Archive for the ‘London Events’ Category

‘Riverland’ Rocks!

July 31st, 2007 , posted in London Events | No Comments »

One of our favourite kinds of event enquiries to deal with here at Riverside is for the event that works really well over more than one venue: namely a land-based Riverside venue and also on our sister-company Topsail’s boats. These events really allow us to use our specialist knowledge of the River Thames and the ships and boats on it, in conjunction with the multitude of great venues along the banks of the river.

Recently we worked with one of our longest standing clients to deliver a highly succesful event which showcased the best of what London has to offer. Our client wanted a moving, changing, varied event to keep the guests’ interest throughout. We used a relay of two beautiful historic Thames Sailing Barges to transfer two groups of their top clients downstream from the Tower of London, through Tower Bridge - which opens especially to allow our tall masts through - whilst enjoying drinks on the decks and in the comfortable saloon.  The clients were then met by more of our Event Managers at Greenwich pier before being escorted a short distance along the historic waterfront in front of the world famous vista of the The National Maritime Museum, to a real Thames treasure: The Trafalgar Tavern.

Here, in the impressive ‘Nelson Room’ overlooking the ever-flowing Thames, guests were treated to traditional English fayre and the best that a historic London tavern on the river cuold possibly offer - delicious food and a stunning setting that in it’s tranquility somehow seems a lifetime away from London’s bustle. After the Greenwich ’section’ of the event, guests rejoined their Sailing Barge at Greenwich pier and cruised gently back into London for drinks, some alighting at Canary Wharf Pier, the others enjoying more drinks, back through Tower Bridge beofre disembarking at London Bridge City Pier outside Hays Galleria.

A truly special event all round!

Spy Training Treasure Hunts & Team Building Events

July 23rd, 2007 , posted in Inspiration & Event Ideas, London Events | No Comments »

We have joined up with a top team building company who specialise in bespoke spy treasure hunts and we have been doing many quotes for clients, especially in the historic Greenwich and stunning Canary Wharf areas. We have great venues in all locations where you can have a delicious dinner or sizzling BBQ after the day’s activities,  and relax with some chilled drinks.

The Spy Force Treasure Hunt combines web-based technology, Mission: Impossible, and team building as you have never seen it. It will take your company to new levels of creativity and cohesiveness with the next generation of team building activities.

Spy Force is an interactive corporate teambuilding mission delivered on-line to be played
anywhere. The objective of the game is to stop the teams’ online mission clock expiring by entering the correct solution code. This can only be achieved by actually going on the mission in a nearby location.

The game can be played anywhere. It starts with a whole group mission briefing and then teams of 4-6 delegates log-in online to activate the mission. Here we outline the scenario
and objectives, give clues, photos and advice on using the spy equipment - the rest is up to the team!

Teams then leave to physically take part in the mission in a town, city or a venue of your
choice. They will meet spies in the field, crack codes, undertake special missions and have a lot of fun.

A mission typically lasts from 3 to 4 hours but if you have more time our additional spy training activities will keep you busy for a whole day.

Click Click, you click and the mission becomes live.
Activate Activate, teams compete to crack codes, solve riddles and meet spies
Go! Upload solution codes to stop the clock
and move to the next phase. Your team will just go for it!

Planning Your Christmas Party

July 9th, 2007 , posted in London Events | No Comments »

Believe it or not, now is the time to be planning your work Christmas party as companies vie for the best dates.

Your Christmas party may be the one time in the year when everybody gets together to let their hair down and have a boogie. Picking the perfect venue is essential to create the right atmosphere in the right place for your particular company.

Some groups prefer a formal, traditional Christmas party with a delicious seated festive banquet, crackers, Christmas tree, sparkly lights and a disco. Others want something a bit different; maybe some bowl food, themed food stations or elaborate canapes, a themed venue with fancy dress and stunning decor, mingling entertainers and wacky musicians.

However many guests you have and whatever you are looking for, we will have the perfect venue and party for your wow-factor Christmas event in London. Beautiful night-time river views can only complement Christmas decorations, or we can hide you away in a themed wonderland below ground and whisk you away to a different world for the evening…

If your chosen venue is that little bit further from the centre of London, we can transport you and your colleagues to your Christmas party aboard a fabulous river boat or traditional Sailing Barge; arrive in style after a Champagne reception or some warming mulled wine.

