A Little Wisconsin Union. A Lot to Treasure.
Wisconsin Union Holiday Gift Guide
Some gifts become part of our everyday lives, bringing joy to our homes or offices. Others give us a story we’ll tell and treasure for a lifetime.
At the Wisconsin Union, a gift can be a night of music, the discovery of a love of painting, a little reminder of your visit that brings a lot of joy, or a membership card that helps you return again and again to a spot that still feels like home.
This holiday season, give a little Wisconsin Union that will be a lot to treasure.
The Music Lover
They send you songs you just have to listen to. They recognize music by its opening notes before you do. After a concert, there’s always at least one moment they want to talk about on the way home.
Give them another evening worth talking about.
Our Wisconsin Union Theater welcomes Bang on a Can All-Stars: 90/90 on Jan. 27, 2027, in Shannon Hall. Celebrating the 90th birthdays of composers Philip Glass and Steve Reich, the program features music that helped expand the possibilities of sound.
Make it an evening together, with something to look forward to after the holiday gatherings wind down.
Explore our Wisconsin Union Theater season. Find the performing arts experience that hits the right note for the arts lover in your life.
Not sure which event to choose? Buy a gift card, and let your recipient choose.
“We Should Try That.”
Perhaps you’ve paused together outside of an art studio to watch someone working at a pottery wheel, or your friend has been talking about taking a painting class sometime for YEARS.
Give that “sometime” a place on the calendar.
At Wheelhouse Studios, our open art studio, explore pottery, painting, drawing and many other art forms.Many classes welcome beginners, and adults in the community can participate without a University of Wisconsin–Madison affiliation.
The artwork you take home will hold a memory of its own: the day you finally tried making art for the joy of it and the person with whom you enjoyed it.
Find a class to try together. Not sure which experience to choose? A gift card becomes your recipients’ choose their own arts adventure.
For Your Favorite Winter Adventurer (or Aspiring Adventurer)
Some of the moments we treasure begin with a simple invitation, “Want to go do something outside?”
Treat someone to ice skating on Lake Mendota with rentals from our Outdoor UW team. Take in Memorial Union from the ice, find your footing together and head inside afterward for hot cocoa from Peet’s Coffee. There’s room for graceful gliding, tentative shuffling and deciding the warm drink was an essential part of the plan all along.
Skate rentals are seasonal, weather-dependent and available on a first-come, first-served basis for use on Lake Mendota. Choose your company now, and let the conditions help choose your day.
Plan your Outdoor UW winter outing.
Skating not your speed? We also offer outdoor recreation workshops, group activities and camping, hiking and climbing equipment rentals.
A Little Getaway
Give them time to linger.
An overnight stay at our Wisconsin Union Hotel at Union South or Club Suites at Memorial Union means an evening without watching the clock for the drive home. Revisit loved campus spots, enjoy a performance or leave the afternoon open for whatever catches your attention.
For someone who once called campus home, it’s an invitation to return. For someone nearby, it’s a chance to enjoy Madison with a visitor’s sense of discovery and possibility.
For eligible arrivals Dec. 1, 2026–Jan. 31, 2027, save $15 per stay on any room type at either property with the code WINTER at checkout. Both properties are closed Dec. 20, 2026–Jan. 10, 2027.
Start planning a winter getaway.
Lots of Union Memories
Maybe they have a favorite Terrace chair color, a concert they still talk about or a friend they met here years ago. Give them another reason to keep coming back.
Maybe the person hasn’t yet discovered the more than 1,000 events we offer throughout the year or the spaces that are perfect for everything from remote working to gathering with family members and friends.
A Wisconsin Union membership offers a connection to the traditions people treasure. Benefits include access to our buildings Memorial Union and Union South, the ability to purchase alcohol at our locations if they are 21 or older, savings on most Wisconsin Union Theater tickets, Wheelhouse Studios classes and Wisconsin Union hotel stays, along with invitations to special member events.
Membership also helps support the arts, recreation and gathering places that make these connections possible. (P.S., we’re a nonprofit organization, and your membership purchase is probably a write-off. Not tax advice.)
It’s a gift they can enjoy throughout the year, with plenty of opportunities to invite you along.
Explore Wisconsin Union membership options.
Mini Momento
Mini Memento
We’ve heard it so many times: “The Terrace is what made me decide to go to the University of Wisconsin–Madison.” It warms our hearts every time. People form connections to the Terrace in so many ways, from their time as students to concerts and casual gatherings with friends and family. Those who love the Terrace span generations, and a mini chair is a memento of that connection, perfect for a bookshelf at home or a desk at the office.
Explore mini Terrace furniture options.
A Little Thought Goes a Long Way
Gifts can bring a little joy to an ordinary day, remind us of a place we love, introduce us to something new or bring us together. Whatever Union gift you choose, a little Wisconsin Union can give someone you love a lot to treasure.
