On opening night, a lively steel band in the Atlantic Ballroom of the InterContinental San Juan set the beat for the 2008 Meet the Greens Invitational Golf Classic and Marketplace. The annual event, held June 1 to 4, is attended by readers of the MeetingsNet magazines (Association Meetings, Corporate Meetings & Incentives, Financial & Insurance Meetings, Medical Meetings, and Religious Conference Manager) and sponsored by the Puerto Rico Convention Bureau to showcase the island.

Attendees stayed at three of San Juan's most impressive meetings-oriented properties, the 416-room Ritz-Carlton, San Juan Hotel, Spa & Casino, with 30,000 square feet of meeting space; the 385-room El San Juan Hotel & Casino, with 35,000 square feet of meeting space; and the 402-room InterContinental San Juan Hotel & Casino, with 18,800 square feet of meeting space.

The following morning, attendees were transported by Travel Services Inc., a San Juan-based DMC, for a day of fellowship and competition at the stunning Bahia Beach Golf Club in Rio Grande. Tucked into a native maritime forest, a 25-minute drive from San Juan, the 483-acre Bahia Beach Resort & Golf Club is a private, master-planned, resort-residential community brimming with lush tropical foliage edged by a two-mile, crescent-shaped sandy beach. A 150-suite St. Regis Resort and seaside village with retail shops, dining, and entertainment is scheduled to open there in 2009.

The recreation centerpiece of the development is the Robert Trent Jones Jr.-designed course managed by Troon Golf, dominated by oceanside holes, spectacular mountain views of the El Yunque rain forest, and carpet-like fairways framed by 100-foot-tall palms.

After playing the front nine, golfers were greeted by the friendly golf course staff with a selection of charcoal-grilled Puerto Rican delicacies. Equally pleasing, during the round there was always a staffer with an icy towel or chilled sangria, making it easy to forget about errant tee shots and bogeys. Each day at the conclusion of play, golfers congregated at the resort's reception center for cold libations and gourmet tapas while they compared scores.

Off-the-course, key Puerto Rico bureau executives attended all of the receptions and meal functions. There's a lot of excitement in San Juan especially, with the late 2009 opening of the 503-room Sheraton Puerto Rico Convention Center Hotel & Casino, which will face the Bay of San Juan and feature 35,000 square feet of meeting space and a 57,000-square-foot outdoor sun deck.

Following two days of golf and camaraderie, the event concluded with a Meet the Greens Marketplace Trade Show and the closing dinner and awards ceremony at the El San Juan Hotel & Casino.

Sponsors

Puerto Rico Convention Bureau

Bahia Beach Golf Club, Rio Grande

Ritz-Carlton, San Juan Hotel, Spa & Casino

InterContinental San Juan Resort, Spa & Casino

El San Juan Hotel & Casino

Travel Services Inc.

National Hole-In-One Association

WW Awards, Puerto Rico

Entertainment Concepts

Payá Native Bistro

RST, a Destination Management Company

Castillo Tours

Meet the Greens is co-sponsored by MeetingsNet, Penton Media.