Clear Tents – Pros/Cons and why waterfront peeps should LOVE them

Here in South Florida, where I am based out of, we just had a lovely winter filled with the clear balmy 70 degree (avg) days that makes us such a hot spot for destination weddings and events. Of course, as a successful event professional, I must make my stand on this clear: It should go without saying that a tent is strongly recommended for ANY type of outdoor event- no matter what you think the weather is going to do! Always, ALWAYS protect your event and your guests.

Now that that’s out of the way, let’s talk about my favorite tent – the Clear Tent!

I love, love, LOVE clear tents. They are awesome. I even had my own beach-front wedding reception under one. If you haven’t seen them before, I’ve included a few pictures of what GOOD ones should look like.

Here are a few pros and cons about selecting a clear tent for your event/venue.  If you read between the lines, you will come up with few MUST ASK questions you should be asking your tenting vendor in the process.

Clear Tent PROs

- You can see the sky. HELLO. What is more gorgeous and awe-inspiring than a beautiful moonlight night sky with endless twinkling stars? Or a baby blue sky with fluffy white clouds floating over your heads?

- If you are waterfront, be it ocean, lake, etc, it does not cut off your view. Again, nature is an amazing and FREE backdrop to your event. If your views are nice enough maybe you can even cut back on your decorating costs.

- It is simply elegant already, without even adding anything to it. It’s magical. But imagine what you can do by adding fabric, twinkling lights, foliage, or color-washed lighting? I’m no decorator, but they sure can AMP up your WOW factor. Seriously. It is truly a “blank canvas” for decorating.

Clear Tent CONs-

It costs more. What did you expect? The rental company has to pay more to purchase the clear tops, and the material does not  last anywhere near as long as the white tent does.  They’ve got to make the return on their investment quickly, and if it’s a good tent company, they will not continue to rent it out as the fabric diminishes in quality.

-Risk of getting a good quality clear tent for your event (or any type of tent for that matter.)  Clear tents can fade quickly, especially without proper care and maintenance. They must be kept clean, and stored in a clean, dry environment. If the tenting company does not take proper care of it, or retire it when the quality has started to diminish, you run the risk of having a dirty, filmy looking not-so-clear tent for your event. For you, this comes down to vendor selection. Ask around, & ask the right questions! Good reputations are hard-EARNED in the event industry.

-Temperature!  Clear tents are at their best when used for evening events, especially during the hotter months. My company actually installs the clear tent and then covers it with an opaque fabric that helps to keep it from getting too hot inside. Then before the event we come back and pull the fabric down. 

Having your tent climate-controlled is always an excellent, but expensive option as well. You can just about have any tent fully air-conditioned or heated!

Have more questions about tents? Email me at Erin@TentLogix.com