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Inflatable Hire for School Galas and Fundraisers

Gala day is a different job from a birthday party. You are running for five or six hours, the age range is everyone from three to thirteen, and whatever you hire has to keep earning while volunteers rotate through it. We do a lot of these.

What earns its place at a gala

  • Obstacle courses. The 12m x 5m and the 13m x 4m Jungle Run, $500 half day and $550 whole day. Highest throughput of anything we hire, because two children go at once and the queue keeps moving.
  • The 6.5m x 4m Giant Super Slide. $420 half day, $470 whole day. One entry, one exit, easy to run as a ticketed activity.
  • A toddler unit. A ball pit or a 4m x 4m play park keeps the under-fives out of the main queue, which is what stops the complaints.
  • The 4m x 4m basketball game inflatable as a paid-per-go activity rather than a free-for-all.

Take the whole day

For a gala, book the whole day rather than the half. Setup has to happen before gates open, and the difference is $50 on most units. Trying to fit setup into a half-day window on a morning when a hundred other things are happening is a false economy.

Volunteers or supervisors

Every unit needs someone on it for the whole time it is inflated. Schools usually roster parents, which works if the roster actually holds. Where it tends to fail is the middle of the day when volunteers are covering other stalls. We hire supervisors in four-hour blocks, and for a busy gala one paid supervisor on the biggest unit is worth more than three rostered parents.

The site check that saves the day

Before you book, walk the field and confirm: a flat clear area with a metre of run-off all round, vehicle access close enough to unload, a power source or somewhere a generator can sit, and nothing overhead. Sloping ground is the most common problem we arrive to find, and it is the one we cannot work around.

Wind

Inflatables come down in strong wind. That is not negotiable and it is not us being cautious. Have a plan for what the activity becomes if the unit has to be deflated, and if the forecast is marginal in the week before, talk to us early rather than on the morning.

Beyond the inflatables

Face painters and balloon twisters book in blocks up to four hours and are usually the best value stall at a gala. Fun food machines, adult and kid tables and chairs, bubble machines and the arch photo backdrop all come from the same booking.

Getting a quote

Tell us the date, the field, the expected numbers and the age range and we will tell you what will actually cope. Call 0800 859 837. Gala season runs tight, so the further out you book the more of the fleet you can choose from.