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• 909 guest rooms
• 24,000 square feet of meeting space
The New York Palace Hotel’s 1882 Villiard Mansion, which over the years has served as the site of the hotel’s restaurants and lounges—including Le Cirque 2000 restaurant from 1997 to 2004—is now being used as event space. In the past, meeting professionals could buy out the restaurants for private events, but now the marble-columned, 1,400-square-foot Madison Room; the wood-paneled, 900-square-foot Gallery (pictured); and the gilded, 1,020-square-foot Gold Room are dedicated to meetings and events.
• 318 guest rooms
• 32,000 square feet of meeting space
Nemacolin Woodlands Resort, Farmington, Pa., wrapped up a 15-month, $30 million property upgrade this spring, which involved a total rebuild—including audiovisual elements—of the 200-seat lecture hall in the property’s Executive Conference Center. The Center’s largest space, the 4,080-square-foot Grand Ballroom, also saw a full renovation, as did 263 of the resort’s 318 guest rooms. The 2,000-acre resort also opened a Holistic Healing Center as well as 3,000-foot dueling zip lines at its Adventure Center.
• 125 guest rooms
• 10,500 square feet of meeting space
The 21c Museum Hotel brand launched in 2006 in Louisville, Ky., and after openings in Cincinnati (2012) and Bentonville, Ark. (2013), and a fair amount of acclaim for the brand’s focus on integrating contemporary art into daily life, the fourth 21c Museum Hotel opened in March in Durham, N.C. The new property has 12 meeting rooms, the largest of which is the Main Gallery, a 2,675-square-foot, wood-paneled space with marble floors and velvet drapes, and the most unusual of which is The Vault, an event space housed in an old bank vault. The property is a restoration of the 1937 Art Deco Hill Building in the city’s Downtown Historic District.
• 800 guest rooms
• 75,000 square feet of meeting space
In May, Kansas City, Mo., announced a major investment in its convention infrastructure: an 800-room Hyatt hotel will be built downtown near the Kansas City Convention Center and the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts. The property, a $300 million public-private partnership, expects to break ground next year and open in 2018, featuring 75,000 square feet of meeting and pre-conference space, a 9,000-square-foot terrace garden, and 450 to 500 parking spaces.
• 107 guest rooms
• 8,632 square feet of meeting space
In May, JW Marriott Hotels & Resorts opened a waterfront property on the Bodrum Peninsula in southwest Turkey. The 107-room resort—including luxury suites and seven villas—looks out over the Aegean Sea and includes an extensive spa with traditional Turkish baths, a salt room, and 24 treatment rooms. Guests will also enjoy the beach, indoor pool, two outdoor pools, and a dock. Group space includes a 4,521-square-foot ballroom and five breakout rooms.
• 260 guest rooms
• 12,500 square feet of meeting space
The Atlanta Braves and Omni Hotels & Resorts have announced a 260-room hotel will be built in the mixed-used development adjacent to SunTrust Park, the team’s new stadium, now under construction. The Omni Atlanta Hotel at SunTrust Park will feature 260 guest rooms and suites, rooftop hospitality suites, approximately 12,500 square feet of meeting space, an elevated pool deck and bar overlooking the ballpark, and a restaurant. The property, breaking ground later this year, is expecting to welcome guests by Opening Day 2017.
• 814 guest rooms
• 242,000 square feet of meeting space
New developments in Acapulco are giving meeting professionals reason to take another look at Mexico’s Pacific-coast beach resort. One of the biggest is the 814-room Mundo Imperial hotel, which debuted last year as part of the Mundo Imperial complex. The complex includes a convention center, 4,000-seat auditorium, spa, shops, and restaurants. The project is located in the Acapulco Diamante tourist area about 1.5 miles from Acapulco’s International Airport, which recently began work on a new passenger terminal.
Looking for something far off the beaten path for your adventure-loving high-achievers? Mustang Monument, a luxury eco-resort and wild mustang reserve in Wells, Nev., opened June 1 for its second season. The property is set on 900 square miles in northeastern Nevada, which it shares with 600 wild horses that are being protected by the Saving America’s Mustangs foundation. Guests stay in one of 10 hand-painted tipis, featuring king-sized beds, fine linens, hardwood floors, and handmade Native American rugs, or in one of 10 “safari cottages.” Activities include riding, hiking, photographing the mustangs, target shooting, cowboy skills, and more.
The Myrtle Beach Convention Center recently underwent a $12 million renovation, which included an investment in increased bandwidth, and complimentary Wi-Fi is now available throughout the facility, including the trade show floor, meeting space, and the adjacent 400-room Sheraton Myrtle Beach headquarters hotel. The building has a new roof and a state-of-the-art HVAC system that not only gives comfort, but also saves thousands of dollars annually in heating and cooling costs.
Throughout the facility, new furnishings have been added to allow small groups of meeting participants to gather for informal networking. The convention center has also reconfigured its loading dock, allowing for easier exhibitor move-in and move-out. The third-party security firm has been replaced with the center’s own Convention Services Team, who provide not only security and credential check-services, but also a concierge-style assistance, providing information on the convention center and the destination.
