Venues

You're going to need a place big enough and with the right facilities to host your event, and this can be anything from a garage to a huge hall.

Private LAN Parties

Garage

Garages work well for small private LAN parties, as they often have good power, and are open plan. Be aware it can get cold in garages due to poor insulation in a garage.

Basement

Basements offer many of the same advantages as garages, but also allow you to make more noise without annoying neighbours due to being underground.

Living / Dining Room

If you have the space, a living or dining room can be a great place for a LAN, due to the increased comfort available when comparing to a garage or basement.

Public LAN Parties

Hotels

Hotels often have spaces available for hire, and can usually offer additional services such as catering, showers and rooms for sleeping. Tables and chairs are usually available and they often have good power and internet facilities. They can be the most costly option however, being commercial.

Local Community Halls

Available for cheap or free, community halls can offer a good space but may not have good internet access, or any at all. They may also not have sufficient power for a LAN party, but will most likely have tables, chairs and kitchen facilities.

Schools, Colleges and Universities

Educational buildings often have the best internet access as it is paid for by local government, and usually have tables and chairs available. School halls and gymnasiums make for good spaces, though investigate power carefully, as it may not be what is required for a LAN party. These establishments are also a good route if your event has student members or organisers, as you stand a better chance of hiring spaces for cheap or free.

Sports Centres

Like schools, colleges and universities, they typically have many large spaces available that would suit a LAN party, but may lack adequate internet or power capacity.

Conference and Convention Centres

Similar to hotels, conference and convention centres have spaces available to hire specifically for events, and have many additional services to offer in most cases such as catering, showers and extra rooms for sleeping. Typically provision for power is good to allow the centre to hire to many clients, but internet access may be lacking. As with hotels, they can be expensive to hire, as they are primarily commercial.

Religious Buildings

Churches, mosques, Buddhist centres, synagogues and other religious buildings can make for good LAN party venues, though some may reject your request to hire due to violent video games or other religious concerns.

Requirements

Power and Internet access are musts for all LANs. Beyond that, every LAN party is different, so decide what is most important to you and what is required for your party size and duration.

Here are common requirements to consider, some with links through to calculate your requirements.

• Power
• Internet
• Tables and chairs
• Overnight use
• Noise
• Heating and aircon
• Washing facilities
• Bar
• Stage
• Parking
• Alcohol license
• Location

Negotiating With Public Venues

Finding a venue for a LAN party can be the hardest part of getting an event off the ground. This is often made harder by venues being unwilling to host such a strange event. Here are some tips for negotiating with public venues to make it more likely you can get a foot in the door.

• Avoid the phrase "LAN Party" - the word "party" can scare off some venues - try "gaming marathon" instead as this implies that it won't be a party and will be more of a sporting event
• Commit to an alcohol-free event - this potentially opens up your options for venues, making schools and religious buildings more likely to host your event
• Inform the venue of your insurance intent - for a public event you should purchase public liability insurance to avoid being sued for large sums of money. Let the venue know you plan to purchase this and it will make a good impression and satisfy any requirements they may have in this area
• Inform the venue of your health and safety policy - much like insurance above, the venue may require you to present a health and safety policy, which you should have anyway if you are taking human life seriously
• Avoid mentioning that attendees will sleep at the venue - if possible, don't mention or downplay that attendees will sleep over. Some venues get spooked by this knowledge for either reasons of safety, or because they think it will be some kind of sex orgy (LAN parties usually couldn't be further from this)
• Suggest installing your own internet connection - some venues such as schools and universities are bound by policies that prevent their networks for being used for non-educational purposes. Some venues simply do not have an internet connection at all. If you need to install an internet connection, politely request this from the venue
• Propose a "skill-swap" - for local community venues, offering your computer skills can be gratefully received, as these venues are often run by volunteers who may have limited skills or resources for the venue's website or internal systems.

Surveying

Arrange Survey

Once you've found a venue and in the case of public venues, made contact with whoever's responsible for hire, arrange a survey to see the venue and check it is suitable before you go ahead with the event.

Prepare for Survey

After calculating your power and internet requirements, make a specific checklist and also write down any questions you might have to ensure the venue will work for your LAN party. Bring along:

• Camera
• Tape measure or laser measurer
• Torch
• Laptop
• Checklist
• Questions

Carry Out Survey

Making the most of your surveying time is critical - it may not be convenient or possible to return before your event day. Here are some musts:

• Take photos of everything - you will thank yourself later as when planning what needs to go where, or how the venue is arranged, having photos to refer to is invaluable
• Measure up all spaces you will be hiring, and record their dimensions. This will help you work out how many people you can fit in
• Find the main fuse box or power distribution panel and check its capacities as detailed in the Power page. Take photos of this too.
• If possible, test the internet connection speed and latency using Speedtest.net or similar. Note down the results, local and public IP addresses, the service provider and any venue-owned networking equipment
• Confirm what would be included in the hire regarding the rooms, facilities and times. Misunderstandings should be avoided to ensure your event runs well and you can hire again in the future
• Ask the venue representative any specific questions you might have