For a hen do at 1st Base, use the venue’s current quote for your chosen group booking, then divide the shared total between the people paying. Keep drinks, travel and any other stops separate unless your booking confirmation explicitly includes them. For your 2026 celebration, confirm the total and what it covers before collecting money from the group.
- How much does a hen do cost at 1st Base? Budget from a current group-booking quote, not an assumed rate.
- Keep the activity booking, personal spending and travel separate when working out each guest’s contribution.
- Choose hen party games around what the bride enjoys, then confirm exactly which activities your booking includes.
- Agree who pays for the bride before dividing the shared booking total.
How much does a hen do cost at 1st Base?
Your venue quote is the starting point; your guests’ full night-out budgets are a separate calculation. Check the current booking information through 1st Base, using your intended date and group details. Ask for confirmation of the activities, booking arrangements and payment terms before treating any figure as final.
Use this breakdown to keep the hen party budget clear:
| Budget item | What to establish | How to handle it |
|---|---|---|
| Activity booking | The total for the booking you want and what it includes | Share the confirmed amount with guests |
| Bride’s contribution | Whether the bride pays or the group covers her share | Agree this before dividing the total |
| Drinks and personal purchases | What is included, if anything, and what guests pay themselves | Keep personal spending separate |
| Travel | How each guest plans to reach Southampton and get home | Let guests account for their own journey |
| Other celebrations | Any meal, accommodation or additional activity you organise | List these separately from the venue booking |
For a 2026 hen do, label your group message with the intended date and the details behind the quote. A figure without those details is difficult for guests to assess. They need to know what they are agreeing to, not just what to transfer.
Why this matters
A hen party organiser handles two different decisions: choosing something the bride will enjoy and asking friends to commit money. Keep those decisions connected. A games-led celebration only makes sense if the guests understand the plan and feel comfortable with their contribution.
1st Base is best for Southampton hen groups who want interactive baseball and bar games at the centre of their celebration. Its American-themed activity bar offers an interactive baseball batting cage, shuffleboard, ping-pong and foosball. That gives your planning a clear starting point: decide which games appeal to the bride, then establish what your proposed booking covers.
The trade-off is equally clear. An activity bar is a better match for a games-focused hen do than for a group whose main priority is a quiet, conversation-only gathering. Ask guests about that preference before you build the whole celebration around competitive play.
Work out the contribution before collecting money
Start with the confirmed shared booking total, not an amount that sounds convenient in the group chat. Then agree who contributes to that total. The number attending and the number paying are not necessarily the same if the group decides to treat the bride.
Shared contribution = confirmed shared total divided by confirmed paying guests. This is a planning calculation, not a statement about how the venue charges or collects payment. Follow the venue’s actual payment instructions when you book.
Use this sequence:
- Confirm attendance. Ask who wants to join the activity, rather than assuming everyone attending the wider hen weekend will participate.
- Agree inclusions. Establish which activities and booking arrangements the quoted total covers.
- Set contributions. Decide whether guests pay equal shares and whether the bride contributes.
- Check terms. Read the payment and change conditions before making a financial commitment.
- Collect payments. Give guests the confirmed amount, your collection deadline and a clear explanation of what it covers.
Set your own collection deadline with the venue’s payment requirements in mind. Do not present your deadline as a venue policy. For the practical side of organising contributions, read the guide to splitting payment for a group booking.
Choose games before judging the booking’s value
A useful hen party budget buys an experience the group actually wants. Start with the bride’s favourite style of socialising: taking on a new challenge, playing familiar table games or enjoying friendly competition. Then ask which activities your booking includes.
The following comparison describes the games, not packages or guaranteed booking inclusions. Use it to choose what to ask about.
| Activity | Best for | What makes it appealing | What to consider |
|---|---|---|---|
| Interactive baseball batting cage | A hen group wanting a hands-on batting challenge | Hitting gives the celebration a distinct shared activity | Batting is not everyone’s preferred way to join in |
| Shuffleboard | Guests who enjoy aiming and tactical table games | Players compete by sliding pucks towards scoring areas | It suits guests who enjoy measured play rather than constant movement |
| Ping-pong | Guests who like active, back-and-forth competition | Rallies give players a direct contest across the table | It requires more movement than a less active table game |
| Foosball | Guests who enjoy team-based table games | Players compete using rods to control the football figures | Quick play and direct competition do not appeal to everyone |
Pick the activity around the bride, not around the idea that every hen do needs the same format. If baseball is the attraction, make that clear in your invitation. If the wider group prefers table games, ask how those fit into the booking you are considering.
For your 2026 plan, avoid promising that everyone can play every game throughout the visit. Confirm the arrangements first. The venue’s activity list tells you what it offers; your booking confirmation tells you what your group has arranged.
Why your total hen do budget varies
Your full celebration budget reflects more than the activity booking. These are planning factors you control, not claims about the venue’s pricing structure:
- Who attends: establish who joins the activity and who joins only other parts of the celebration.
