California is a cornucopia of cultures.
The Golden State has been shaped over the centuries by Native American, Mexican, Asian and even Danish influences, and these cultures continue to shine through in California destinations. Meeting groups can make the most of the state’s diverse ethnic heritage and cultures in these five cities.
Solvang
Nestled in the Santa Ynez Valley, the village of Solvang is a Danish delight in the middle of Southern California. With traditional wooden architecture and large windmills, visitors would assume they are in Denmark rather than a small enclave in the United States. The village was founded in 1911 by a group of Danish-American educators as a way of preserving and celebrating Danish culture.
Because of the temperate weather year-round, meeting groups can host events both indoors and out. The Elverhoj Museum of History and Art documents the history of Solvang, celebrates the city’s Danish culture and the Danish-American immigrant experience. The gallery space can seat 60 people for film screenings or panel discussions, and the museum, which was a historic home, has a lawn in back for outdoor events of up to 100 guests.
The California Nature Art Museum, which is home to Lulu Hyggelig, Thomas Dambo’s first permanent troll sculpture in California, also features smaller meeting rooms. The Solvang Festival Theater, which is entirely open air, can seat 700 for private events.
There are about 800 hotel rooms in Solvang and several full-service properties, including Corque Hotel, with 122 rooms and 7,500 square feet of indoor and outdoor meeting space. Alisal Ranch has 73 guest rooms and meeting spaces to accommodate any size group. The Landsby has 51 rooms and beautiful event spaces.
Solvang’s walkable downtown is full of brightly painted, half-timbered buildings that house Danish bakeries, shops and eateries. Solvang Trolley and Carriage Company offers private group tours via horse-drawn carriages or horseless vehicles.
Santa Ana
Founded in 1869, Santa Ana is one of the oldest cities in Orange County and one that still has original architecture in its historic downtown. The city’s population is 77% Hispanic, and Santa Ana is known for its Hispanic heritage celebrations, including Fiestas Patrias, Chicano Heritage Festival, Dia de Los Muertos festivals and Tamalfest. On the first Saturday of every month, Cielo in the Streets takes place downtown with free salsa lessons and dancing throughout the evening.
The city has an extensive collection of murals. Beginning with the Chicano movement of the 1960s, artists began painting massive works of art that commemorate the city’s multicultural heritage.
Santa Ana hotels provide 42,000 square feet of meeting space. Embassy Suites by Hilton Santa Ana Orange County Airport is one of the largest, with 301 suites and meeting space that can host up to 320 for a banquet and 380 in a theater setup. Other full-service hotels include Courtyard Santa Ana Orange County, Holiday Inn Express and Suites Santa Ana, and Hotel Zessa Orange County Airport, a DoubleTree by Hilton.
Unique venues include The Yost, a historic theater built in 1912 that serves as a special event venue; The 1912 in the heart of downtown, offering vaulted ceilings and an open floor plan; and The Green Parrot Villa, a Spanish-style villa and Mexican restaurant that offers indoor and open-air settings.
For fun, attendees can shop at Alta Baja Market and Collective 2One9 or sample Santa Ana’s diverse dining with the city’s Michelada Guide and Culinary Passport.
Sonoma
Sonoma is known for its wineries, but many people don’t know that the area was settled by the Spanish, who brought their missions, culture and Catholic churches to the area. Mission San Francisco Solano, founded in 1823, is part of Sonoma State Historic Park. It was the 21st and last Spanish mission built in Northern California, during the Mexican independence period. Groups can take a self-guided tour of the mission building, chapel and courtyard to catch a glimpse of what life was like during that period. It is also available for events.
The mission is at the northern edge of an eight-acre plaza that is laid out in the Spanish style, with a park and several historic buildings encircling it. The plaza also has restaurants, wine tasting rooms, bars and shopping.
The Lodge at Sonoma is the largest hotel property in town, with a ballroom that can accommodate up to 300 and the Stone Building and Lawn, which can host up to 200, as well as several smaller meeting spaces. MacArthur Place Hotel and Spa has a variety of meeting spaces, including a Coach House, a 150-year-old barn and beautiful historic gardens. Sonoma Valley Inn has 82 guest rooms and nearly 3,000 square feet of meeting space. Fairmont Sonoma Mission Inn and Spa can host groups of 350 people and is located about 1.5 miles outside of town in a neighborhood known for its immigrants from Mexico and Central America. Attendees can sample the area’s Mexican and Spanish cuisine at various restaurants and food trucks.
To add a bit of culture to their events, groups can invite Grupo Folklórico Quetzalen, a Mexican dance troupe, to perform.
Costa Mesa
Japanese immigrants began arriving in Orange County in the early 20th century. They worked as farmhands until they earned enough money to lease land and eventually buy their own farms. Since that time, Japanese culture has flourished in Costa Mesa and Orange County. Twice a year, in the spring and fall, the city hosts the OC Japan Fair, a three-day celebration of Japanese culture, art and food. Fans of Japanese anime show off their cosplay designs, while others come to dig into Japanese street food favorites like okonomiyaki. The fair also offers taiko drumming, J-pop music and kimono fashion shows.
Meeting planners can incorporate Japanese culture into their events by taking in the city’s art at Segerstrom Center for the Arts and Orange County Museum of Art, and during walking tours that highlight public art. The Costa Mesa Art Walk ends at California Scenario, a 1.6-acre public art installation by the Japanese artist Isamu Noguchi.
Hilton Orange County/Costa Mesa is the largest event venue in Costa Mesa, with 48,000 square feet of space. Crowne Plaza Costa Mesa Orange County has 9,000 square feet of dedicated meeting space and several outdoor areas. Walkable from these two full-service hotels is Mitsuwa Marketplace, an immersive Japanese grocery store with a food hall that offers rice bowls, udon noodles, a bakery and matcha dessert stand.
The city’s Ramen Row is a popular spot on Baker Street where visitors can enjoy seven different ramen shops, from traditional ramen to mazemen and tsukemen. Ramen Nagi is the newest addition to the Japanese food scene at South Coast Plaza, the largest shopping destination on the West Coast.
Palm Springs
Greater Palm Springs is known as an oasis in the desert, home to beautiful resorts and golf courses. It is also known for its Native American culture. Meeting groups coming to the area can incorporate that culture and history into their events.
The Agua Caliente Cultural Museum tells the history of the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians, and a visit there could easily be paired with a cultural landscape tour. Visitors can soak in the thermal pools or book signature treatments at The Spa at Séc-he, a facility at the sacred Agua Caliente Hot Mineral Spring. Aziz Farms grows local produce through regenerative farming and offers meals and farm tours.
Cabot’s Pueblo Museum in Desert Hot Springs is the historic Hopi-inspired pueblo home of Cabot Yerxa, which includes Native American artifacts and stories of early desert settlers. The Palm Springs Historical Society offers walking tours, biking tours and vehicle tours that are customizable for groups and emphasize the stories of diverse pioneers and architects, including midcentury modern influences.
The Palm Springs Convention Center offers 261,000 square feet of event space that can accommodate more than 11,000 for a convention. Popular meeting hotels in the area include The Rowan Palm Springs and Thompson Palm Springs, JW Marriott Desert Springs Resort and Spa in Palm Desert and the Renaissance Esmeralda Resort and Spa in Indian Wells.
Unique venues include The Living Desert Zoo and Gardens, which can host up to 350 for a banquet or 700 for a reception, or Metate Ranch, which is in the Indio Hills at the northeastern end of the Coachella Valley. It can hold up to 500 guests.
