Hotel events & F&B software,
without the enterprise contract.
Built for independent and boutique hotels with meeting space, weddings, conferences and group F&B. Quote and confirm without the multi-month implementation, PMS lock-in or per-property pricing model. from $39/month.
Honest fit check first.
LightCater is built for independent hotels and small chains (5–150 rooms) where the events team is 1–4 people. We don't sync to Opera, do RFP management, or replace your PMS. If you need any of those, you need an enterprise tool — Cvent, Tripleseat or similar. If you don't, you're paying for them anyway. We're the alternative for the rest.
Scenarios the enterprise tools over-engineer.
If you're running an independent hotel with a small events team, here's where the big-property tools waste your time and money — and where LightCater fits instead.
20-room block + ceremony + reception + Sunday brunch.
The couple booked your ballroom for the reception, a Friday night welcome dinner in the lounge, ceremony space on the terrace, and a Sunday farewell brunch — plus a 20-room block at the group rate. Four events, one couple, one quote.
In LightCater: one customer record with four linked events. Each event has its own BEO and timing. The proposal shows all four with line-by-line pricing so the couple sees one total. Room block tracked in the customer notes (we don't replace your PMS — see below).
Tuesday breakfast, Wednesday lunch + breaks, Thursday cocktail closing.
A 40-person off-site retreat for a Toronto tech company. They need your boardroom for two days, three coffee breaks per day, breakfast and lunch each day, plus a cocktail reception Thursday night. Each meal has its own BEO requirements.
In LightCater: the conference is one customer record with linked sub-events for each meal. Your kitchen prints separate BEOs per service. Your sales coordinator quotes the whole thing in one proposal.
"What's our F&B minimum on a Saturday in October?"
Different rooms, different days, different minimums. Plus alcohol service usually has its own minimum. The salesperson who isn't on shift today doesn't have access to your pricing sheet.
In LightCater: save your room/day pricing matrix to the menu library. Pull, apply, send. Whoever's quoting tonight gets the same numbers as your senior salesperson.
Ballroom, boardroom, terrace, pool deck — all need their own BEOs.
Your hotel has 4 spaces. On a busy Saturday all four are booked for separate events. Each has its own setup style, AV needs, captain, vendor list. Coordinating across them with email is how you end up with the florist trying to load into the ballroom while a meeting's in there.
In LightCater: the calendar shows all four spaces. Each event has its own BEO with vendor load-in windows. Your captain hands them out at the morning briefing.
The breakfast count needs to match the room block.
If the group booked 20 rooms at double occupancy, you might be plating 40 breakfasts. Last-minute room cancellations should adjust the breakfast count, but they don't unless you're paying attention.
In LightCater: the headcount is editable up to the final guarantee deadline. The BEO recalculates instantly. We don't auto-sync with your PMS — you update the count when you confirm the actual room sell — but the workflow takes 30 seconds.
Sales books it. Events runs it. F&B feeds it.
The sales coordinator who closed the booking won't be there on event night. The events team setting up needs every detail. The kitchen needs the menu and timing. The bar needs the package. Email threads break.
In LightCater: one event record, one BEO. Everyone reads the same document. The audit log shows every change so the events team can see exactly what sales committed to.
What independent hotels actually need.
- Multi-space calendar — every booking and hold across every event room.
- Linked sub-events — wedding weekends, multi-day conferences as one customer record with multiple events.
- F&B & bar minimum tracking — by room and day, embedded in your menu library.
- Detailed BEOs per service — separate function sheets for each meal at multi-day events.
- Branded proposals + e-signature — accepted in the browser, no DocuSign fees.
- Audit log + multi-user editing — sales books it, events runs it, both see every change.
See the full lineup on the features page. Industry definitions in the glossary.
What LightCater is not.
If any of these are dealbreakers for your hotel, LightCater isn't the right fit and we'd say so on a sales call.
- No PMS integration. We don't sync with Opera, Maestro, MEWS, RoomKey or Cloudbeds.
- No POS integration. F&B charges don't auto-post to guest folios.
- No RFP management. If you bid on Cvent or HelmsBriscoe leads, you'll still need Tripleseat or similar.
- No multi-property dashboards. If you operate more than 5 properties under one events team, you've outgrown us.
If those gaps matter, you want an enterprise tool. If they don't, you're paying for them right now without using them — and LightCater is the alternative.
from $39/month. No per-property fees.
1 user included in either plan — usually the events coordinator. On Self-Service ($39/mo) add the F&B lead at $9/month; on With 24/7 Support ($59/mo) at $14/month. AI Agent add-on is optional at $18/month. 14-day free trial, no card to start, cancel anytime.
14 days. Try it on a real wedding weekend.
Set up your spaces, your packages and your F&B minimums. Quote your next group booking through the app. Decide. No credit card to start.