UD Tour

In the winter of 2017, the Watergate Hotel unveiled its "igloos": 12-foot heated, private domes that are stationed on its Whisky Bar patio. Each igloo seats two to eight people, with prices starting at $200 per igloo. The luxury hotel in Georgetown also offers several food and beverage packages to go along with the igloos, including a three-course dessert tasting menu starting at $42 per person. Other packages include a $55-per-person classic afternoon tea, a $75-per-person bourbon pairing, and a $150-per-person whiskey pairing.

For corporate meetings, the Darcy near Dupont Circle has partnered with local business Element [Shrub] to offer a seltzer bar. During a meeting break, guests can head to the bar to create their own flavored seltzer using a shrub (a.k.a., drinking or cocktail vinegars) of their choosing. Shrub flavors include chai pear, cranberry hibiscus, blood orange saffron, and more.

DC Rental recently introduced a colorful new place setting with its 11-inch Valencia base plate, priced at $4 each. The Valencia base plate pairs well with the company’s matte gold flatware ($1.50 each) and its cobalt blue Lido water glass ($2 each). The rental company’s new linens in shades of hot pink, yellow, and turquoise are available in tablecloth rounds of 126 inches for $40 each. DC Rental is centrally located, with a showroom in Arlington, Virginia.

Washington chef and restaurateur Mike Isabella partnered with hospitality-tech platform Plum Relish to debut an office catering program called Bentos by Mike Isabella in October. Isabella's menu items include entrees for diners who are vegan, Paleo, or gluten-free, with options such as falafel with tabbouleh and hummus, Mediterranean beets and roasted acorn squash, and chicken breast with ratatouille. Family-style platters are priced at $16.82 per person, or individual bento boxes at $13.60 per person with a 15-person minimum. For smaller orders, the bento price increases to $14.95; for orders of more than 75 lunches, the bento price is reduced to $12.95.

Los Angeles-based hospitality and catering company Schaffer now offers its colorful Rainbow Mimosa Bar: A display of fresh juices such as cherry, mango, and pink grapefruit, along with nectars like blueberry in glass bottles that are presented on crushed ice in a customized lucite stand. Guests can choose from a variety of garnishes to personalize their mimosas including candied ginger, pomegranate seeds, maraschino cherries, and blueberries. Pricing is available upon request.

Gigmor is a Los Angeles-based live music marketplace that connects planners with independent musicians for event entertainment. Event producers can post opportunities, evaluate talent, book artists, and manage payments all through the Gigmor platform. The site lists artists throughout North America.

To Whom It May offers handcrafted chocolate truffles infused with organically grown cannabis that are wrapped in 24-karat gold. For events and favors, the company offers four individual boxes that include four, eight, or 15 cannabis-infused truffles; pricing ranges from $30 to $230. The company, whose products are manufactured by the Art of Edibles cannabis collective, ships throughout California.

Made from digitally etched metal, the Tom Dixon Etch Web Pendant from FormDecor is an ode to the geometric designs of architect Buckminster Fuller. The brass fixture costs $218 a week to rent or $196.20 for a rental of one to three days. FormDecor delivers throughout Los Angeles and Southern California.

Photoboothless is a Beverly Hills-based company that provides cinemagraphs for events. A mixture of photo and video, each clip is a still image with one moving element, creating a one-of-a-kind keepsake. The images can be branded for events and shared on social media via an on-site kiosk. Pricing starts at $3,500.

The new Hotel Indigo Los Angeles Downtown offers several 1920s-theme activities for meeting breaks. The Underground L.A. Walking Tour, in partnership with Cartwheel Art, brings groups to the city’s famed underground tunnels and speakeasies, sharing stories of famous Prohibition-era murders and other historical facts. Additional offerings include a typewriter poetry breakout session and a yoga session set to jazz music.

London-based luxury rose retailer OnlyRoses opened its first U.S. store in Beverly Hills in September. The company provides long-lasting roses sourced directly from farms in the Andes Mountains; the farms all focus on social responsibility and maintain high environmental standards. The company also offers natural-looking preserved Infinite Roses, which last a year without water. The company ships nationwide.

Recently opened in Silver Lake, specialty wine shop Vinovore offers its version of gift boxes called “Beast Boxes.” Each box is filled with hand-chosen wine and curated items like rose gold wine openers, toys, or precious stones matched to personality types, from outdoorsy (the Badger Box with enamelware wine cups and a canteen) to mystical (the Unicorn Box with crystals) to homebody (the Sloth Box with retro toys). The boxes can also be tailored to an event. Pricing starts around $25 to $30 and can go to $250, depending on the wine and other items in the box. The Beast Boxes are sold in store only.

Puff ‘n Stuff Catering’s assortment of seasonal bonbons features seven flavors: confetti cake, licorice with dulcey blond chocolate, apple cinnamon, German chocolate, lavender manjari dark chocolate, eggnog croissant, and strawberry lychee. “Handmade bonbons are a truly artisanal confection, which allow me to layer unique flavors, while designing the perfect look and shape to match,” says executive pastry chef José Detrés. The sweets are priced at $2 each.

Play with a Purpose’s new Quickfire teambuilding option encourages groups to work efficiently against the clock, with as many as 100 tasks across three levels of difficulty. Quickfire encourages building trust and communication skills between team members, while promoting innovative thinking techniques and strategies. A community give-back element can also be incorporated into the activity, with teams earning points that then translate into dollars that are donated to a charity. Play with a Purpose also tries to incorporate trivia and history about the charity into the game. Quickfire accommodates a minimum of 20 participants, with pricing available upon request.

A modern choice for corporate and teambuilding events, the new iFly Indoor Skydiving facility features dual wind tunnels in all-glass flight chambers, along with a conference room. The venue also includes catering options and customizable packages for groups. Pricing starts at $299.95 for 10 flights shared by as many as five people, as well as personalized flight certificate, flight gear, training, personalized instruction, and five video clips from the session.