Activities & Locations for Appreciation Events in Utah
By DJ Cam Reeve
Companies who value their employees are often looking for new and creative ways to demonstrate their appreciation to the people who keep the business running. I've been a part of appreciation events for years and get asked often enough what are some good activities & locations to host Employee Appreciation Events. So I've compiled a list of some of the best activities and locations for employee appreciation events here in Utah.
List of Activities:
Here are my favorite Appreciation Event Activities.
Catered Dinner + Entertainment: You can never go wrong with providing your employees a good meal and a night out. Many companies opt for a catered dinner along with some form of nighttime entertainment such as stage performers, comedians, or magicians.
Trivia: For a more interactive employee appreciation event, consider a trivia night. Attendees can enjoy drinks or appetizers while participating in the team sport that is trivia. Don’t forget a few fun prizes to keep people motivated and competitive!
Karaoke/DJ: Want to take your employee appreciate event to the next level? Karaoke brings out a side of people not often seen in the workplace, and your employees will be cheering and laughing along with their cowokers as they belt their hearts out behind the microphone. At some events they will also do lip sync battles and teams will sign up to compete. This is a great team building activities that is fun and some companies take it one step further with the Karaoke and add cash prizes.
Awards Banquet + Afterparty: The ultimate way to make your awards banquet or employee appreciation event trendy and memorable is by hosting the afterparty of the year! After the speeches have been given and the food eaten, dim the lights and crank up the music so that your employees can let loose after a hard day’s work.
Casino Night: A night of glitz and glam with blackjack, poker, roulette, and more allows employees to dress up and feel like they’re in Vegas for the evening.
Food trucks + Entertainment: One of my personal favorite Appreciation Event Activities in Utah is adding food trucks with a little entertainment at your location. Like the idea of a catered dinner but want to shake things up? Bring local food trucks to your location of business and throw in a DJ or band for the day’s entertainment. I've seen this done with lawn activities, Ice cream, Inflatables, movies, etc. The possibilities are really endless on this one.
Concert at your location of business: Taking the last idea to the next level, hire a local (or national) artist to play a show at your employee appreciation event.
Lunch + Scavenger hunt + DJ: Already have a great space at your business for employees to eat? We’ve worked with clients who have hosted a scavenger hunt with entertainment (like a DJ) at lunch to spice things up.
Places in Utah for Appreciation Events
Here are a few of my favorite locations for Utah for Appreciation Events.
Lagoon Amusement Park: Lagoon is an incredible family fun park that is great for Utah employee appreciation events. They have rides for kids all the way up to adults! When we work at this Utah amusement park, they’ll usually hire catering to provide food for dinner in the covered pavilions, with us entertaining them while they are eating. On occasion, we have also done karaoke, awards shows, trivia, and bingo (with prizes, of course).
Grand America: This stunning and elegant hotel in downtown SLC is best for corporate retreats, dinners, and casino nights.
Utah Olympic Oval: For an outside the box event venue, the Olympic Oval offers ice skating, dinner, and shows done by ice skating teams.
Utah’s Hogle Zoo: Have some animal lovers at your company? The Hogle Zoo is another unique employee appreciation event setting with plenty of live animal exhibits to fascinate your employees.
Zions National Park Lodge: If you’re looking for the ultimate event scenery, the Zion National Park Lodge is the answer. Nestled in a gorgeous canyon, this national park venue will have employees jaws’ on the floor.
Thanksgiving Point: With a large selection of beautiful indoor and outdoor spaces, Thanksgiving Point is a fantastic option for your employee appreciation event.
Loveland Living Planet Aquarium: Host your employee appreciation event with a backdrop of fish, sharks, and other aquatic life.
American West Heritage Center: Activities available at this beautiful venue include bison tours, fishing, pony & train rides, mechanical bull, large lawn games, tomahawk throwing, giant inflatables, tug of war, food trucks, pioneer games, and archery.
