Someone has to organise the work Christmas do, and this year it is you. The first decision is not the venue. It is what kind of night you are actually buying, because the budget, the shortlist and the arguments all follow from that one choice.
We take Christmas bookings at The Anchor in Stanwell Moor, seven minutes from Terminal 5. This guide is written from your side of the table, including the part where we tell you when we are the wrong answer.
First, work out which night your team actually wants
Search near the airport and a lot of what comes back is a hotel party night: a shared ballroom, a ticket price per head, entertainment laid on, and other companies in the room with you. That is a real format and plenty of teams love it.
It is not what we do. We stopped running shared party nights, and we do not put on a DJ, a disco or a Christmas entertainment programme. We give you your own table in a village pub with a festive set menu, then leave you to your evening. The one exception worth knowing about is our Christmas quiz, which runs in the December diary. It is not bolted onto your booking, but if your team would rather have something to do than a dance floor, ask us when it falls and pick your date around it. If you are still weighing those two products against each other, we have compared them properly in Christmas dinner or party night.
So the sorting question is this:
| If your team wants... | Book... |
|---|---|
| A dance floor, a DJ and a big night out | An airport hotel party night, not us |
| Their own table, a decent meal and a conversation you can hear | A pub |
| Some of both | Split the night: eat somewhere, move on afterwards |
Take that third row seriously. A mixed group almost always holds people who want a big one and people who want a good dinner and to be home by half ten. Feed everyone properly first, then let the late-night contingent carry on elsewhere. Nobody is offended, and you have not spent the budget on a ticket half the team did not want.
If the pub option fits, the format and dates are on our Christmas party page.
The group sizes that change what you are booking
The number in your spreadsheet quietly changes which product you are buying.
- Fewer than 4 guests. Not a Christmas booking. Our festive menu needs a minimum of 4.
- 4 to 20 guests. A normal table booking. You book it, you turn up, we look after you.
- More than 20 guests. No longer a table booking. This is private hire, and it goes through a person rather than a form: [email protected], 01753 682707, or WhatsApp on the same number.
Our Christmas capacity is 60 seated and 200 standing, so a large team is doable. It just needs a conversation, because at that size you are agreeing space and layout, not a table.
Every Christmas booking needs at least 24 hours' notice, and the service window runs from 10 November to 20 December 2026. The popular slots go early, so book far sooner than that.
One more thing to settle before the date poll goes out: sittings run Tuesday to Saturday, plus Sunday from 1pm to 6pm. We cannot do Mondays, because the kitchen is closed. Take Mondays off your shortlist now rather than after twenty people have voted for one.
Sit-down meal or buffet: the number decides it for you
Organisers agonise over this. Usually the minimum makes the decision for them.
Festive buffets need 30 guests, minimum, no exceptions. There are three packages: Festive Sandwich & Salad, Festive Hot Finger, and Festive Premium Grazing. If your team is 18 people, the buffet is not on the table and you can stop weighing it up.
If you are over 30 and could go either way, the question is how the night behaves. A sit-down meal fixes people in seats: the same six conversations all evening, but a clear beginning, middle and end. A buffet keeps people moving, which suits several teams who barely know each other, though it removes the shape of the evening. There is no speech moment in a buffet. The full version of that argument, including the capacity maths, is in buffet or sit-down for large groups.
Per-person course choice kills the usual menu argument
The most tedious part of organising a work do is normally the fight over which set menu the whole table commits to. One person wants three courses. The person driving home to relieve a babysitter wants one, and a bill they are not embarrassed by.
On our festive menu that is not a table decision. Each guest picks 1, 2 or 3 courses individually, so nobody subsidises anybody else's pudding and you are not refereeing.
The practical detail:
- 1 course needs a pre-book but no pre-order. Handy for the colleague who confirms at the last minute.
- 2 and 3 courses need a pre-order, and choices are due seven days before your booking date. Count back from your date and give your team an internal deadline earlier than ours.
- There is no kids 2 or 3 course tier, and no child price at those tiers. Children can order the adult 2 or 3 course at the adult price.
- Adults on the 2 and 3 course tiers get a glass of prosecco, swappable for orange juice. Children get a Fruit Shoot or a small soft drink with the 1 course.
- Trimmings included: pigs in blankets, stuffing and brussels sprouts.
The menu is published on our Christmas page, and prices come from our live system rather than a leaflet, so what you see there is what you pay. For allergen queries, see menu or contact us for allergen information.
