder Style!

1300 635 462

Book in that Brisbane Xmas Do

Another week gone, another week closer to Christmas… before we know it we’ll be running around like mad, dodging our way through the masses at malls as an awful version of Jingle Bells plays over the PA system. Every year we tell ourselves – “next year will be different, I’ll do my planning early and not be stressed out” but alas – it never happens that way.
But it doesn’t really matter if we leave it to the last minutes for personal Xmas errands – after all it’s only us that will suffer and we can cheer ourselves up with a strong drink, but if your planning something big – say, a work Xmas Party, then you really need to be on the ball and book something in – PRONTO!

This however, is easier said then done – for one thing, Brisbane is a fairly large city and large cities tend to offer overwhelming amounts of activities and venues, everyone want’s you to choose their place, but how can you tell what’s hot and what’s not?

Ask GoBananas of course.

We’ve been in the business of party planning for a while now and our dedicated team have spent many an hour chasing down the best venues and suppliers in the city, so that we can be sure that we’re offering our clients the very best in Brisbane. We have a range of day and night time options which are suitable to most group sizes and budgets and which will please even the fussiest of co-workers.

Need a sneak peek so you know what’s on offer? Read on for a look at 2 our most popular Xmas Party options in Brisbane:

Murder Mystery Party
Something different and exciting for your Xmas do in Brisbane, this is a fun activity that will not disappoint. Picture chilling out with your work mates, enjoying a few cold drinks when suddenly one of your co-workers is struck down by a mystery killer. Small teams will have to work together and solve clues to find out who is responsible – it’s like real-life Cluedo, or maybe Sherlock -either comparison works. You’ll have a host who will run the game and you don’t have to act if you don’t want to, just participate and enjoy the experience – although if you a have a flare for the dramatics, now is the time to let it shine – you never know, you might be working alongside the next Robert Downey Jr, or Benedict Cumberbatch – depends on which version you prefer. There are different themes to choose from such as ‘1920’s’ or ‘Hollywood’ so a great opportunity for everyone to dress up and have a great time playing detective.

Party Boats
There’s a reason why boat cruises are one of the most booked options for Xmas parties in Brisbane – and that reason is because they’re awesome. A few hours where you and your work mates can literally sail away from office stresses and just relax and have a amazing time cruising Brisbane River. We have a great selection of party boats available ranging from fully licensed with catering options or BYO. Whatever you’re after, you’re sure to find a party boat that works for you – but be quick, these beautiful boats start booking out weeks in advance so if this is the option for you – give us a call quick smart.

So take a look at our website or give one of our friendly party reps a call on 1300 635 462, we’re here to help you not drop the bauble this Christmas.
Once it’s all planned – you can be this guy and get some well deserved zzz…….