Los Angeles is known for its nearly perfect weather year-round, as well as a healthy and active lifestyle of its residents, so it comes as no surprise that there are many outdoor options for groups right in the heart of the city. It is equally known for being the land of movie stars and film studios, so incorporating the glitz and glam of Hollywood into teambuilding, off-site events and even CSR-focused activities is a must for any group.
For sports buffs, there is also big news on the horizon. The NFL awarded the city the 2021 Super Bowl and Los Angeles has the only U.S. bid for the 2024 Olympic Games. Add those factors to a record-breaking 45.5 million visitors in 2015 as announced in January by Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti and Los Angeles Tourism & Convention Board President and CEO Ernest Wooden Jr., and there is no sign of slowing down.
Downtown L.A.
Following the debut of Staples Center in 1999 and L.A. Live in 2007, the spotlight centered on Downtown L.A. Today, there are also boutique, luxury and lifestyle hotels opening and offering top food and beverage options, rooftop lounges and unique amenities, drawing even more visitors.
“Downtown has new options, and a lot of it has to do with the walkability,” said Darren Green, senior vice president of sales for the Los Angeles Tourism & Convention Board.
According to Green, groups don’t want to have to load everyone into a bus and sit in traffic to get to their next venue. One option is for groups to utilize Bikes and Hikes, a company that arranges all types of outdoor and active opportunities. The premise for the activities offered is that you miss so much while in a car driving, plus, touring on a bike is healthy and eco-friendly.
“We believe that sightseeing without the car adds a personal touch that cannot be achieved from behind a window,” explained Franka Schoening, head of the groups department for Bikes and Hikes.
Since 2010, Bikes and Hikes has taken guests to the beach, movie star home tours, through Hollywood and downtown, all on bicycles or on foot. Now, the company also offers downtown walking tours, museum tours, boot camp classes, shopping trips, studio tours and scavenger hunts. The team prides itself on flexibility and can cater to groups of all sizes.
“Anything is possible, as long as it’s legal. We have organized sailing regattas for 300-plus guests, beach bike tours for 450-plus guests and guided 15 European executives through a Santa Barbara bike tour before driving them, blindfolded, to a tour of a lawful marijuana farm,” Schoening said. “If you want your champagne delivered by skydivers you will get your champagne delivered by skydivers. If you are on a limited budget, how about a hike to the Hollywood sign followed by a beautiful picnic lunch with blankets, chilled drinks, as well as organic, gourmet sandwiches and cookies?”
New programs include yoga hikes, yoga on stand-up paddleboards, paddle-fit classes and aerial yoga.
Hollywood
If you want to set up a unique and fun teambuilding event, but don’t know where to start, Feet First Eventertainment can come to the rescue. For over two decades Feet First has worked with groups to set up Amazing Races, Survivor and Mission Possible-style games outdoors, and gameshows, room escapes and culinary challenges indoors. In addition, there are numerous programs that incorporate CSR into the activities.
“I’ve seen more and more groups wanting to give back through their teambuilding,” said Warren Press, vice president of sales and marking for Feet First Eventertainment.
One CSR program offered is Michael-CAN-gelo, where teams build replicas of famous landmarks using canned food and then the cans are donated to a local food bank. Groups can also build and assemble items for local charities, like dog houses, bikes, wheelchairs and care packages for boys and girls clubs, troops and military families. With Style Your Soles, groups decorate TOMS shoes and then donate them to homeless shelters.
Feet First has offices all over California and across the country, but unique to Los Angeles are the major motion picture studios. Teams can work together to make a short movie or commercial, or create and star in a music video all on a real studio lot.
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For the Movie Making Events, groups break into teams, draw the name of a famous movie and are tasked with writing, shooting and starring in a movie preview for the sequel to that movie. Teams receive a professional camera, boom microphone, clapboard, costumes, props and cue cards along with an assigned producer to explain how to use all of the equipment. After the previews are shot, editors add music and sound effects and then, later that day or the following day, groups can view their work on the silver screen and vote on which team made the best movie preview.
The Valleys/Universal Studios
Universal Studios Hollywood, in Universal City, can host events from 100 to 20,000, including meetings, receptions, presentations, corporate parties, product launches and private screenings. Groups can arrange for scavenger hunts through the park, game shows in one of the theaters, private screenings at the CityWalk Cinemas and VIP experiences that include private behind-the-scene tours, front-of-the-line access, VIP seating at shows and backstage meet and greets.
This past spring, Universal Studios Hollywood opened The Wizarding World of Harry Potter. This new experience brings J.K. Rowling’s stories and characters to life in real-world settings of the books and films, including Hogwarts Castle. The new land represents a quaint village, and rides include Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey and the park’s first outdoor coaster, Flight of the Hippogriff.
Venue options for groups at Universal Studios Hollywood also include The Globe Theatre, which can accommodate up to 700 guests, as well as the Animals Actors Pavilion and the WaterWorld Show Pavilion, which can both be used for meetings, presentations and teambuilding. Also available is the European-style Streets of the World, with an Irish Pub, Parisian courtyard, and a London thoroughfare—Baker Street, home of Sherlock Holmes’ famous address.
In Burbank, the Warner Bros. Studio has a new feature, Stage 48: Script to Screen, which allows guests to see how favorite movies and TV shows were made on the studio lot where many were created and filmed. Attendees can build their own Batmobile, get an up-close look at the wardrobes featured in Sweeney Todd and visit the Central Park set from Friends. Groups of 25 or more can customize their studio tour.
Pasadena, in the San Gabriel Valley, is one of the area’s most picturesque and historical cities, know especially for its annual Tournament of the Roses parade and its Rose Bowl stadium. Through Bikes and Hikes, groups can arrange for biking or walking tours of the city’s iconic sites, such as the Huntington Library, Art Collections and Botanical Gardens and the Oak Knoll neighborhood, with many homes featured on television shows and in movies.
Hikes through the Angeles National Forest and Eaton Canyon offer great views as well as time to enjoy the outdoors. For those who want even more active events, Bikes and Hikes can arrange for a 5K Fun Run or relay at the Rose Bowl Stadium.
