It’s the most wonderful time of the year, and it’s time to liven up your residents’ spirits! There are so many ways to show your residents you appreciate them and create an unforgettable experience to help ring in the holidays and the New Year.
If you’re in charge of planning resident events, and are wondering how you could possibly come up with new event ideas that don’t feel stale and overdone, we’ve got you covered! Keep reading to check out these 15 holiday-themed resident events that will take your event planning to a whole new level and offer an unparalleled resident experience!
1. Meditation & Sound Healing Experience
What better time to promote relaxation and health than during the stress of the holiday season? Sound healing classes are gaining traction and offer a more immersive and interactive way to help promote guided relaxation in conjunction with healing. The concept involves sound bowls or tuning forks which are chimed at various preset frequencies, said to provide different healing effects on layers of the body and physical ailments. Sound healing is a great format to help entertain residents interested in more alternative and emerging forms of meditation and healing modalities.
2. Resident Friends-giving Celebration
While holidays are centered around family and friends, for some it can be a reminder of loved ones who have passed and be a lonely time. Give your residents a chance to fill that void and connect with neighbors with a Resident Friends-giving celebration that can be locally catered. Simple table placements, candles, and autumn decor can tie together the elements of a large table setting or banquet area and elevate the atmosphere for the occasion.
3. Winter Wonderland Ball
Bring the magic to your building with this blast-from-the-past celebration you probably haven’t experienced since middle school – a Winter Wonderland Ball! Deck out your common space or amenity area in winter themed decor from lights, to snowflakes, and bring in other ice-themed elements including crystal rock candy, snowcones (and even a snow machine if you’re up for it!) Invite residents to join in formal attire with a plus-one. Be sure to include awards for best-dressed, most-festive, cutest couple, and best solo appearance! A red-carpet entrance and professional photographer can also take this event to top-tier and give residents a memorable keepsake to remind them of the special evening for time to come.
4. Pet Photos With Santa
Pet Photos with Santa can be a special way for residents to celebrate their furry friends and capture a sweet (or comical!) memory to cherish all season long. Pet Photos with Santa also make the perfect photo for your residents to include in their holiday greeting cards!
5. Holiday Cards Decorating Social
In classic old-fashioned fun, a holiday cards decorating social gives residents a purpose to tap into their crafty side and as an added-bonus, create a special decorated greeting they can use to send to all their loved ones for the season! Your local art supply or craft store is the perfect location to scout a guide who can come to your property and conduct the experience from start to finish with your residents.
6. Christmas Cookie Baking Class
This family-friendly occasion can be arranged virtually or onsite! Kids will love an opportunity to decorate gingerbread men and women, and adults can get ahead of all their holiday baking while having a chance to escape the hustle and bustle of the season with a light hearted neighborly gathering.
7. Gingerbread Making Workshop
Another perfect family-friendly resident event idea for the holidays is a Gingerbread house making workshop! This event is also perfect to host virtually or on-site, and all ages will love the nostalgia of assembling their very own cookie home to display all season long or to to give as a gift.
8. Popup Winter Fitness Class
The holidays are the easiest time to slack off on nutrition. Give your residents a chance to recover from post-Thanksgiving and holiday party indulgences with a one-hour sweat-inducing, calorie-burning, social fitness class. Social fitness classes are a great way to merge pleasure and fitness with an interactive group fitness class such as HIIT, Bootcamp or Power Yoga, followed by a catered breakfast, a quick grab-and-go, or even a speaking engagement from a local dietician or nutritionist to help people kickstart healthy habits and get in a positive mindset ahead of the new year.
9. S’mores Social
Residents can enjoy making their own s’mores on site with portable burners with the oversight and guidance of an event hostess or in your communities grilling area. To make this event sure to delight all taste preferences, be sure to consider a variety of different flavors across all components. For instance, you might opt for cinnamon, chocolate, classic, and gluten-free graham crackers, as well as white, dark, milk, and caramel chocolate options, along with varieties of fruit for extra layering.
10. Spiked Hot Cocoa Bar
Let your residents level up their hot cocoa game with a spiked hot cocoa bar. This setup can meet all taste buds with a variety of dark and milk cocoa varieties, different Kahlúa and Irish-cream mixers to choose from, and dairy-free milk options including oat, coconut and almond milk. Don’t forget to provide an assortment of toppings including red hots, nuts, cinnamon sticks, and of course – the whipped cream!
11. Pie Making Cooking Demonstration and Class
This event is perfect for live or onsite hands-on demonstration. Allow your residents to prepare one or two popular holiday pies from scratch – including pie crusts and fillings using techniques and step-by-step instructions guided by a local bakery chef.
12. Cider Tasting
Forget a trip to the apple orchard! Bring the apple picking celebrations to your building. Autumn is the season for apple picking and late Fall into Winter pave way for every way to enjoy them! Cider tasting provides an interactive experience to unite residents around the common appreciation and love for apple and fall-forward tastes that celebrate the season and bring an element of nature and home into your building.
13. DIY Holiday Wreath Making
Wreath-making workshops and DIY Wreath Making Classes are interactive virtual and on-site events to help residents style and craft their very own Holiday wreaths! Wreaths are not only fun to make, but can also opt as the perfect handmade, unique gift perfect to knock one more thing off your residents’ to-do-lists. This fun and festive event can offer a variety of floral, festive, and natural decor components and strategies for building the foundations for wreath-making across all seasons to allow for upmost customization and a truly rewarding resident experience that will leave lasting memories.
14. Holiday Mixology Night
Holiday Mixology Night and Martini Classes are a popular resident favorite event that can easily be hosted onsite or virtually at your building. Mixology Nights give your residents a tasting and educational experience all-in-one, centered around the history of certain cocktails, tips for crafting the best version from home, and sample cocktails provided by a professional mixologist.
15. Christmas Costume Party
Looking for a twist to an Ugly Sweater Party? Halloween lovers are going to really appreciate this second chance at dressing up as their favorite holiday characters! With tons of Christmas classics and themes to choose from… The Grinch, A Christmas Story, Elf, and many more, including Disney Classics, a Christmas Costume party gives residents a chance to show off their creative skills and celebrate in an unconventional fashion.
We hope you find the ideas in this post helpful for getting ideas for your future resident holiday resident events. With the busy holiday season just around the corner, now is the time to start thinking about planning your next resident event to conclude the year and your residents' experience at your community this past year. As always, Livly Events powered by Circuit can facilitate all the heavy lifting for you, from every step of coordination to the day-of the event, so you only have to work with one contact, one invoice, and relax while we handle everything.
For more information on community events and what is trending in building management, be sure to contact us for all your resident event needs!
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