The Kings Arms Hotel can host meetings for up to 70 guests, private dinners, parties and small weddings with up to 30 guests, in a listed historic building on High East Street in Dorchester, Dorset. The hotel has 28 bedrooms, so a small team or a wedding party can stay on site. Three rooms are offered for private hire, from a round table for eight to a first-floor event room.
Seminars and company events
The Casterbridge Room on the first floor is the main space for business use. It can be laid out boardroom style for a meeting or with sofas and easy chairs for a more relaxed workshop, and it takes up to 70 guests. The Old Smoking Room on the ground floor serves as a breakout space when booked with the Casterbridge Room, or as a small meeting room around a table for 12. The Private Dining Room works for a meeting of eight or as a quiet workspace for a day.
Weddings and receptions
The hotel offers small weddings, with the ceremony and the wedding breakfast both held in the Casterbridge Room for up to 30 guests. The Old Smoking Room can be booked for drinks and canapés before the meal. A wedding coordinator and the head chef work with each couple on the order of the day and the menu, and a honeymoon suite is among the bedrooms. Parties, celebrations and private dinners are also hosted.
Rooms and capacities
The Casterbridge Room has a bow window, painted panels and soft lighting, and holds up to 70 guests. The Old Smoking Room is a lounge with one large table for 12. The Private Dining Room has a single round table for eight. The hotel publishes an events pack as a PDF with the details of each room, which organisers can download before sending a request.
Accommodation
The 28 bedrooms are in the hotel building, which allows a team to arrive the evening before a meeting or wedding guests to stay where the celebration takes place. Rooms booked directly at the standard rate include breakfast, although special offers may not.
Catering
Food is prepared in house. The event menus range from a sandwich buffet and a fork buffet, suited to a working lunch, to a feasting buffet and two set menus for dinners and celebrations. The head chef takes part in planning wedding menus with each couple.
History and setting
The Kings Arms stands on High East Street, the main street running through the center of Dorchester, the county town of Dorset. The building is listed for its historic interest, and the hotel tells its own story on a dedicated page of its website. Thomas Hardy based the Casterbridge of his novels on Dorchester, which explains the name of the main event room.
Getting there
Dorchester has two rail stations: Dorchester South, on the line from London Waterloo, and Dorchester West, on the line between Bristol and Weymouth. Both are a short walk from High East Street. Bournemouth Airport is the nearest airport, and the A35 links the town to the rest of the south coast.
