What is a marquee? Types, sizes and uses

The word first calls the circus to mind, but it has spread to any large temporary structure with a flexible fabric cover. For an event, it is a covered shelter, enclosed in whole or in part, that keeps guests out of the rain and the sun.

The fire and panic safety regulations for public premises (ERP) cover premises “designed to be enclosed in whole or in part and mobile, with a flexible cover”. The criterion is not the name: it is the design of the structure and the number of people present.

In practice, “marquee” and “reception tent” overlap heavily: both mean a temporary structure for receiving guests. The difference lies elsewhere, in how the structure stands and what it demands of the site.

A free-standing marquee with an aluminium frame stands on its own structure, without guy lines stretched all around. A stretch tent or a silhouette tent relies instead on guy lines, which need room around the fabric. In both cases you need to allow a setup clearance specific to each structure, which the design office confirms after examining the venue.

In the catalogue, the stretch tent is recognisable by its fabric stretched to points, with an organic shape. The silhouette tent rests on interior masts. The choice between them depends on the site, the atmosphere you want and the number of guests, not on the name.

For a free-standing marquee in the catalogue, allow a clearance of at least 2 m around the fabric, and 3 m to work comfortably, to leave room for setup, ballasting and circulation. For a stretch tent or a silhouette tent, the clearance is at least 1.50 m, and 2.50 m to be comfortable.

These figures are planning guides, not a guarantee for your site: slope, access, buried services or trees can change them. The design office confirms feasibility from your venue.

The ground matters too: how the structure is anchored or ballasted depends on the nature of the site. Our article on anchoring, ballasting and wind resistance covers this point.

The floor area depends on the format of the event. A standing cocktail needs about 0.75 m² per guest, a meal at rectangular tables 1 m², a meal at round tables 1.2 m² and a meal with a dance floor 1.5 m².

Example: a 10×15 m marquee (150 m²) holds 200 people for a standing cocktail, 150 for a meal at rectangular tables, 125 at round tables and 100 if you add a dance floor. The same marquee therefore has no single capacity: it all depends on how the room is laid out.

If your event runs through several formats (cocktail, dinner, dancing), size for the one that needs the most floor area, usually the dinner with a dance floor. Our sizing article details the calculation for 100, 200 and 500 people.

A marquee suits any event that needs a large covered space with no suitable building: a wedding, a corporate seminar, a year-end party, an opening, a village fête, a festival, a ceremony.

It makes most sense when the existing hall is too small, too expensive or too far from the place that matters to you: a family garden, an estate, a company site, a village square. The structure then replaces the hall, with its fit-out options: flooring, lighting, heating, furniture.

For a small reception, a lighter structure such as the stretch tent may do. To compare, our guide to choosing between a stretch tent, a marquee and an aluminium structure goes through the cases.

Under article R143-2 of the Code de la construction et de l'habitation, a public premises (ERP) is any building, room or enclosure into which people are admitted, freely or on payment. Everyone admitted in addition to staff counts as the public.

The CTS chapter of the safety regulations applies to structures of this type whose total occupancy reaches 50 people or more. From 20 to 49 people, only article CTS 37 applies: two exits at least 0.80 m wide, an envelope in category M2 materials and high-sensitivity residual-current protection on interior electrical installations.

For structures of 50 people or more, the owner has the stability of the frame and the fire reaction of the envelope checked by a verification body, then the prefect issues the certificate of conformity (article CTS 3). The safety register contains this certificate, an operating section and the base plan with a photograph (article CTS 30).

A structure installed for more than 6 months falls under additional provisions (article CTS 38 onwards). A two-level structure follows its own rules, whatever the occupancy.

Occupancy is calculated using the method for each type of activity (article CTS 2). Whether your private reception is an ERP or not, and so which rule applies, is a matter for the town hall: ask it before you set the date.

Before any opening to the public in a municipality, the organiser obtains the mayor's authorisation (article CTS 31). The organiser sends the mayor the safety register extract at least eight days before opening. The mayor may, if thought necessary, have the safety commission visit the premises before opening.

The safety register is kept by the owner of the structure: ask your hire company for the extract at the same time as the quote, so you are not chasing it the week of the event.

For all the steps (town hall, planning, safety commission), our article on authorisations for putting up a marquee details the stages and timings.

Four questions are enough to steer the choice of structure, even before you ask for a quote: