Small Market Meetings August 2019 by The Group Travel Leader, Inc.

SITE SELECTION TIPS | MEETINGS AT MUSEUMS | FAYETTEVILLE, ARKANSAS AUGUST 2019

y e r e t n o M

SEIZE THE DAY IN

WHERE NATURE and BUSINESS MEET

COME FIND YOUR ARKANSAS

ARKANSASGROUPTRAVEL.COM

ON THE COVER: Meeting attendees in Monterey, California, can explore the beautiful bay and Cannery Row with Adventures By the Sea bike rentals. Photo by Michael Vanera, courtesy SeeMonterey.com

INSIDE VOLUME 20 | ISSUE 8

IDEAS Meetings at Museums

CITY Monterey, California

Courtesy Flint Hills Discovery Center

TOWN Fayetteville, Arkansas

MEETING GUIDE Nebraska

D E PA R T M E N T S

INSIGHTS 8 CONFERENCE 10 MANAGING 6Testimonials, Sightseeing Site Selection Amplified

Tours

SMALL MARKET MEETINGS is published monthly by Pioneer Publishing, Inc., 301 E. High St., Lexington, KY 40507, and is distributed free of charge to qualified meeting planners who plan meetings in small and medium size towns and cities. All other meeting industry suppliers may subscribe by sending a check for $39 for one year to: Small Market Meetings, Circulation Department, 301 East High St., Lexington, KY 40507. Phone (866) 356-5128 (toll-free) or (859) 225-1452. Fax: (859) 253-0499. Copyright SMALL MARKET MEETINGS, Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction of editorial or graphic content in any manner without the written consent of the publisher is prohibited.

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CUSTOM CONTENT

W I C H I TA

TRENDS FEATURIN G

KANSAS C OOL BY VICKIE MITCHELL

ichita, Kan., did not host the 2018 NCAA men’s Final Four basketball championship. But the city act-

ed like it did. Wichita went all out as a first- and second-round site for the NCAA tourney. It set up block parties around its INTRUST Bank Arena so fans could celebrate before and after games. Wichita also accomplished a feat no other early- round host city had managed. It housed more than 14k fans at open practices held the day before the tourney started. “We treated it like it was the Final Four,” said Susie Santo, president and CEO of Visit Wichita. The effort was typical of Kansas’s largest city. With visitors on the doorstep, said Santo, “the community rallied around and rolled out the red carpet.”

UPON ARRIVAL, WICHITA WOWS

Wichita is known for its aviation industry, and its modern airport tends to wow even well-heeled travelers like a professional tennis player who came to town for a competition. Like other visitors, he learned that getting around was easy and inexpensive, thanks to complimentary hotel shuttles and a free downtown Q-Line system.

NO DUSTY COWTOWN

Those who arrive in Wichita expecting a dusty cowtown instead find sophistication, from a city symphony to an art museum where Chihuly chandeliers dangle over visitors. Even Old Cowtown Museum, which pre-

serves Wichita’s frontier spirit through a recreated Kansas town of 54 historic 1800s buildings, can shift its mood depending on need. One event might be cowboy casual, with barbecue and beans, the next formal and fancy, with white tablecloths, china and crystal.

TIGERS, GORILLAS AND ELEPHANTS

Wichita also has an unexpected exotic side. At the Sedgwick County Zoo, gorillas, tigers and one of the country’s best African elephant exhibits become backdrops for meetings. Another venue, Tanganyika Wildlife Park, specializes in close-up encounters with rare creatures as it tells of a family’s success in breeding exotic animals on the Kansas plains.

FOLLOW THE RIVERS

Much of what meeting goers need is found along Wichita’s rivers, the Arkansas and Little Arkansas. Between the rivers is a museum district that includes the Wichita Art Museum, Old Cowtown and Botanica, 17 acres of some 20 themed gardens. Each indoor venue is tied to an outdoor space, including a pavilion next to a burbling koi pond. Where the two rivers converge stands what Santo calls “our Statue of Liberty,” the Keeper of the Plains, a 44-foot statue of a Native American chief. Weather permitting, most evenings, crowds gather as night falls and a ring of fire blazes at his feet for 15 minutes.

NEW BALLPARK WILL BE EVENT VENUE

Past the confluence, work has begun on a new minor-league ballpark that developers say will be a model for its peers. The 6,000seat stadium is across the Arkansas River

from the convention center. The convention center is attached to the Hyatt Regency Hotel. (A live cam attached to the hotel is trained on the ballpark site so fans can watch progress.) After it opens next April, the ballpark will be a year-round site for events. The ballpark will be another place where Wichita can proudly wave its red, white and blue city flag. It’s everywhere, Santo says — on license plates, along city streets, in murals. The 1937 design is timeless. Few cities wave their flag with such fervor. But, like other aspects of Wichita, the flag reflects the enthusiasm locals have for their city and their joy in sharing it. “The resurgence of the flag was one of those grassroots efforts,” says Santo. “The people took it, and made it their own.”

FOR MORE INFORMATION Visit Wichita Visitwichita.com 800-288-9424 Moji Rosson Vice President of Sales mrosson@visitwichita.com 316-660-6328

INSIGHTS WITH VICKIE MITCHELL

TESTIMONIALS, AMPLIFIED

hat’s the best way to convince people to attend the conferences and conventions you plan? How about spreading the word by “modified” word-of-mouth? It’s a way to take attendees’ comments and testimonials and send them to your target audience through social media channels and traditional marketing methods — basically, word-of-mouth, amplified. Having those who’ve attended your conference and experienced the benefits firsthand talk about what they got out of their three days at the CHI Health Center in Omaha can help sell those who are unsure about spending the time and money to attend. Here are five advantages of face-to-face meetings that you can promote through the experiences of previous attendees, as well as ideas on how to disseminate those stories.

Promote your conferences with these supercharged word-ofmouth techniques

Live events rock.

Every business speaker these days has a TED Talk, so why should anyone get excited about seeing a keynote in person? Well, because live is different. Here’s my best example. I always liked Tom Petty’s music. Then I saw him in concert, and I became a huge fan. Find an attendee who was wowed by a speaker at your last conference and have them talk on camera about the impact of seeing that speaker live. Maybe they’ll talk about how they met the speaker at the book signing after the keynote or how they got to ask a question after the main talk wrapped up. Post the short — three-to-four minute — video on your conference website.

www.smallmarketmeetings.com

Seeing is believing.

Skype can be uncomfortable and awkward, email can be misconstrued, and phone calls are one-dimensional. Sitting down with someone at a seminar or group dinner allows for a different level of communication. The smiles are wide, the laughs loud. Conversations can rove from work to home life; the freedom to talk without an agenda can lead to new insights and perspectives. Even tough topics are tackled a little more easily. Find people who have became fast friends after meeting at your conference and ask them to talk about how their relationship has enriched their work life. Have them describe how they support each other, connecting through calls and emails. Publish a story with photos about their friendship in your association magazine several months before your conference. Remember, in survey after survey, people say networking is one of the main reasons they attend conventions and conferences.

Scenery change perks the brain.

Where were you the last time you had a brilliant idea? Chances are you weren’t sitting in your Herman Miller Aeron desk chair looking at your MacBook Air screen. New surroundings are the brain’s catnip. Remember this point made by Neil Patel in an article for Forbes.com: “New experiences, new destinations, new sensations — these are the types of things that inspire new ideas. You can’t brainstorm new unless you experience new.” Most organizations tout the attractions and other attributes of the cities where they’ll have their next conference. But wouldn't it be fun to have your CEO or association president who toured the host city talk about how what was seen on the visit sparked new ideas? Have the CEO or president write about it in a letter to your members. Or perhaps create an Instagram promo using photos of the meeting destination and well-crafted captions.

Get smarter faster.

Remind attendees that they are the masters of their own fate so they must be assertive when it comes to learning new skills and widening their know-how. Let’s say, for example, your conference includes a session on how to use AirTable and other project management software. A lot of your members are probably using this tool and wishing they had the time to dig in and learn all its features. It could be valuable to do a Q&A with the seminar presenter about what she’ll be teaching, post it on Facebook and LinkedIn, and publish it in the association newsletter. Another point you could make, perhaps through a previous attendee, is that staff who attend educational seminars can take what they learn back to the office and share it with their co-workers. Find someone from one of your previous conferences who attended expressly to earn CEUs or to attend a specific seminar. Interview the person and post that testimonial on the conference website.

August 2019

Build a network.

A trade show is about far more than a bag of swag. Seeing the latest tech is what brings almost 200,000 people to Las Vegas for the International Consumer Electronics Show each year and more than a million to New York to see cars at the New York International Auto Show. Almost every industry conference has a trade show, where attendees wander and talk to suppliers. Find attendees who came to your last conference in search of information about new software, a historic hotel or something else they needed to do their work. Have them talk about the value of spending time on the trade show floor and ask them to describe their trade show strategy. Post one of these interviews on your website, the conference site or LinkedIn.

