Visit Tampa with the help of convention center’s free, mobile app.
Meetings, events help Orlando top 55 million visitors
The number of overnight convention and meeting business in Orlando in 2011 grew to 3.3 million, an increase of 2.7 percent.
Get in the game with triple-option deal at 3 Florida resorts
The Super Bowl may be just one exciting Sunday for football fans. For meeting planners, however, it signals an extended triple-option offer at Grand Resorts of Florida, with properties in Tampa, Orlando and Palm Coast. Here’s the deal: Through March 15, planners arranging events for groups of at least 10 can hunker down at Innisbrook […]
Active adventures off Amelia Island’s coast
Amelia River Cruises offers three-hour eco-tours and BYOB twilight/sunset cruises off the northeast Florida coast. The eco-tour is led by a marine biologist who uses an otter trawl or shrimp net to bring catch aboard, educating guests about local marine life before releasing the creatures back into the wild.
The 2011 PYM Annual digital guide is here!
Bringing you “Motivation for Innovation,” the 2011 PYM Annual is designed to help you navigate new technologies, find solutions for current challenges and, hopefully, inspire you to create something big, bright, beautiful and business-friendly at your next meeting or event. But, like everything we do here at Plan Your Meetings, this was a group effort. […]
Convention center hotel approved for Palm Beach County
Funding has been secured to build a 400-room Hilton hotel adjacent to the existing Palm Beach County Convention Center, thanks to a $27 million subsidy the Palm Beach County Board of Commissioners voted to approve in April. “A new convention center hotel will finally complete the package we need to elevate Palm Beach County’s image […]
Free guide to historic African-American sites
Planners interested in taking groups to historically significant sites in the Daytona Beach area have one more resource at their disposal. “Share the Heritage” is a free guide to African-American historical sites and attractions in the Daytona Beach area that can be viewed and downloaded from daytonabeach.com.
Hoteliers’ harvest
The Marriott & Renaissance State Association Team of Florida recently held a bowling event with a food drive component that collected 386 pounds of food for America’s Second Harvest of the Big Bend in Tallahassee, Fla. That donation was enough to feed 296 people in Tallahassee and surrounding counties.
Fort Lauderdale debuts convention collection
The Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention and Visitors Bureau has teamed with six upscale hotels near the Broward County Convention Center to offer one-stop planning assistance for groups needing up to 2,700 rooms. In addition to accommodations and hotel meeting space, the “Lauderdale Convention Collection” offers special savings and incentives. “By creating a single hospitality experience […]
New names for California, Florida CVBs
If the rash of newly re-named tourism authorities is any indication, “convention and visitors bureaus” are on the way out. In their stead is an assortment of organizations urging leisure and group business to “visit” or “discover” their destinations. Take, for example: Visit Oakland (formerly the Oakland, Calif., Convention & Visitors Bureau) Discover Torrance (a […]
Peabody Orlando doubles its size with $450 million expansion
It may have taken 10 years to plan and more than two years to build, but the Peabody Orlando’s $450 million expansion project is finally complete. The project added a 32-story tower with more than 700 guest rooms; a state of the art conference center; a 22,000-sq. ft. full-service spa; and new dining and recreational […]
A whale of a deal
There’s something special brewing for meeting planners at One Ocean Resort, Hotel & Spa, which is in Atlantic Beach, near Jacksonville, Fla. Bring a meeting to the eco-friendly beach resort before Dec. 30, 2011, and you’ll have your choice of concessions, which increase in value according to the number of rooms per night booked. Special […]
The coast is clear
It’s been more than six months since the Deepwater Horizon oil spill raised questions about whether Gulf of Mexico destinations from Texas to Florida would be able to maintain their blue waters, white-sand beaches and fresh seafood production. But by all accounts, businesses and beaches are open and welcoming all meetings and events. Here are some destination updates …
The last show of 2010
It’s hard to believe that we’re celebrating our last PYM LIVE Event of the year. But, it’s already in progress in Clearwater, Fla. at the Sheraton Sand Key Resort in Clearwater Beach. If you couldn’t be in attendance, you can follow the conversation below, which will be archived post-event. The educational breakout session will occur […]
Why you should meet in Gulf Coast states now
Yes, the Gulf of Mexico oil spill has sullied some of America’s favorite beaches and messed mightily with the meetings and event industry, but smart planners see opportunities beyond the tar patties. From Florida to Texas, the main message from travel and tourism officials is that it’s business as usual. Most attractions, hotels, restaurants, exhibits, […]
Bama beaches closed; spill drifts toward Florida
Winds this week will largely determine what happens along the coasts of Florida, Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas, as the worst oil spill in U.S. history nears the two-month mark. Forecasters have been most concerned about the Mississippi/Alabama barrier islands and the Florida Panhandle. Thousands of vacationers, meanwhile, are changing plans, either hoping to catch […]
Your own private event city
The Dow Museum of Historic Houses (formerly Old St. Augustine Village) in St. Augustine, Fla., is a walled village in the heart of the city’s historic downtown. Several of the historic homes in the complex operated by the Daytona Beach Museum of Arts & Sciences are available for private rentals. Or, planners can book out […]
Bring in the bling
BW Designs specializes in providing “wow” event rental items like LED soft walls, fabric columns, lighted lounge furniture as well as giveaways like logo-etched crystal “diamonds” and illuminated event passes. A second division of the company, IceMagic, offers fully functional ice bars as well as specialty lighting and illuminated event decor (like tables and dance […]
Set the stage
Whether you’re dressing up a convention exhibit hall or organizing an outdoor concert, ASI Production Services Inc. can provide support and services. Based in Orlando, the company can outfit events nationwide with elevated seating, stage risers, mobile staging units, fiber-optic drapes, on-site drape and fabric cleaning, and other theatrical softgoods.
