Granddaughter's Birthday Party at the Carousel in Bushnell Park in Hartford.
A 24-sided pavilion houses a vintage 1914 Carousel with 48 hand-carved wooden horses and two lovers' chariots that swirl around a booming Wurlitzer band organ.
It was fun afternoon for everyone!
I was wondering if I could ask you a few specific questions about the party at the Bushnell Carousel and your experiences?
ReplyDeleteI'd be happy to answer your questions.
DeleteAlright! Thank you so much for taking the time to answer my questions. I found your blog while searching for pictures of the carousel, in hopes to find a few party pics that showed the space a bit better :)
ReplyDeleteHow much room was there between the carousel and the outside wall? They say they have two tables, but I was thinking about the possibility of bringing a couple more tables, so I have a place to set up food and sweet treats, and still have a place so the children can sit.
Also, did you find that two hours was too long for the party? Would it be beneficial to have a couple of crafts/games to keep the children entertained beyond the carousel?
Lastly, did you have many outsiders walk in while you had the party going on? I understand that the carousel is open to the public during private parties...
It's hard to estimate, but we think it was about 10 feet from the wall to the carousel.
DeleteThey were pretty strict about the rules so I don't think they would allow extra tables. There are benches along the side for people to sit on as well as the tables. We put our food at the end of one of the tables. And it worked out fine. The only time the children were all sitting was when we had the cake. Two hours seemed to be a good amount of time. We had stickers, etc for the children to decorate their hats for an activity. There is also a playground close by. There were a few outsiders who walked in, but not many. There was a bride and groom and an older couple who were all dressed up and a couple of families. There was also another party that overlapped. This didn't interfere with our party. The children can get on and off the carousel at will and stay on as long they wanted. We had extra hats but my daughter stayed right around 20 invitations. She may have invited a few more anticipating that some wouldn't be able to make it. We arrived earlier than the time designated and had to wait to set up. The children and parents enjoyed the party. My daughter bought extra tickets to pass out to the parents so they could ride too. Our party was Sunday afternoon in July and the city was fairly quiet. There was parking on the street. I hope this helps.
Thanks, that really does help!
DeleteOh, and one more: how crowded was it with 30 children? Did I count the hats right? 30? When I spoke with the representative, they said that they prefer to keep it to 20, since that's what the tables will comfortably accommodate, but she seemed a bit flexible. My list is a little longer than the 20, and while I'm thinking not all invited will be able to make it, I would like to prepare for the fact that they might! lol!
ReplyDeleteAnd again, thank you so much for taking the time to answer my questions
Hi Cecilia,
DeleteI'm going to check with my daughter since it was she who planned the party and ask for her help to answer your questions.
Ok, thank you!
ReplyDelete