Lighting hire
Festoon, uplighting and tower lights, from marquee glow to site safety. Delivered, set up and collected by suppliers who cover your patch.
Event lighting hire typically costs £15 to £30 per 10m festoon string, £15 to £30 per LED uplighter, and £300 to £800 for a full wedding marquee lighting package installed. Site safety lighting (tower lights for car parks and exits) is a separate requirement for events ending after dark.
Event lighting is two jobs wearing one name. The first is atmosphere: festoon strings, fairy canopies, uplighting the marquee lining, a mirror ball earning its keep. The second is safety: guests finding the car park, toilets and exits after dark, which licensing teams treat as a requirement rather than a mood.
LED has quietly transformed the category: power draw is a tenth of the old tungsten rigs, meaning festoon runs and uplighter sets now sit comfortably on a small generator or a spare 13A feed. What has not changed is rigging time: canopies and outdoor runs need proper fixing and cabling, so lighting belongs on the setup-day schedule, not the morning of.
What it costs
| Item | Typical guide price | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Festoon string per 10m | £15–£30 | |
| LED uplighter | £15–£30 each | |
| Fairy-light canopy, marquee | £200–£500 | installed |
| Wedding lighting package | £300–£800 | |
| Tower light (site safety) | £90–£180 / weekend |
Guide prices exclude VAT and vary with season, region and site access. Quotes from suppliers are always the real number.
Lighting hire across the launch corridor
Local pages for every corridor town, with the same honest ratios and local site knowledge.
Lighting hire: questions organisers ask
How much lighting does a marquee wedding need?
A typical 120-guest package is a fairy or festoon canopy over the dining area, 8 to 12 uplighters on the lining, festoon over the entrance and outside seating, and safety lighting to toilets and the car park. Installed, that lands in the £400 to £800 band.
Can festoon lighting run off a small generator?
Easily, if it is LED: 100 metres of LED festoon draws around 100W, less than a single old-style bulb. The constraint is cabling and waterproof connections, not power. Confirm outdoor-rated (IP44 or better) fittings for anything outside.