The deposit, and why per-person deposits help you
Every Christmas booking carries a £10 per person deposit, whatever the size of the party. Taken at booking and deducted from your bill on the night. Cancel more than seven days before the booking and we refund it in full; inside seven days it is not refunded.
Organisers flinch at that line. They should not, because the deposit is doing a job for you. Work Christmas headcounts drift: twenty-two say yes in October, nineteen turn up in December, and you are the one explaining the gap. A per-person deposit turns a casual "yeah, put me down" into a small commitment, so your final number is closer to the truth. It also gives you a clean reason to collect from colleagues while the do is still a nice idea, rather than chasing them in January.
Because it comes off the bill, it is not an extra cost. Same money, paid sooner.
Logistics decide who turns up
Getting there is the bit organisers underestimate, and it is quietly what decides whether the reluctant half of your team bothers. Near Heathrow, it is solvable.
- Parking: 20 free spaces on site. No fee, no time limit while you are with us, level surface, close to the entrance, CCTV and floodlit. More parking nearby. Free parking is not a perk here, it is what lets the drivers come without resenting it.
- From the terminals: Terminal 5 is 7 minutes, Terminals 2 and 3 are 11 minutes, Terminal 4 is 12 minutes. Staines is 8 minutes, M25 Junction 14 is 2 minutes.
- Buses: routes 441, 442 and 555.
- ULEZ: we are outside the zone, so nobody has to check their car against it before saying yes.
- Access: the car park, the bar and the dining area are all step-free, and assistance dogs are always welcome. The beer garden is step free from the car park, and there's one step between it and the bar, which we'll put a ramp out for if you ask ahead. We do not have an accessible toilet, and that is worth knowing before you book rather than on the night.
Ask your team about access needs at the same time you ask about dietary ones. People will not always volunteer it, and it is a much easier conversation in September than in December. If you want to talk through what someone's visit would actually look like, ring 01753 682707.
Put that in the calendar invite, not just the postcode. Our directions page has the detail to paste in. We are on Horton Road, Stanwell Moor, Surrey TW19 6AQ.
What usually goes wrong
- Booking the format before asking the team. Send two lines: big night out, or good dinner? You get an answer and cover for the decision.
- Assuming a buffet is available. Under 30 people, it is not.
- Treating a group of 25 as a table booking. Over 20 is private hire, and the earlier that starts, the more choice you have.
- Leaving the pre-order to the last week. You do not have a last week. Choices are due seven days out, so the chasing has to start earlier than feels necessary.
- One person fronting the whole bill. Sort the money before the night, not while wearing a paper hat.
If you want those in the order you should actually tackle them, rather than as a list of warnings, use the Christmas party planning checklist. If your do is really a client event or a team gathering with a working element, our corporate events page is the better starting point, and the food menu shows what we do the rest of the year.
Ready to talk dates? See what our Christmas offer includes, or book a table if your group is 20 or fewer. Anything larger, call 01753 682707.
FAQs
How many people do I need for a work Christmas booking?
At least 4. Up to 20 is a standard table booking. Above 20 becomes private hire, arranged with us directly on 01753 682707 or [email protected].
Do you run shared Christmas party nights with a DJ?
No. We stopped running shared party nights, and we do not put on a DJ or a Christmas entertainment programme. You get your own table and a festive set menu in a village pub. We do run a Christmas quiz in December, which any group is welcome to book around, but it is a separate thing rather than part of a Christmas booking. If your team wants a dance floor, an airport hotel party night will suit them better than we will.
How does the deposit work?
Every Christmas booking takes a £10 per person deposit at booking, regardless of party size. It is deducted from your final bill on the night, and refunded in full if you cancel more than seven days before your booking. Inside seven days it is not refunded.
Do we all have to have the same number of courses?
No. Each guest chooses 1, 2 or 3 courses individually. The 2 and 3 course options need a pre-order, due seven days before your booking date; 1 course needs no pre-order. There is no kids 2 or 3 course tier, so children ordering those tiers pay the adult price.
When can we come, and what is on the menu?
The festive service window runs from 10 November to 20 December 2026, and the 20th is included. Sittings are Tuesday to Saturday, plus Sunday from 1pm to 6pm, and there are no Monday sittings because the kitchen is closed. Bookings need at least 24 hours' notice. The menu and live prices are on our Christmas page.