CONFERENCE

CONFERENCE SIGHTSEEING TO HIGHLIGHT GREEN BAY LANDMARKS

W BY DAN DICKSON

hen delegates travel to a conference in a city they haven’t visited, they hope to see what makes that city special. Smart planners arrange for guests to experience the historical, cultural, beautiful, cool and fun sites that make their cities unique. That’s exactly what attendees to the 2019 Small Market Meetings Conference will enjoy when they meet in Green Bay, Wisconsin, September 24-26. “We’re excited to host the conference and even more to showcase Green Bay and all we have to offer,” said Beth Ulatowski of the Greater Green Bay Convention and Visitors Bureau. Unfortunately, pre- and post-conference FAM tours are already fully booked thanks to the popularity of Green Bay in the fall months. This northeast Wisconsin city is home to the 13-time NFL champion Green Bay Packers, and the team happens to play a home game against the Philadelphia Eagles during the conference. However, FAM tours can be arranged for other dates of the year, said Ulatowski. Meeting planners who return to the city for site visits can enjoy many of the same experiences included on the sold-out FAM tours. The visits will incorporate the Packers’ Lambeau Field and its Atrium and the nearby Titletown District. Other popular FAM destinations are the Green Bay Botanical Gardens; the National Railroad Museum; and the Automobile Gallery, a museum of classic cars. The tour includes stops at several hotel properties to learn what they offer meetings groups. The pre-conference FAM dinner will be at the Republic Chop House. The pre-conference FAM hotel will be the historic and recently renovated Hotel Northland, first opened in 1924. The post-conference FAM tour will include many of the same stops as the pre-conference tour. A lunch will be served at 1919, a restaurant at Lambeau Field; dinner will be at a downtown restaurant called Black and Tan. The post-conference FAM hotel will be Green Bay’s outdoor-themed Tundra Lodge.

SMALL MARKET MEETINGS CONFERENCE ATTENDEES CAN VISIT THE ONEIDA NATION DURING SIGHTSEEING TOURS IN AND AROUND GREEN BAY.

All photos courtesy Green Bay CVB

www.smallmarketmeetings.com

THE AUTOMOBILE GALLERY

GREEN BAY BOTANICAL GARDEN

NATIONAL RAILROAD MUSEUM

All the delegates to the Small Market Meetings Conference will enjoy an afternoon of sightseeing on the second day of the meeting. Delegates will have their choice of five tours. One will visit the beautiful Green Bay Botanical Gardens and will include a hands-on activity. A second tour will visit the National Railroad Museum for an event called Rails and Ales that offers a sampling of local craft beers. Another tour will go to the tribal village of the Oneida Nation of Wisconsin on the outskirts of Green Bay, where visitors will learn the history and culture of this Native American group. Green Bay loves its beer, so the fourth tour will visit several of the city’s finest breweries. The CVB has dubbed the excursion “Pilsners, Stouts and Ales… Oh, My!” Delegates will get to sample some of the local suds. The last tour choice will take delegates to the Automobile Galley to see its collection of beautiful antique cars spanning every decade of the past century.

August 2019

TO REGISTER FOR THE 2019 SMALL MARKET MEETINGS CONFERENCE IN GREEN BAY, WISCONSIN, SEPTEMBER 24-26, GO TO: SMMCONF.COM/REGISTRATION

MANAGING

Savvy Selection

EMPLOY THESE STRATEGIES WHEN CHOOSING SITES FOR SMALLER MEETINGS

BY RACHEL CARTER

oe Cappuzzello, president and CEO of The Group Travel Family, has three criteria when it comes to site selection. First is a good qualified bid from a venue. Second is whether the destination will be of interest to people. Third — “and we mean it — do they want us?” he said. “How do we feel when we go there?” The Group Travel Family puts on five annual conferences that range from 250 to 450 attendees, and “we go to medium or smaller markets, so when we go there, we’re an important partner of theirs,” Cappuzzello said. “If we go to an Orlando or Las Vegas, they won’t even know we’re there.” Site selection can be challenging for small to medium-size meetings, but those events can also make the most of their size. We spoke to meeting planners with decades of experience in choosing locations for smaller events. Here’s what they said.

“The more flexible you are as a small to medium-size meeting, the more valuable you appear.”

KNOW YOUR EVENT. When an association plans a meeting, a committee often passes along three or four destination suggestions to the planner, which can be helpful in narrowing down options. But sometimes, the meeting planner is responsible for the entire destination selection. The Association of State and Provincial Psychology Boards (ASPPB) puts on 30 to 40 events a year ranging from six people to 150. ASPPB works with psychology boards across the U.S. and Canada, which makes it difficult to find destinations that work for all attendees, said Anita Scott, director of meetings and events. She tries to vary locations, but whether she has a short list or a blank slate, choosing a city is about “knowing your attendees, knowing who’s going to be there,” she said. If a February event will have a lot of Canadian attendees, “they want to go to Florida” — or anywhere they can shed the cold and their coats. It’s also about knowing your event so you know your needs. Having a tentative agenda before they dive into site selection gives planners an idea of the day, the flow, the meals and the receptions, which will make the process easier down the road, said Natalie Lundstrom, principal and co-founder of SweetPea Meetings and Events.

Joe Cappuzzello PRESIDENT AND CEO

The Group Travel Family Experience: 15 years

www.smallmarketmeetings.com

USE CVBS TO HELP WITH RFPS.

“Be professional, listen and actually be supportive to the sales team — you’ll get more with that than with anything else.”

With three or four destinations in mind, enlisting CVBs to help with RFPs is a critical step. “I don’t know why you wouldn’t use a CVB,” Cappuzzello said. “Ninety-nine percent of the time, it’s a great experience, and it’s free. And they have the vast knowledge of the area.” CVBs will ask hotels to bid on your business, and getting the first round of bids back helps further narrow the field. If Scott has a group of 10 for a two-day event, and the hotel sets a $5,000 minimum for food and beverage, “there’s no way that can happen,” she said. “Then I know they’re not really interested in me.” During the RFP process, planners should say if they’re willing to fit into a certain time period and take unused space; doing so may get you a great rate and better concessions, Lundstrom said. Or a hotel may have sold a bunch of rooms but hasn’t sold any space, so your event could get more meeting space — especially if most attendees are local or driving in and don’t need as many room nights, she said.

BE FLEXIBLE AND INNOVATIVE.

Anita Scott DIRECTOR OF MEETINGS AND EVENTS Association of State and Provincial Psychology Boards Experience: 30 years

August 2019

Being flexible with meeting dates or destinations can bring big benefits for smaller events. Maybe the program starts Tuesday and ends Friday, but a property can fit your small group in Monday through Thursday. Planners can also consider offseason dates, such as an August meeting in Tucson, Arizona, or an early December seminar in Columbus, Ohio. “You are more likely to get closer to your ideal room rate and better concessions because it fits what the hotel needs,” Lundstrom said. Being adventurous about the venue can also lead to benefits. In the past, The Group Travel Family required a convention-type facility with an exhibit hall and a formal ballroom. Now, the company thinks outside the box, and a destination’s desire for the business can almost, but not entirely, override facility constraints. Holmes County, Ohio, in the heart of Amish country, didn’t have any formal meeting space and had no full-service hotels, but wanted the 2017 Going On Faith Conference. So, after Sunday service, the large Mennonite congregation removed its seating so the church could serve as the exhibit hall, and the multipurpose basketball court became the dining area. Long tables, which Cappuzzello said are usually “a sin in conferences,” worked well as Amish women served family-style meals. “There’s an example of options and thinking outside the box,” Cappuzzello said. “We had 300 people, and they were able to have a great

MANAGING experience because the host worked their fanny off and got the whole community involved.”

NAVIGATE CHALLENGES. When selecting sites for smaller meetings, planners don’t have a lot of bargaining power because they’re not bringing a lot of revenue to the table. If the venue is hesitant and inflexible up-front, that’s likely how it will be through the entire meeting, Lundstrom said. You want to work with a venue that understands your goals and is willing to help you achieve them. If not, keep walking because another venue wants your business. During site visits, Scott also “walks the halls” after her official meeting with sales and food-and-beverage managers. She’ll sit in the lobby to see how smoothly the front desk runs. If an event is happening while she’s there, she seeks out the planner to ask what it’s like working with the hotel.

Natalie Lundstrom

PRINCIPAL AND CO-FOUNDER SweetPea Meetings and Events Experience: 15 years

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“A property should show you that your meeting is important, no matter the size. If you aren't receiving regular communication during the site-selection process or hearing ‘How can we earn your business?’ look elsewhere.”

“You’ll always get an honest answer from a meeting planner,” Scott said. Venues may sometimes relegate small events to less-desirable rooms. Planners should ask for a specific room they like so they don’t end up in a basement corner with no windows, Scott said.

PLAY UP ADVANTAGES. Smaller meetings have several advantages over large events for site selection. Small meetings can go almost anywhere, and they can book in much shorter windows. A 2,000-person conference has limited venue options and has to book at least two years in advance. Scott can get one of her one-room meetings into the tightly booked Austin market only a month out. The larger the meeting, the longer the lead time. Though shorter time frames are a bonus, “we also feel like it allows us to boost it a little bit,” Scott said. “Sometimes the quality of the resort or the event will be a little bit better because you can afford to do it for six people rather than for a big group.”

Where

Meets

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ADVENTURE

August W W W . 2019 VISITHENDERSON.COM

877.775.5252

IDEAS

Courtesy Caterpillar Visitors Center

MEET AT A MUSEUM These cultural institutions offer unique event experiences BY RACHEL CARTER

hether it’s during daytime or after hours, having meetings at museums allows attendees to gather in places that offer all sorts of interactive exhibits and educational activities. Feel the rumble in the bed of a two-story-tall mining truck, have your hair stand on end at a static-electricity generator or watch as smoke rolls across the theater floor while a prairie fire rages onscreen at these meeting-friendly museums.

DOUG OBERHELMAN CATERPILLAR VISITORS CENTER

PEORIA, ILLINOIS The first stop at the Doug Oberhelman Caterpillar Visitors Center in Peoria, Illinois, is the 797 Theater in the bed of a Cat 797F Mining Truck, Caterpillar’s largest mining vehicle. During a short movie, the seats rumble along with the action as the film takes guests to worksites around the world. “To see the size of the truck — it’s two and a half stories tall, and the tire is 14 feet tall — it’s just incredible,” said manager Susan Morton. “It’s a fan favorite for the photo opportunities.” The visitor center opened in October 2012 on the banks of the Illinois River and houses a museum as well as function space. In addition to the 62-seat theater, groups of up to 104 can use the dining room and connected balconies that overlook the river for meals or seated events. The adjacent classroom accommodates 50 people, and a 16-person conference room works well for board meetings. An outdoor plaza with a lawn and an amphitheater can host events for as many as 200 people.

Meeting-goers can see early models of Caterpillar equipment on display at the Caterpillar Visitors Center in Peoria.

www.smallmarketmeetings.com

The equipment gallery can accommodate receptions for up to 200 people. Staircases at all the machines allow guests to get a closer look, and five simulator stations let visitors compete to see who can best operate an excavator or a crawler tractor. The center changes the equipment every year, “so it’s always a different experience,” Morton said. Attendees can tour the museum at their leisure — including the Building Blocks exhibit through June 2020 — or embark on team-building scavenger hunts. caterpillar.com

“That’s what makes having a meeting here fun. After you’re done doing your work, you can be a little bit more playful.” — Joe Yachanin, Great Lakes Science Center

INDIAN PUEBLO CULTURAL CENTER

ALBUQUERQUE, NEW MEXICO The Indian Pueblo Cultural Center opened its doors in 1976 in Albuquerque, New Mexico, as a place for the state’s 19 pueblos to come together. Though it’s a resource for the pueblo communities, it’s also an educational center and a museum for visitors to learn about the pueblos’ history, art and culture, both past and present. The center’s 24,000 square feet of meeting space is available during the day, and the entire building is available after hours for up to 400 people. Nine meeting rooms range from 480 square feet to a divisible 3,200-squarefoot space. An outdoor rotunda, sculpture garden and courtyard are great for events under the night sky. The onsite, full-service Pueblo Harvest restaurant caters events. Its seasonal menus feature crops grown within the pueblo communities and traditional foods like feast day stew, posole, green chili, pueblo oven bread, pueblo cookies, pumpkin pudding and wojapi, a stewed-berry dessert. Groups can also arrange for tastings and culinary demonstrations, like corn grinding or a workshop where

Photos courtesy IPCC

August 2019

Experiences at the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center, clockwise from left: A traditional dance demonstration; a cultural showcase; fry bread cooking classes

IDEAS

guests make and eat their own fry bread. In the center’s Resilience Garden, groups can explore the story of pueblo agriculture from before contact through today. The Daily Artist Program allows visitors to watch and interact with artists as they make pottery, jewelry, stonework carvings and sculptures. Dancers perform traditional dances every weekend throughout the year, but groups can also arrange to hire a dance group for private events or after-hours performances. indianpueblo.org

GREAT LAKES SCIENCE CENTER

CLEVELAND Not every venue raises attendees’ hair, but the Great Lakes Science Center in Cleveland, Ohio, can, and it can make visitors of any age feel like they’re in eighth grade again as they touch a static electricity generator. “That’s what makes having a meeting here fun,” said Joe Yachanin, director of communications. “After you’re done doing your work, you can be a little bit more playful.” Meeting groups can use the Science Phenomenon gallery, a collection of more than 110 hands-on exhibits;

Photos courtesy Great Lakes Science Center

BUSINESS MEETS PLEASURE

A T L I B E RT Y S C I E N C E C E N T E R Planning a private dinner, a conference, or a team-building event? Gather in a soaring open atrium or a dramatic, glass-enclosed private room overlooking New York City and the Statue of Liberty. Or explore the universe in the new Jennifer Chalsty Planetarium—the biggest planetarium in the Western Hemisphere. We can’t wait to welcome you.

LSC.ORG/EVENTS | SPECIALEVENTS@LSC.ORG | 201.253.1378

www.smallmarketmeetings.com

Great Lakes Science Center, clockwise from left: An afterhours museum gala; the waterfront museum exterior; a space exploration gallery

Reinberger Hall, the center’s temporary exhibit space; and NASA Glenn Visitor Center, one of only 11 NASA visitors centers in the country, where the centerpiece is an Apollo command module that traveled 26.5 million miles in space. The atrium on the promenade level can seat about 225 guests at rounds and boasts 80-foot-tall windows overlooking Lake Erie. Reinberger Auditorium can seat 200 people, and groups can book the six-story, domed-screen Imax theater. For sit-down functions, the center can accommodate about 400 people, but up to 4,000 guests can use it for after-hours events. The center offers a wide range of science-centered programs and team-building activities, like the egg drop challenge. Each team builds a device that will protect an egg in an 80-foot drop from the mezzanine level. The center offers a number of science shows, and planners can arrange one as part of their private event. “Lift Off ” explores the science of rockets and propulsion, and “It’s Electric” features a 12-foot Tesla coil. greatscience.com

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August 2019

IDEAS

CORNING MUSEUM OF GLASS

CORNING MUSEUM OF GLASS Courtesy CMOG

CORNING, NEW YORK During a meeting at the Corning Museum of Glass in Corning, New York, attendees are surrounded by 3,500 years of history — very delicate history. The museum has several dedicated event spaces that are available during business hours. The auditorium can seat 750 people theater style and includes a full stage, but it can also be used for dinners for 300 or receptions for 800. The museum cafe can host dinners for about 120 people, and the seminar room in the Rakow Research Library can seat 32 people for meals. Those are some of the dedicated meeting spaces; however, the museum is also available for after-hours events, during which groups have more access to many of the glass galleries. The admissions lobby is one of the museum’s most-rented spaces, where guests can mingle around Dale Chihuly’s towering “Fern Green” sculpture. The Innovation Center is an interactive science and technology gallery that features a glass floor, a tower of casserole dishes and a sculpture of suspended windshields.

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Daily programs include hot glass, flameworking and glass-breaking demonstrations. For meetings or private events, the museum offers live glassblowing shows, group demonstrations and hands-on classes. cmog.org

FLINT HILLS DISCOVERY CENTER

MANHATTAN, KANSAS Tallgrass prairie once covered 170 million acres of North America. Today, roughly 95% of the original tallgrass is gone, and about 95% of what’s left is in the Flint Hills of Kansas. The Flint Hills Discovery Center in Manhattan, Kansas, aims to educate and promote the stewardship of the Flint Hills’ rare eco-region. “We have a real gem here of America’s natural heritage that we like to share with people,” said Jonathan Mertz, event supervisor for the center as well as the city-owned Union Pacific Depot and Blue Earth Plaza. For smaller daytime meetings, the center has two private rooms that can each accommodate 50 people for receptions or 25 for meetings. The rooms are only steps from the rooftop Prairie Garden Terrace and Trails space, which is open to the public during the day but can host 150-person private events after hours. Guests can explore areas planted with wildflowers and grasses and take in views of downtown Manhattan and the Kansas River Valley. Larger gatherings or after-hours events move into the exhibit space, which can accommodate seated meals for 120 or receptions for up to 400 people. Guests will have access to interactive exhibits, including one of the most popular displays, which shows how deep the tallgrass prairie root system goes. The Horizon Ranch Flint Hills Immersive Experience Theater “is the gem in our crown,” Mertz said. Snow falls on viewers during the film, and smoke rolls across the floor as the movie discusses fire as part of the prairie ecosystem. flinthillsdiscovery.org

August 2019

s a ’ i n r o f i l a C stal a o C ENCLAVE

Monterey Plaza Hotel and Spa overlooks Monterey Bay on the city’s historic Cannery Row. Courtesy Monterey Plaza

CITY

Monterey County offers stunning scenery and diverse meeting opportunities

BY KATHERINE TANDY BROWN

he names of a few of Monterey County’s 12 cities roll off the tongue like breakers along the central California coast: Big Sur; Carmelby-the-Sea; Monterey; Pebble Beach; Salinas; Pacific Grove; and the Salinas Valley, “Salad Bowl of the World.” Its history is lush with conquistadores, adobe missions and creative souls seeking clearer perspective from its magnificent cliffs and ever-changing ocean. Nobel Prize winner and Salinas native John Steinbeck lured hordes of curious readers to Monterey through the settings of novels such as “Cannery Row.” “Monterey County is the greatest meeting of land and sea that inspires and invigorates attendees both inside and outside of our meeting space,” said Mark McMinn, vice president of business development at the Monterey County Convention and Visitors Bureau. “Our region continues to grow in its meeting venue offerings, from large facilities to unique smaller venues.”

