Noah's Ark, an amusement park, restaurant, and event center, opened in July in Dordrecht, a city in the western region of the Netherlands. The venue was built to the dimensions of the biblical vessel and includes life-size animal sculptures, two amphitheaters, and a restaurant.
In the Swedish village of Jukkasjärvi is the IceHotel, a space built every winter from a combination of ice and snow. Snow is sprayed on huge steel forms; once the snow is frozen, the forms are removed, leaving free-standing corridors of snow in which dividing walls are built to create rooms and suites. Hotel guests sleep in thermal bags, and the site also offers an ice bar and church.
Built in the shape of a beagle, the Dog Bark Park Inn is a bed-and-breakfast in Idaho owned by husband-and-wife team Dennis Sullivan and Frances Conklin. The canine-inspired accommodations, which sit inside a 30-foot-tall structure dubbed Sweet Willy, is big enough for four guests—plus their four-legged companions.
Jutting out from the jungle canopy of Costa Rica is a hotel suite built inside the fuselage of a 1965 Boeing 727 plane. Part of the Hotel Costa Verde, the two-bedroom, teak-paneled space has a cockpit as well as balconies on each wing and offers views of the neighboring Manuel Antonio National Park.
The Yellow Submarine hotel, a narrow boat renovated by businessman Alfie Bubbles, opened in Liverpool last year. The unusual tribute to the Beatles, the band's popular song, and the 1960s, is designed to look like a submarine on the outside and features psychedelic decor and furnishings inside. According to The Daily Mail, the three hotel rooms available on the boat come with 3-D TVs and Wi-Fi.
San Francisco tourist spot Alcatraz is apparently popular enough to spawn imitators. Based on the infamous island prison and perhaps the wackiest themed restaurant in Tokyo, Alcatraz E.R. offers a prison hospital theme, with jail cells, waitstaff dressed as nurses, and a menu of bizarre dishes designed to look like body parts.
CasaBubble, which rents transparent spheres for events, also works with hotels like Le Cottages du Parc in France. Envisioned by French designers Frédéric Richard and Pierre-Stéphane Dumas, the pressurized bubbles are designed to be used as lodging in outdoor environments and can include additional sections to house a bathroom or dining area.
The world's first Barbie-themed restaurant—at least, the first officially licensed by the iconic doll's parent company, Mattel—opened this year in Taiwan. Although the brand has created experiential versions of Barbie's Dreamhouse and Closet at events, Barbie Café in Taipei's shopping district is a permanent fixture, with tutu-inspired chairs, tables in the shape of stilettos, a color scheme of pink, and a full menu.
Lego is the theme of a 250-room hotel scheduled to open in April in Carlsbad, California. The venue, the first Legoland Hotel in the U.S., is geared toward families and evokes the brightly colored building blocks through decor and models. In the bedrooms are murals, furnishings, and fixtures designed after Lego's kingdom, pirate, and adventure collections.
Horror films and dungeons appear to be the main inspiration behind the prison-themed Lockup restaurant chain in Japan. Designed like a haunted house, the izakaya-style eatery comes complete with skeletons, mask-wearing staffers, and drinks in test tubes.
Getting to Kokopelli's Cave Bed and Breakfast requires a bit of a hike. Uniquely positioned in a man-made cave north of Farmington, New Mexico, the one-bedroom inn has its entrance in a cliff face, which is accessed via a short ladder. Inside, Southwestern-style furniture and decor contrast with the rough walls.
For animal lovers, Toyko is home to several bunny cafés, coffee shop-pet store hybrids that let patrons play with and feed the furry creatures. Usagi Cafe Ohisama, also known as Rabbit Sun Café, has bunny-themed decor and a separate play room for its 20 or so in-house rabbits.
Part of a movie set built in the 1940s for western films, Pappy & Harriett's Pioneertown Palace is an Old West-themed tavern and music venue in Joshua Tree. Inside, there's exposed brick, live music, and a menu of items barbecued on an outdoor, mesquite-burning grill.
Think beyond the balloon animal. Self-taught “balloon twister” Addi Somekh makes unique, larger-than-life balloon installations, such as the pink poodle that greeted guests at the event registration area. In addition to funky decor, Somekh can provide live demonstrations for events, creating balloon hats and inflatable crowns custom-designed for guests’ personalities and style. He also hosts teambuilding exercises where guests create balloon flowers that are later donated to local nursing homes. Somekh can provide his services to events around the world; prices are available upon request.