- Who contributes: covering the bride’s share changes how you divide the shared total.
- Which games you choose: confirm what your intended activity booking covers instead of assuming all games are included.
- What guests buy separately: keep personal drinks and other purchases outside the shared contribution unless everyone agrees otherwise.
- How guests travel: different journeys create different personal costs, even when everyone pays the same activity contribution.
- What else you organise: meals, accommodation and additional stops belong in the wider hen do budget, not an unexplained venue total.
Ask each guest what they are comfortable committing to before you finalise the wider itinerary. A clear activity plan with optional extras is easier to assess than a single unexplained request for money. Guests should be able to distinguish the shared commitment from choices they make themselves.
What should I ask before booking a hen do?
Ask for the booking total, included activities, payment requirements and the terms for changes. Give the venue your intended date and group details so the answer relates to the celebration you want to organise.
Keep the enquiry practical:
- Which activities does the proposed booking include?
- What are the arrival and activity timings?
- How is payment handled for this booking?
- What happens if the number attending changes?
- Are there requirements guests need to know before participating?
- What should you confirm for anyone with access needs?
Do not turn a question into a promise when you update the group. If you have asked about access arrangements, wait for the answer before telling guests their requirements are covered. The same applies to game access, private use and anything else that matters to the bride.
Check your hen party plan
Review the venue, then confirm the activities and booking details for your Southampton celebration.
Can we cover the bride’s share?
You can agree within your group to cover the bride’s contribution, but treat that as your group’s decision rather than a venue offer. Establish the arrangement before calculating what everyone else pays.
Keep the boundary clear. Covering the bride’s activity contribution does not automatically mean covering every purchase or every part of the night. Tell guests exactly what the shared gift includes so nobody has to resolve it after the celebration.
If people prefer different contribution arrangements, discuss them before committing. An equal split is simple to explain, but it still needs agreement. Avoid announcing a shared gift and only later asking the group to fund it.
Does the activity booking cover the whole hen night?
Treat the activity booking as the agreed venue experience, not as an all-inclusive hen night. Only count an item as included when your booking confirmation says it is included.
That distinction matters when you add a meal, travel or another stop. Send guests an itemised plan showing the shared activity contribution and the separate decisions. Your 2026 itinerary should explain where the confirmed booking ends and the rest of the celebration begins.
Keep the group message short and specific
Once you have the details, send a message guests can answer without scrolling through a long discussion. Include the intended date, the venue, the activity plan, the shared contribution and what remains separate. Finish with a clear request to confirm attendance.
Use a straightforward structure:
- The plan: describe the activity-led celebration and what has been confirmed.
- The commitment: explain the contribution and what it covers.
- The extras: identify personal spending and any optional parts of the night.
- The action: ask guests to confirm by your stated deadline.
Keep a private list of confirmations and contributions. Avoid treating an enthusiastic reaction in the chat as a financial commitment. Ask for a direct answer so your booking plan rests on confirmed participants.
If someone cannot join the activity, keep that separate from whether they can attend another part of the celebration. This stops your headcount from mixing different plans. It also gives you a cleaner basis for discussing any changes with the venue.
FAQ
How much does a hen do cost at 1st Base in 2026?
Use the current quote for your chosen group booking to establish the venue cost. Divide the confirmed shared total between the agreed paying guests, and keep travel, personal purchases and other celebrations separate unless explicitly included.
Is 1st Base a good choice for a hen party?
1st Base is a good match for a Southampton hen group wanting interactive baseball and bar games. It is a less suitable match when the group’s main priority is a quiet, conversation-only celebration.
What games can we ask about for a Southampton hen do?
The venue offers interactive baseball batting, shuffleboard, ping-pong and foosball. Ask which activities your proposed booking includes before promising the group access to them.
Should everyone pay the same hen party contribution?
An equal contribution works when your group agrees to share the same confirmed booking total. Decide first whether the bride contributes and whether any guests are joining only other parts of the celebration.
Are drinks included in a hen party activity booking?
Count drinks as included only when your booking confirmation explicitly says they are included. Otherwise, keep personal purchases separate from the shared activity contribution.
What happens if someone drops out of the hen do?
Check the change and cancellation terms that apply to your booking, then contact the venue about the changed headcount. Do not promise a refund or unchanged contribution before establishing those terms.
How do I keep the hen party budget clear?
Separate the confirmed activity booking from personal spending, travel and optional extras. Tell guests what their shared contribution covers before collecting money.
One last thing
Choose the contribution rules before choosing who collects the money. The payment organiser cannot fix an unclear agreement about the bride’s share, optional extras or attendance simply by keeping a tidy list.
For your 2026 hen do, give guests a clear plan they can accept: the activity they are joining, the shared commitment and the spending they control themselves. Then let the bride’s idea of a good time lead the celebration. Step up to the plate because she wants to, not because the group chat has already decided for her.
