How many portable toilets do I need at my wedding

The basic rule of thumb for providing portable toilets at any event is to have at least 1 toilet per 100 guests. Also, at least one toilet should be wheelchair accessible. This rule is, however, a minimum standard, not a target. Many events benefit from having more toilets.

With that in mind, here is a quick guide to calculating how many portable toilets you’ll need if you’re considering wedding toilet hire.

Check local rules and venue rules

As the law currently stands, event organisers just have to ensure “adequate toilet facilities”. It’s essentially down to them to decide what that means in practice. Local councils, however, may have their own rules.

Similarly, event venues may have minimum levels of toilet provision as a requirement of hiring (to protect their facilities). Again, these are both minimum standards, not targets.

Calculate (or estimate) basic numbers

Even if you’re a long way off finalising your guest list, you’ll probably have at least a rough idea of how many people you’d like to invite. If in doubt, work on the basis of the higher number.

You’ll also, usually, have to provide toilet facilities for any service providers you hire directly (e.g., photographers, DJs/entertainers). If you hire your own caterers and servers, then it is strongly recommended to have separate toilet facilities specifically for them. Firstly, this helps to promote food hygiene. Secondly, it ensures that they are unlikely to need to queue.

If you request services to be provided by your venue, then it’s usually the venue’s responsibility to arrange toilet facilities for them.

Think about who’s on the guest list

If you’re having children at your wedding, then it’s useful to have extra toilets. Children need to go to the toilet a lot more frequently than most adults. Similarly, if you’re having a lot of older people there, it can also be helpful to have extra toilets. Older people often need longer to get to the toilets. This means they may need to use them more urgently once they get to them.

You do need at least one wheelchair-accessible toilet

Even if you’re not planning on inviting any guests in wheelchairs, you still need at least one wheelchair-accessible toilet. This has nothing to do with the law and everything to do with practicality, meaning your guests’ comfort.

Firstly, one of your guests could end up in a wheelchair at the time of your wedding. Secondly, wheelchair-accessible toilets are essentially just extra-large toilets with more room to manoeuvre than regular toilets. This means that they have more space for prams/pushchairs and small children as well as mobility aids and even service dogs.

Most weddings tend to have both children and older people in attendance. That means it can be very useful to have plenty of wheelchair-accessible toilets.

Consider the size and layout of your wedding venue

Ideally, you want to place the toilets where they can be easily accessed while still being discrete. It’s very much preferable to have them downwind of areas where people are gathering. At a minimum, try to keep them downwind of areas where people are preparing and/or eating food.

If your wedding venue is large, you, therefore, need to consider how you’re going to use the space. In particular, are you going to spread out amenities and activities or are you going to centralise them and leave people to explore the wider grounds themselves?

In the former case, it’s usually best to have toilets in each area where there are amenities and/or activities. In the latter case, you can potentially have all of the toilets in the vicinity of the main wedding hub. Alternatively, you might put most of them there but have a few in other parts of the grounds.

In either case, you need to ensure that each location has a suitable number of toilets for its use. This may require you to increase the overall toilet provision.

Think about smokers and vapers

If you’re going to allow smoking and/or vaping at your wedding, you’ll probably want to have a dedicated smoking/vaping area. You might want to put some toilets near it. That way smokers and vapers can use their nicotine break as a comfort break without disturbing anyone else.

How long will your wedding reception last?

The longer an event lasts, the more likely it is that people will use a portable toilet on-site. There are two main reasons for this.

Firstly, longer events tend to involve food and drink. When people eat and drink at an event, they are more likely to need to use the toilet there. Secondly, when events are longer, people are less able to choose between using the portable toilets and waiting until they can get to a regular toilet.

The fewer toilets you have, the more likely it is that the increased level of use will make them less pleasant to use. In blunt terms, odours are going to build up. By contrast, the more toilets you have, the less each one will be used. That means there will be less chance for odours to build up and more chance for them to clear.

What activities will be happening at your wedding reception?

Most weddings serve food and have dancing. Some weddings will have games and activities if only for children. Weddings are always occasions when people talk to each other. These are all activities that encourage people to drink even if they’re not actually thirsty.

Of course, the more people drink, the more often they’re going to need to go to the toilet. This means that weddings tend to be events that benefit from having a high ratio of toilets to guests.

What is the likely weather?

You probably won’t be having an outdoor wedding in peak winter. You may, however, have a venue that requires you to install your own toilets (e.g., a barn). If so, remember that people will often turn to hot drinks for warmth and comfort.

If you’re having an outdoor wedding in summer, then remember that people will need to drink a lot to stay properly hydrated. This means that you really need to ensure that there are plenty of toilets.