How time flies. This time two weeks ago I was getting ready for my sisters hen party and in another two weeks she will be getting married. It has come round in the blink of an eye.

Thanks to the hard work of a lot of people the hen party was brilliant and as I never do this kind of thing I thought I would tell you all about it.

Between three bridesmaids and a couple of my sisters friends we arranged an amazing weekend away, there were activities, drinking and a lot of giggling. A big thanks goes to all the places we visited and staff who helped us through a very busy weekend, so I will mention them as I go.

A massive thank you also goes to the most organised bridesmaid ever, her soon to be sister in law, who took charge of the money and kept us all on track. We could have never pulled this off without her.

Fun and games

Throughout the weekend there was plenty of entertainment, one of the Bridesmaids had sorted out some great games for us to play. Another of the guests had also got us fully stocked on inflatables for the swimming pool.

I had got everyone some amazing goody bags from Team Hen, I was so blown away by them and everything they sent. Balloons. Bags filled with amazing and tasteful gifts. Even a personalised print for us all to kiss that we got framed up for my sister before she even left. Amazing!

There was a great Hen Party book from my favourite people at Illustries, I’m just waiting for some pictures to be printed so I can complete it, then I will wrap it up and give it to my sister on the morning of her wedding. Inside were games, places for pictures, bits for everyone to fill in about the bride to be and about the groom. The book is going to make an amazing gift and be a really nice way for her to look back at the weekend.

The last little activity we had was from The Makery, just a little box of goodies for a few of us to make some garters. With everything you need apart from scissors and a step by step tutorial to watch as you crafted it was a nice little thing to do quietly. We knew not everyone would want to do this activity so we only got enough for 5 people, but that was perfect. All the things you get sent are so pretty and the video tutorial was easy to follow. I was very impressed.

Where we stayed

We booked an amazing house in Fulbourn, just outside Cambridge. Beechwood House had all the bedrooms we needed, a lot of space for entertaining and even a heated indoor swimming pool.

The house was immaculate and very well equipped. We didn’t want for anything, other than maybe an extra a shower and slightly warmer water, but as there were a lot of ladies getting ready at the same time it would have been fairly hard to get that right!!

Because there was so much space we never felt like we were on top of each other. There was always a quiet corner available if you needed a break or wanted to make a phone call and more than enough space for us to all hang out as a group.

When we arrived there was even a home baked cake and bottle of fizz waiting for us. This was such a kind gesture we couldn’t believe it.

everyone commented how lovely the house was and how fab it would be to come back in large family groups, not just perfect for hen parties.

What we did

The Friday we just chilled at the house and played a few games, there was a fair bit of drinking done and also a little swim.

Saturday was the big day and we headed into Cambridge to meet up with a few other guests who were just staying for the day. We all met at a Wetherspoons and after breakfast and coffees we split into groups and headed out to do a treasure hunt.

The hunts were from Treasure Trails, a company I had used before, that provide you with a themed trail (in our case a spy mission) that you can follow at your leisure. Things got a bit competitive between two teams and it was a real giggle. Those who took part had a great time and as the trails are so cheap it was a great value activity. If you want to read a longer review about Treasure Trails just click here.

 

Next stop was a punting trip down the river Camb. It really isn’t a proper visit to Cambridge without a punt. We used Let’s Go Punting as they worked out the best value and allowed us to bring our own alcohol onboard. Our two tour guides were brilliant, they put up with us marvellously and we had a real laugh with them. They could sense the mood of the group straight off and just joined in. A little chilly but a really awesome time and a nice break after all the walking.

Our final stop was for a champagne afternoon tea at Brown’s. Sadly this was thoroughly disappointing and whilst we made the best of it, the service was so poor I doubt a single one of us would ever return.

The table we had booked wasn’t ready on time, we had to wait over 30 minutes for it. The staff were not apologetic in the slightest, we were given some extra fizz but it was done grudgingly. There was then a huge wait for the food which was unacceptable considering they knew when we were coming and what we were having and had already been made to wait to be seated. There was not enough space on our table we were packed in like sardines and generally the whole experience was disappointing. The final insult was to find a tip had been automatically added to our bill, I understand this happens for large groups and is never something I like. When the service is that bad though they should know to not add it on. The fact they were then shocked we asked for it to be removed was mind boggling.

That evening 

After heading back to the house for a few more games and maybe another tipple or two we headed off to The Plough in nearby Fen Ditton for our evening meal.

Our super organised Bridesmaid had already popped to The Plough on the Friday, just to drop off decorations and check everything was still OK. We were let know straight away that their extractor fans were broken so they were running on a reduced menu, they were so apologetic and had already arranged for a few bottles of fizz on the table to make up for it.

Quite frankly their reduced menu was still epic, if you weren’t aware of their full menu, or the problem you would have never guessed anything was wrong.

We had an amazing, funny and truly perfect evening. There were a couple of mishaps here and there, but they were dealt with so well I don’t think anyone saw them as issues. (Brown’s, you need to take some tips from these guys, they know how to do customer service!).

The food was divine, everything I had was delicious and the portion sizes were perfect. The whole atmosphere was just lovely, this is certainly somewhere I would go back to. In fact I’m trying to think of a reason to go with Husb, even though that would mean a babysitter and an hour’s drive each way!

Our verdict

We had an amazing weekend. I cannot thank everyone enough for coming along and joining in to help make my little sister’s hen party so much fun.

To all her friends for being so much fun. To the other Bridesmaids for making sure this thing happened. To all the great companies and people we came across on our travels. It was a fab weekend and if anyone else is planning a Cambridge Hen Party there are some fab companies here that you can use.

Disclosure – I was gifted the Hen Party Book from Illustries, the bags from Team Hen and The Makery Kit. All opinions are my own honest opinions.