GDOD 2018: Beyond Wild

There are three words to best describe Global Day of Discovery 2018:

Unscripted, Unusual, and WILD.

Renaissance Edmonton Airport Hotel’s take on the worldwide event brought out the top bartenders in the city, whimsical magicians, and Edmonton’s greatest party animals. All of it was fuelled by a 12 ft wide adults only ball pit! It was surrounded by inflatable flamingos, donuts, and most importantly, fluffed feather pillows perfect for pillow fights.

Like every great party at Renaissance we start with our iconic Bar Ritual featuring Crystal Head Vodka on the house, and classic Canadian rock’n’roll to get you in the mood. Our favourite writers from OilersNation took it on themselves to be the life of the party after the ritual. Dan, Chris, and Cam ran games for guests, and made good use of the ball pit themselves. They were joined by their partner Rig Hand Distillery who introduced us to Seymour, and our guests were some of the first to give him a big smooth after a shot of Rig Hand Brum! It’s a new tradition that we were so excited to host.

Between kissing elk and pillow fights in the ball pit, our guests worked up quite an appetite. Luckily Executive Chef Andrew Ihasz and Executive Sous Chef Moe Eddine whipped up a wild menu that included gazpacho shots with Sylvan Star Grilled Cheese Bites, Lamb Merguez, and Halo HALO Ice Cream just to name a bit. It’s an understatement to say our team of award winning chefs go above and beyond on custom menus.

Edmonton’s top bartenders came to support the locale’s top cocktail spots, Baijiu (featuring Ciroc Vodka) and Chartier (Featuring Pimms), and maybe enjoy a drink or two themselves. Alongside our exclusive cocktail bars, we had tastings from Gibson’s Whisky, Alley Kat Brewery, and Red Cup Distillery. Needless to say, no one was left thirsty.

It was a blast and while every event comes to a close, the party doesn't’ have to. The official Global Day of Discovery After Party at HALO featuring Mike Dominey kept the music and the WILDNESS going into the early hours of Wednesday.

Thank you to all our amazing partners who showed the world how Edmonton gets WILD on a Tuesday.