MONTEREY AT A GLANCE

LOCATION: On California’s central coast, 100 miles south of San Francisco, 300 miles north of Los Angeles ACCESS: CA 1 (Pacific Coast Highway), U.S. Route 101 (Scenic Highway 101), Monterey Regional Airport HOTEL ROOMS: 11,800 CONTACT INFO: Monterey County Convention and Visitors Bureau 831-657-6400 meetinmonterey.com MONTEREY CONFERENCE CENTER COMPLEX BUILT: 1977; reopened in 2018 after $60 million renovation EXHIBIT SPACE: 40,000 square feet OTHER MEETING SPACES: Breakout rooms, courtyard, mezzanine, foyer MEETING HOTELS Portola Hotel and Spa GUESTROOMS: 379 MEETING SPACE: 40,000 square feet Monterey Marriott GUESTROOMS: 341 MEETING SPACE: 16,500 square feet Hotel Pacific GUESTROOMS: 105 suites MEETING SPACE: 1,777 square feet Hyatt Regency Hotel and Spa GUESTROOMS: 550, including 27 suites MEETING SPACE: 40,000 square feet

August 2019

Destination Highlights

ver since California’s constitution was written here in 1847, brilliant minds inspired by sunny seaside surroundings have convened in Monterey and its environs to meet or retreat. With average annual temperatures in the mild 60s, the county is a Pacific playground that lures the winter-weary and heat-stressed to find relief in its desert mountains, wide valleys and luminous seascapes. In addition to year-round whale watching, visitors can choose from 21 public and private golf courses playable every season or browse 100 art galleries, many of those in artsy Carmel-by-the-Sea. In total, 175 vineyards and 60-plus winery tasting rooms offer samplings of 32 varietals of world-renowned California wines. And each year, 300-plus special events — golf, culinary, automotive, and music, such as the Monterey Jazz Festival — take place. Aware of its fragile topography, Monterey County embraces sustainability with a vengeance. For example, after every meeting or event there, the world-class Monterey Bay Aquarium sends the host company a sustainability report telling it how much the aquarium was able to keep out of the waste stream thanks to the event. Folktale Winery and Vineyards

DESTINATION HIGHLIGHTS

Courtesy SeeMonterey.com

DISTINCTIVE VENUES

The Barns at Cooper Molera Courtesy Events by Classic Group

Distinctive Venues

n Cannery Row, Monterey Bay Aquarium is a massive marine center with 35,000-plus sea creatures — floating neon jellyfish, clownlike sea otters and schools of silver sardines — that fill 34 galleries. With fascinating event spaces, the aquarium can accommodate from 10 attendees to 3,000. An underwater diver can interact with guests and answer questions. “Because we’re a nonprofit education and conservation organization, all funds from an event go back into the aquarium to fund animal rescue, especially otters,” said John Abrahamson, the aquarium’s director of events and catering. “We host only corporate events and take sustainability to heart.” Tucked behind an adobe wall reminiscent of its 1800s beginnings, the Barns at Cooper Molera provides a rustic, historic event venue for 600, with indoor and outdoor seating. “Clients tell us that they feel transported to an earlier era,” said Cheryl Cox, one of four owners. “Yet just outside is the heartbeat of downtown Monterey.” With outdoor and indoor spaces for 10 to 500, Folktale Winery and Vineyards offers team building via a chef-led Chopped Team Challenge, an interactive cooking demo or wine blending. An amazing resource for kayak, bike and hiking tours, Adventures by the Sea offers customized team building. A scavenger hunt helps attendees learn about Monterey’s history and attractions, and Bike Build for Charity donates bicycles to the Boys and Girls Club. “We take bikes to a meeting, where teams have to put them together,” said instructor Dan Healy. “Whichever bike looks and drives the best wins.”

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Major Meeting Spaces

AFTER HOURS

Pebble Beach Resort

eopened downtown last year after a $60 million renovation, the Monterey Conference Center hosts conventions, trade shows and exhibitions for up to 3,200 attendees in 40,000 square feet of flexible space. For larger groups, another 45,000 square feet can be added to double its capacity by implementing two hotel properties that connect to the center — the AAA Four Diamond Portola Hotel and Spa, Monterey’s first LEED-certified hotel, and the Monterey Marriott, with a 10th-floor ballroom overlooking Monterey Bay. Across the street, the Spanish-style adobe Pacific Hotel adds meeting space for 70. All these properties are within easy walking distance of Monterey’s attractions. On Del Monte Golf Course, a landmark opened in Pebble Beach in 1897, the Hyatt Regency Monterey Hotel and Spa caters to meetings with three dozen breakout rooms, terraces, foyers and courtyards, many with luscious course views. Near Carmel, Carmel Valley Ranch is a 500-acre, luxury resort with 181 guest studios and suites, all redesigned since June, along with upgraded, expansive meeting and event spaces, and spa and golf clubhouse renovations in a resortwide “reimagination.” Artisans-in-residence facilitate a number of its myriad amenities, which include two interactive culinary spaces and an apiary program where participants “suit up” and take teamwork tips from honeybees. “For activity-focused meetings, we offer classic diversions such as golf or more unique ones like hatchet throwing,” said Matt Bailey, managing director at Carmel Valley Ranch. “I don’t know many other places that have such a wide variety of things to do.”

