Frame or peg-and-pole — which suits your Joburg site?
The ground decides. A frame marquee stands on a freestanding aluminium skeleton weighted at the legs, so it rigs on the paving, tar and cobbles of Joburg's complexes and office parks where pegs are banned. A peg-and-pole marquee is the classic canvas silhouette — cheaper per seat, faster to rig — but it needs lawn or field that takes pegs, which suits school grounds, smallholdings and township yards.
| Frame marquee | Peg-and-pole marquee | |
|---|---|---|
| Stands on | Paving, tar, decking, grass | Lawn or firm soil only |
| Centre poles | None — clear interior | Yes — work around them |
| Hail behaviour | Rigid PVC roof sheds hail | Canvas handles standard hail; steep pitch helps |
| Price | From R1,850 | From R999 |
Glass marquees — the Sandton standard
Glass marquees carry Joburg's premium functions: product launches in Bryanston, estate weddings in Waterfall and year-end galas where the structure is part of the brand. Glazed walls hold the aircon in summer and the heat in winter, and the roofline photographs clean against a Highveld sunset. Book at least two months out — Gauteng glass stock is thin and December dates go first. Corporate packages are detailed under tent hire in Sandton & Midrand.
Marquee sizes for Joburg functions
Seated functions need 1.2–1.5 m² per guest: 5m × 10m carries 50 guests, 10m × 15m carries 100, 10m × 30m carries 200 and 15m × 30m carries 300. The full chart with dance-floor allowances and rand bands is in tent hire prices in Johannesburg.
What a marquee hire includes
Every marquee quote covers transport, rigging by a Joburg crew, weighting or pegging to the site, and take-down after the function. Sidewalls ride along on every summer hire — a Highveld storm arrives in minutes and leaves in twenty, and walls keep the function dry through it. Draping, lining, flooring, stages, lighting and heaters quote as add-ons on tent hire prices in Johannesburg, with furniture options under tables and chairs for hire in Johannesburg. Wedding builds get their own guide: wedding tent hire in Johannesburg.
Common questions
How much does marquee hire cost in Johannesburg?
Framed marquee packages start at R1,850 with tables and chairs in the Gauteng market. A dressed 100-guest wedding marquee runs R8,500–R18,000, and glass marquees price at roughly double an equivalent frame.
What is a glass marquee?
A glass marquee replaces PVC walls with glazed panels on an aluminium frame — a premium clear-walled structure used for Joburg corporate launches, estate weddings and winter functions where heating stays inside.
What size marquee do I need for 100 guests?
100 seated guests need about 140 m² — a 10m × 15m marquee. Add a dance floor and the working size moves to 10m × 20m.
Can a marquee stand on complex paving?
Yes — a frame marquee weighted with plates makes no holes, which is why Joburg body corporates approve it. Peg-and-pole structures need lawn.