Themed Events & Christmas Parties

May 24th, 2007 , posted in Inspiration & Event Ideas, London Events | No Comments »

We have just tailored a New Orleans/Mardi Gras BBQ menu for one of our clients, with deWintons caterers. Themed menus are a great way to enhance the party atmosphere at any event; not just BBQ’s but buffets, canapes and even cocktails. Add to this coloured napkins, beaded necklaces and masks and the Mardi Gras theme is off to a rolling start!

deWintons New Orleans / Mardi Gras Barbecue Menu

Jerk Chicken Brochettes with Smoked Tomato Sauce

Tangy Barbeque Pork Ribs
Or
Marinated Pork Kebabs with BBQ Sauce

Cajun Spiced Sausages with Homemade Condiments

Vegetarian options:
Jerk Marinated Sweet Pepper, Courgette & Aubergine Kebabs
Vegetarian Sausages
Portobello Mushrooms sizzled with Cajun Spices & Haloumi Cheese

***

Baby Potato Salad with Dijon Mint Crème Fraiche (V)

Mixed Leaf & Baby Herb Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette (V)

Baskets of freshly baked baguettes

and for something sweet…

Pecan Caramel Pie with Soft Whipped Cream    

YUM!

Themed events are always great for Christmas Parties and now is the right time to start looking for the perfect party for your company Christmas do. Dates get booked up so fast for the festive season - especially Thursdays! - that party organisers need to get their skates on to secure their preferred date and top London venue.

Classic Xmas Party themes include Winter Wonderland, James Bond Night, Roaring Twenties, Big Freeze, Traditional Christmas and Mask Parties. The possibilities are endless though - see our themes page for more ideas - imagination is the only barrier for your themed Christmas bash!

Give us a call here at Riverside Events to discuss your party requirements for Christmas in more detail. Let this year’s party be one that will never be forgotten…

Riverside Events outside London : Liverpool!

May 14th, 2007 , posted in London Events | No Comments »

We here at Riverside Events and Venues work hand in hand with our sister company Topsail Events & Charters and this partnership works brilliantly - allowing us to share event information and communicate easily to ensure we are always coming up with fresh ideas for our clients. It also means that each company likes to shout about the other’s  achievements.

It is with great pride then that we would like to congratulate Topsail Events on winning the rights to run the hospitality on board the visiting Tall Ships in Liverpool for the tall Ships Race 2008. Over 100 ships will be visiting the Liverpool waterfront - a UNESCO world heritage site - over the weekend of the 18th - 21st July 2008. Hospitality will take place on beautiful square-riggers,  schooners and other ships in Liverpool’s impressive docks: parties, receptions, lunches and dinners will add to the party atmosphere and help Liverpool celebrate it’s City of Culture status in this important year. Perhaps you have a company link with Liverpool, maybe you have clients who you need to entertain there…or maybe you just want a great party in the great party town! Whatever the reason, the Riverside team and the Topsail team will be working together to make Liverpool 2008 a great time for entertaining!

RiverLand Events

April 25th, 2007 , posted in London Events | No Comments »

Riverside Events and Venues’ concept of combining events and venues both on land and on the river Thames in one event seems to be really taking off. Many of our quotes naturally follow this concept - what we call ‘RiverLand’ events.  it was great this week to confirm a really interesting event  which followed a client’s request to entertain 200 clients over two or three separate evenings showing them the best of London.

 After showing our client a selection of handpicked and interesting venues as well as a number of lovely river cruisers and Thames Sailing Barges, we settled on a plan to split two evenings into two parts each, transporting 50 clients at a time down the Thames on beautiful historic Thames Sailing Barges from just outside the Tower of London, through an opening Tower Bridge all the way down to Greenwich. After taking in the sights of the river with a drinks reception, our clients and their guests will be escorted by our Event Managers to a beautiful historic venue - something of a a hidden gem and a venue which ties in really well with their river journey - for the workshops and entertaining that are so important to achieving their aims. The groups will be returned by river into central London by the same charming river transport. I think that is a much better way to entertain and impress than any mundane or run-of-the-mill hotel meeting room.

We’ve got loads of ideas for mixing great London venues with the river thames to make events stimulating, different, memorable and effective. We just need a brief and we’ll pu it together for you. I really think Riverland events are the next big thing in the London events scene - get in touch and test us with your ideas.