A little bundle of sunshine
In search of fun gift basket ideas for your next corporate function? Look no further than Tampa Bay & Company, the online spot for the coolest destination-themed gifts — like a Bucket Full of Sunshine or a Cup Full of Tampa — and more.
Combination of creativity, innovation helping Florida bounce back
For months now, hotels and convention and visitors bureaus (CVB) have been scratching their heads over the increase in canceled meeting business and scrambling to find new ways to attract groups. At Florida Encounter, hotel and CVB representatives held a roundtable to discuss what they were doing to maintain or grow business. “Our goal is […]
Fay, Fay go away!
Traveling to Florida this week has been a challenge, with Tropical Storm Fay — possibly one of the slowest-moving storms in recent history — causing flight cancellations, flooding streets, and closing down airports and bridges. The MPI Southeast Educational Conference dealt with worries about the storm by being proactive — sending frequent, daily e-mails to […]
Free Wii breaks in Tampa
Notoriously hard to find, Nintendo Wiis are a hot item. And for good reason — the interactive sports games are a far cry from the thumb-numbing, plug-in games of the past. At the Quorum Hotel-Tampa, meeting planners are being offered complimentary Wii breaks for groups. We can’t think of a better way to get the […]
Green governor
Florida Governor Charlie Crist has given the Florida hotel industry a green incentive. Since Jan. 1, hotels have had to have Florida Green Lodging certification in order to be considered host sites for government-sponsored meetings. Currently, 54 Florida hotels have earned the “Green Lodging” designation from the Department of Environmental Protection; 207 hotels have applied […]
Rooms with a view
Bringing attendees to a gorgeous location is a great idea — if you can let them enjoy it. At the Shores Resort & Spa in Daytona Beach, Fla., meeting rooms have floor-to-ceiling windows with panoramic views of the Atlantic Ocean and the Intracoastal Waterway. Planners also can create conversation areas by outdoor fire pits and […]
Miami NASCAR Racing Weekend
Assignment: South Florida event company ME Productions was hired to create several events taking place during the NASCAR race weekend in Homestead, Fla. Challenge: Emphasize the brand of each sponsor in each venue. Solution: ME Productions’ creative team created props, furnishings and décor that playfully displayed company logos and insignias while transforming each Miami venue […]
Orlando narrows RFP options
In the past, RFPs submitted to the Orlando/Orange County CVB were distributed to relevant member organizations, regardless of whether they technically were located within Orlando city limits. After all, Walt Disney World is in Lake Buena Vista, and some Kissimmee convention properties are closer to the theme parks than Orlando properties.
That policy has changed, and properties in Kissimmee (Osceola County) no longer will receive leads from submitted meeting and convention RFPs, even if the hotels are member organizations.
Watch the Calendar
Time moves so fast, especially when you’re planning seasonal events every year. It seems as if we just finished planning our annual fall expos and our holiday events planning is almost over (except for last-minute details and the actual event). 2008 is already here. Well, not quite. Every city has seasonal happenings, and some make […]
Bump the light
“Bumping the light” — meaning to raise the performance level. Louie Gravance used the term when speaking to meeting planners at the recent VISIT FLORIDA Encounter at the Sandestin Golf and Beach Resort. Gravance, a Walt Disney graduate who now teaches “Showmanship in the Workplace” to large corporations, urged planners to “bump the light” and, […]
Seminole Tribe of Florida rocks out
Contracts have been signed and the Seminole Tribe of Florida is poised to purchase the Hard Rock Café restaurant and casino chain from British-based The Rank Group for $965 million. But litigation filed by Power Plant Entertainment threatens to spoil the deal before Hard Rock stockholders vote on sale in March.
Names and Notes: May 2005
NAMES Steven A. Schuldenfrei has been named President of the Trade Show Exhibitors Association; Mary Beth Rebedeau will fill the vacancy he left as Executive Director of the Society of Independent Show Organizers. Alyssa Egger has been named Account Services Representative for Plan Your Meetings (PYM) magazine. Egger will work directly with PYM’s advertising partners […]
Florida offers free insurance and other incentives
Last year, Florida was hit hard by back-to-back hurricanes that damaged property around the state and sent meeting planners scrambling to find alternative venues, or having to cancel events altogether. Having three hurricanes and one major tropical storm in three months is abnormal for Florida and the state's official tourism marketing agency, VISIT FLORIDA, is […]