Blueprint Studios showcased a variety of seating rentals at the expo. On the top row, from left to right, is the Giorgio ottoman in fur; the Bristol chair in green (it also comes in white, yellow, gray, light blue, and black); the Portofina lounge chair in brown and iron; the Louis chair in white (it also comes in black, silver, and gold); and the Whitby chair in green (it also comes in blue, brown, gray, yellow, and purple). On the bottom row, from left to right, is the Marais chair in red (it also comes in gunmetal silver); the Pino chair in green and chrome; and Portofino ottoman in brown and iron. Prices are available upon request, and the San Francisco-based company rents nationwide.
Olive & Cocoa provides high-end gift boxes. The company specializes in business gifting as well as social occasions, and can include marketing or promotional items inside the boxes. Gifts arrive in stylish wooden crates that can be customized with logos or other branding; it costs $395 to create a custom hot iron brand that can be reused on any order. Prices for gift crates vary depending on size and content.
For a unique amusement park-inspired entertainment option, the Conjurer provides live fortune-telling at events. Founder and performer Robert Smith, who is based in New Mexico, travels the country to work festivals and corporate events. Prices for corporate appearances start at $5,000, and for an extra fee, he can provide custom branding on fortune cards and custom audio fortunes for V.I.P. guests. Smith also offers a variety of magic performances for events.
New from national draping company Quest Drape is the Geo Panel. The geometric panels, introduced in January, are made from expanded PVC and hang from truss or the drape line. They are three-foot squares that come in six patterns; the solid pattern can be branded or used as a projection screen. Currently, the panels are only available in white. Prices vary depending on volume and location; the company has 19 locations throughout the United States.
Los Angeles-based catering company Fill ‘R Up Gastro Garage uses blow torches to cook on site, creating an interactive, entertaining option for events. The chefs—called “mechanics”—create sweet or savory “tanks”: brioche-style doughnuts that are torched and filled with nitrous foam in a variety of flavors. The company has worked with clients such as American Idol, Warner Brothers, and Social Media Week Los Angeles, and can travel to events around the country. Prices start at $10 to $20 per guest, depending on numbers, hours, and other factors.
Cotton candy is a summertime staple for people of all ages. A new twist on the classic treat is cotton candy illuminated by a colorful LED stick. Glo Cone’s flashy catering option costs $500 for a case of 400 glowing cones; the candy is not included. The company can provide their product nationally for events such as festivals, birthday parties, corporate gatherings, and more.
For a sustainable option, Bamboo Studio offers three product lines—two of which use parts of a bamboo plant and one that uses leaves from a palm tree. The result is dinnerware that is all-natural, disposable, and 100-percent biodegradable. The company’s plates, bowls, utensils, and other tabletop items have a clean, natural look, and custom branding can be created for corporate events, weddings, and more. The Arlington, Texas-based company ships nationwide, and prices vary depending on the item.
Forget the glow sticks or cell phone flashlights. Crowdsync Technology provides controllable LED wristbands for events or live performances that light up to the beat of music using specialized DMX control software. Wristbands last roughly six hours or can be purchased with replaceable batteries for multi-day use. They can also be printed with company logos. Prices range from $3.49 to $3.99 per wristband, and the company works on events nationwide. Crowdsync Technology can also be applied to festival-friendly items such as beach balls.
Los Angeles-based Plan-It Interactive provides carnival games, inflatables, and other event activities and equipment. They specialize in oversize games such as giant chess, Jenga, and Twister, as well as human bowling and obstacle courses. The games can be customized for events; the company can also organize teambuilding activities and scavenger hunts. Plan-It Interactive services all of California and Nevada, and can travel to other states upon request.
This may be the one time it’s actually okay to get marker all over the furniture. Taking inspiration from the recent trend of adult coloring books, national furniture rental company AFR has introduced a new initiative called #ColorYourEvents, which allows guests to grab a marker and color in branded decals that are adhered to tabletops. (The company's Aspen Cocktail Table is pictured, but the decals can be used on other AFR tables as well.) Clients provide the artwork and markers, and AFR handles the decal printing and pasting. Pricing depends on the item and the size.
Inside the tent, the "Perrier bubble ball" dispensed prizes including fish-eye camera-lens clips, flash tattoos, earplugs, and earbud headphones.
