Celebrate at Disney

Next year looks to be an exciting one for groups at Disney resorts. The “Year of a Million Dreams” continues into 2008 and includes new attractions and shows, and randomly selected guests will win the Disney Dreams Giveaway at Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, Calif., and Walt Disney World Resorts in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. Opening in 2008 at both resorts, Toy Story Mania! will set a new standard for interactive ride/game technology. The attraction will be available for private events.

Shangri-La Comes West

Discerning meeting and incentive groups who recognize Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts as Asia's leading luxury hotel group don't have much longer to wait for the brand to debut in North America and Europe. In 2008, Shangri-La opens its first Canadian property in Vancouver. In 2009, the chain comes to Chicago — its first hotel in the U.S. — and Europe, with the Shangri-La Hotel, Palais d'Iena, Paris. In the ensuing three years, hotels will open in Miami, Las Vegas, New York, London, Vienna, and Toronto. Most will have between 150 and 250 rooms, and many will include CHI, the Spa at Shangri-La, the group's spa brand.

Miami, Meet “The 'Bleau”

With a billion dollars and 22 acres of beachfront, you can really make a splash. And you can expect the 1,500-room Fontainebleau's splash to be heard 'round the meeting world when it opens in July.

“This was the place to be in Miami Beach,” says Scott Flexman, vice president, sales and marketing, discussing the renovation. “Now it has been brought back to its former glory.”

Meeting space totals 150,000 square feet, including three ballrooms. Outside, there is an additional 51,000 square feet, including the 21,000-square-foot Grand Lawn. Other highlights include a two-story, 40,000-square-foot spa, a slew of pools, and 11 restaurants.

MGM Comes to Foxwoods

MGM Grand is migrating cross-country to Mashantucket, Conn. The $700 million, 26-story MGM Grand at Foxwoods opens in May with 825 guest accommodations, and they're “filling up fast,” says Suzanne Bajek, senior sales manager, resort sales. Purpose-built for meetings, the MGM Grand will add 115,000 square feet of meeting space to Foxwoods' existing 55,000 square feet. Anchoring the new conference space will be a 50,000-square-foot, pillar-free ballroom that can host up to 3,800 people banquet-style and a 4,000-seat performing arts theater.

The New Greenbrier

Fresh from a $50 million renovation, The Greenbrier resort in White Sulphur Springs, W.Va., reopened in April. While it remains a historic landmark, the Greenbrier is no longer “suit-and-tie formal,” says Michael Karr, director of national sales. He describes the new vibe as a relaxed formality with multigenerational appeal — with additions such as wireless Internet access throughout the resort. Also new is Hemisphere, featuring globally inspired cuisine in a tasting menu format, paired with wine or cocktails.

Investment in Puerto Rico

With a billion dollars in hotel development and renovation and a new convention center marking its first anniversary, Puerto Rico has stepped up its game for meetings. There's the new 240-room Renaissance La Concha Hotel & Casino, with 15,000 square feet of meeting space; the 300-room luxury Condado Vanderbilt Hotel, which will open late next year with 20,000 square feet; a 350-room ME by Meliá, just breaking ground in Old San Juan; and a 500-room hotel that will open in 2009 under the Sheraton flag, which will be the headquarters hotel for the convention center. Also notable is the new $34 million meeting complex at El Conquistador, the cornerstone of a $100 million enhancement.

Australia: Go Eco

For the 11th year running, Australia tops the list of wished-for destinations among Americans surveyed by The Harris Poll. According to Skye Baird, business events manager, Tourism Australia, the Land Down Under is responding to groups' desire for a ecotourism with the new luxury Orion Expedition Cruises, which use Zodiac boats to speed passengers from the cruise ship to shorelines to see aboriginal rock art and 100-foot waterfalls.

Monaco Guarantees Rates

The dollar may weaken, but your Monaco incentive program will keep going strong with U.S. dollar—guaranteed rates through 2009. Hotel news includes the year-old, 334-room Monte-Carlo Bay Hotel & Resort, Monaco's first new hotel construction in 75 years; the $50 million renovation of the 619-room Fairmont Monte-Carlo; and the $11.5 million upgrade of the Hotel Hermitage's 54-room Excelsior Wing.

Luxury in St. Kitts

The 7-year old St. Kitts Marriott is as far from mainstream as it gets. “It's ideal for a well-traveled customer who has been to Europe and Asia,” says George Landa, general manager. The resort's Venetian owner imported the rich appointments from throughout Europe. Here, you can swim with the turtles, dine in a restaurant whose menu is designed by a Michelin chef, and luxuriate in an Italian-designed spa. According to Landa, 30 percent of his business is groups.

New from the U.S.V.I.

More groups are looking to St. Croix, says Loan Sewer, director of sales, U.S.V.I. Department of Tourism, in part because of the elegant Buccaneer and the Carambola, which is being re-branded as a Renaissance. Both resorts offer golf: The Buccaneer has an 18-hole, par 70 course with spectacular views of the Caribbean Sea; the Carambola has 18 holes designed by Robert Trent Jones Sr. The news on St. Thomas is a new venue, Yacht Haven Grand, on the site of the old Ramada, with stores including Louis Vuitton and Coach, as well as many restaurants.

Sand & Water = Aqua

Cancun's stunning new addition, Aqua, reopens in December after repairs from damage from Hurricane Wilma. Aqua is also the flagship of what will become a new brand for parent company Posadas, owner of the Fiesta Americana brand. Described by Mark Benson, vice president of sales, North America, as “Ian Schrager meets W Hotels on steroids and located on the beach,” this Aqua is only the first: Posadas is planning to open another in Mexico City in December 2008 and one in Acapulco in December 2009. Also planned are properties in Punta Minta and Los Cabos.

Jamaica for Conventions

“In the next three years, the total landscape here will change,” says Donnie Dawson, deputy director of tourism-USA for the Jamaica Tourist Board. New facilities include the $52 million Montego Bay Convention Center, which will open by December 2008 with more than 200,000 square feet of meeting space, and the 1,400-acre Harmony Cove in Trelawny, which will include a convention hotel with 1,750 rooms and a 75,000-square-foot convention center. Also notable, the 427-room Ritz-Carlton Golf & Spa Resort Rose Hall has completed the first phase of a $15 million renovation, and Rose Hall Resort (formerly Wyndham Rose Hall), an LXR Gold Resort, completed a $35 million renovation, including its 11,000 square feet of meeting space.

IMEX Focuses on Green

IMEX — the worldwide exhibition for the meetings and incentive travel industry — has always made green meeting initiatives a high priority. That's why it will support the green Future Leaders Forum at the 2008 Greening the Hospitality Industry Conference, organized by the Green Meetings Industry Council, February 19-21 in Vancouver, B.C. For more, visit www.greenmeetings.info/conference.htm and www.imex-frankfurt.com.