Outdoor Spaces for your Event

April 13th, 2007 , posted in Inspiration & Event Ideas, London Events | No Comments »

With the fantastic weather over the past week or so and a hot hot summer forecasted, outdoor space at London venues is becoming more and more important and desired by our clients. Barbecues, fete style events, and enchanted garden themes all lend themselves to outdoor spaces - and these days barbecues are not just sausage-in-a-bun or burgers, but range from seafood stalls to ice cream vans, pizza shacks to gourmet BBQ canapes, bowl food and sizzling steaks.

Many of Riverside’s venues in London offer fantastic outdoor spaces ideal for summer entertaining; terraces with stunning views of the river Thames; lush roof gardens; historic courtyards; secret English gardens; expansive sun decks; acres of lawn…perfect spaces in which to create your dream event.

As well as ready-made gardens and terraces, here at Riverside Events we have the contacts and know-how to source top locations where we can erect a bespoke marquee to your exact specification. Event marquees now come in all shapes and sizes and can hold seated dinners, team building events, weddings, parties, Champagne receptions; in fact anything you want!

Lets take advantage of this year’s clement weather and hold a wow-factor event for you in the great outdoors…

The pace continues

March 30th, 2007 , posted in London Events | No Comments »

At the end of Riverside Events and Venues’ second full week we’ve produced over twenty detailed quotes for clients, plenty of them with creative themes and entertainment. I’ll be honest, the pace has been frenetic - but we’re enjoying it! It’s great to be getting some good dialogue going with our venue suppliers who I think are impressed with our attitude and workrate. We really want to prove ourselves to be a thoughtful event production company doing everything for the right reason.

 It’s also been nice to hear so many good comments on the website and our concept generally. The idea of working by location (our zones) really seems to be popular although it’s evident that many people are prepared to look outside their usual area for the right venue. Our close relationship with Topsail Events and Charters is paying off both ways too - the ‘cross-fertilization’ between the sites is proving really beneficial for both companies, proving the synergy and connection there is between the river and the land for events in London.

 We somehow managed to take a bit of time out to get to RSVP this week. It really is a great event and it was good to network and meet some new suppliers and ensure we are at the cutting edge of what’s possible in theming and entertainment. When we get a moment we’ll certainly be putting some new ideas onto the website.

Finally, congratulations to our parent company Topsail Events & Charters in winning the rights to be official supplier of hospitality for the Tall Ships Race visit to Liverpool in July 2008.

A busy first week for Riverside Events

March 26th, 2007 , posted in London Events | No Comments »

Riverside Events’ first full week was officially under our belts as of last friday and we are all very happy and relieved to be well underway. Our first week was definitely a qualified success - lots of people have given us great comments and the number of enquiries we received in our first week is testament to the fact that we are offering a great service and something a bit different to the events market.

We’ve quoted on summer parties, black-tie dinner dances, summer fetes, champagne cruises with evening receptions overlooking the river and much more. I really feel that we are capturing the imagination of quite a few event planners. The combination of cruises on the river Thames followed by events in our great venues seems to be a popular one. I can confidently say that no-one out there is more geared up to bring the event planner the combination of ideas and events on both river and land, and be able to run the entire show.

Our aim is to be a complete one-stop-shop for river and land events along the Thames. I love the concept of Riverside Events as an events ‘personal-shopper’: taking care of all the requirements for your event from cruises and venues to logistics and entertainment, and even accomodation. Already I can see that’s the way we are confidently heading and we’re all excited that the whole concept has taken off so well.

Back to the grindstone….!

Organising Your London Event

March 20th, 2007 , posted in London Events | No Comments »

Here at Riverside Events our job is to take the hassle out of event organising for you. We will take care of everything in the run up to your event - all you should have to worry about is relaxing with a glass of chilled wine on the night.

 We have spent many hours visiting all of the Riverside Events London venues, from Chelsea to Woolwich, to ensure that we know each and every venue inside out and can match you with the ideal venue for your party, corporate event, meeting, wedding, team building event or dinner dance.

The Riverside Events team have negotiated the best rates and will offer you the complete event management package of fantastic venue, innovative and delicious catering, plus any entertainment or theme to make your event by the River Thames even more special.

We will handle all of the logistics of your event so you can just concentrate on the fun part! We’re here to make your job easy…