Should we book a shared or a private Christmas party?
What a shared party does well
- Production you couldn't otherwise afford — aerialists, six-piece bands, immersive theming, full lighting rigs. A team of forty cannot fund that alone.
- One number — a per-head price you can get approved without building a budget from components.
- Almost no work — no venue search, no catering negotiation, no AV brief, no entertainment contracts, no run sheet.
- Works for small teams — from eight to ten guests at most London venues.
- Atmosphere — a full room of 300 to 700 people has an energy a private dinner for 40 never generates.
What a private party does well
- Control — your date, your venue, your menu, your running order, your music.
- Branding — the room is yours, so it can carry your identity.
- Speeches and awards — you can hold the room's attention. At a shared party you cannot.
- Guest list — nobody else's company is in the room.
- Scale economics — above roughly 150 guests the fixed costs start to divide well enough on their own.
The honest cost comparison
A shared party in London is £85 to £149 + VAT per person for the ticket, or £130 to £180 + VAT once drinks are added. Everything is in it.
A private party has to carry venue hire, a catering minimum spend, AV and production, entertainment, staffing and often a cloakroom and security — before drinks. For a group of 40 those fixed costs are divided by 40. For a group of 400 they are divided by 400. That is the whole argument, and it is why the crossover sits somewhere around 150 guests for most companies.
The other cost, which rarely appears in a budget, is your own time. A private Christmas party is somewhere between 20 and 60 hours of work for whoever owns it. A shared party is an enquiry, a decision and a function sheet.
A middle option worth knowing about
Two of the parties we list give you a private dining room for the meal and shared entertainment afterwards: the Murder Mystery at Tower Hill and The Imposters at Victoria. If your objection to a shared party is the dinner rather than the party, that format solves it directly.
Several venues also offer VIP reception areas — Carnivale and Masquerade both sell a private roped-off drinks reception from £16 per person, minimum 50 guests. It gives a larger group its own arrival before joining the main room.
The decision, in one paragraph
If you have fewer than about 150 guests, no need to make speeches, and want a good night without a project on your hands, book a shared Christmas party. If you have a large headcount, an awards element, or a genuine need for the room to be yours, look at a private event — and if you want help comparing both routes commercially, that is what our wider team does day to day.
Frequently asked questions
- Is a shared Christmas party unprofessional?
- No. Every party we list gives your group its own table, a full three-course dinner and a professionally produced evening. Two give you a private dining room for the meal. What you share is the venue and the entertainment, which is precisely what makes the production affordable.
- Can we make a speech at a shared Christmas party?
- Not to the whole room — the venue runs its own programme. You can speak to your own table, and the private-dining formats (Murder Mystery, The Imposters) give you a room of your own for the meal. If speeches are central to your event, a private party is the better fit.
- At what headcount does a private party become better value?
- Around 150 guests for most companies, though it depends on the venue and how much production you want. Below that, the fixed costs of a private event divide badly. Above it, you can fill a venue on your own and the per-head numbers start to work.