MAJOR MEETING SPACES

Monterey Conference Center and Monterey Marriott

Courtesy SeeMonterey.com

August 2019

Courtesy SeeMonterey.com

After the Meeting

nce a busy sardine canning area, Fisherman’s Wharf was an active fish market until the 1960s. Now, Monterey’s historic waterfront Cannery Row rocks with shops, seafood restaurants, museums, tour companies, bars and nightlife. A culinary jewel, Monterey County knows its way around a kitchen. Hooking up with Trip Advisor’s top-rated tour in Carmel, Carmel Food Tours, gives participants a sipping and tasting peek behind the scenes. The county is full of diverse ways to commune with nature. Along the Big Sur Coastline and Highway 1, the famous 17-Mile Drive is all spectacular coastal scenery, epic forests, wildlife — elephant seals, whales and sea otters — and pristine beaches. Memorable ways to travel the winding seaside road are by electric bicycle with a preloaded GPS from Mad Dogs and Englishmen Bike Shop in Carmel-by-the-Sea or classic car from Monterey Touring Vehicles. Its 36-auto roster includes a 1938 Rolls-Royce Phantom III and a 1961 Volkswagen 23-Window Microbus. “Off-duty” attendees and spouses can hit the links and even take lessons at Pebble Beach, one of the country’s most venerated public golf courses, set amid beaches, bays and cliffs. Or drop in to Point Lobos State Reserve for snorkeling, scuba diving, sea kayaking or hiking in this treasure of a marine mammal gathering spot. For sustainable relaxation, meeting-goers can visit Bernardus Lodge in Carmel Valley, a destination spa with garden-to-treatment philosophy.

VENUE

VISITORS EXPLORE AN EXHIBIT AT THE NATIONAL CIVIL RIGHTS MUSEUM IN MEMPHIS

Courtesy Memphis CVB

A CIVIL RIGHTS LANDMARK

ew museums incite an emotional response in their visitors. But the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis, Tennessee, does exactly that. The museum opened in 1991 inside the historic Lorraine Motel, the site where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated in 1968. Over the years, the museum has transformed the once-somber site into a beacon of hope that shines a glowing light on the American civil rights movement. The museum encourages visitors to gather in this historic space to learn and engage in civil rights history in order to better understand how this history impacts them today. It also provokes thoughtful conversations about the past, present and future of civil rights in the country and beyond. Beginning with slavery, the museum follows the tumultuous timeline of the American civil rights movement with videos, displays and historical items that showcase the realities of the movement, from the nonviolent protests to armed self-defense. Interactive and immersive exhibits cover topics from slavery to black power, from voting rights to immigration, from Jim Crow to King’s last

BY KRISTY ALPERT

days at the Lorraine Motel. Visitors will also get the chance to know some civil rights activists whose names and stories aren’t widely known. They will be introduced to the men and women who made it their life’s work to make right the wrongs of injustice, including Bayard Rustin, Fannie Lou Hamer, John Lewis, Bob Moses, Joan Trumpauer Mulholland and thousands more who contributed greatly to the movement. The civil rights movement has always been about uniting people, and the museum offers ample space for groups of various sizes to gather for meetings, events and celebrations. Along with regularly scheduled debates, book talks and speaker events, the museum welcomes in meeting groups with five dedicated spaces available for rent. Each space offers a new environment for groups, from a working theater to a conference hall with multiple possible configurations.

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M E E T I N G S PA C E S

CRUDITE AT THE MUSEUM

Among the meeting spaces at the National Civil Rights Museum are an operational theater with an alcove for live music and a grand hall with its own kitchen and prep area for caterers. The Hooks Hyde Hall can be divided into two areas, Hall A and Hall B, and features a flexible floor plan with audiovisual equipment

and a kitchen and prep area; it holds up to 350 guests. Other spaces include the FedEx Atrium with an alcove for live music, for up to 100 guests; the State of Tennessee Gallery, for up to 100 guests; the Ford Motor Theatre Presentation, for up to 100 guests; and the Links Education Center, for up to 100 guests.

C AT E R I N G Although the National Civil Rights Museum does not offer culinary options for meeting groups, a few of the venues offer on-site kitchens and prep areas for groups to either prepare their own meals or bring in an outside caterer to prepare the meals on-site. The meeting and event staff is happy to provide a list

of preferred caterers that offer a variety of cuisines, but catering will need to be secured by the meeting organizer. The museum allows alcohol as a part of the meetings or specials event, but meeting organizers are encouraged to discuss the specifics of the bar service with the museum’s meetings and events staff.

AFTER EVENTS Courtesy NCRM

V E N U E FA C T S THE LORRAINE MOTEL’S HISTORIC MARQUEE

NATIONAL CIVIL RIGHTS MUSEUM LOCATION

Memphis, Tennessee

The biggest attraction for guests of events at the National Civil Rights Museum is the museum itself. Meeting groups can book tours of the museum for a discounted rate, and the experience can enhance the meeting by offering an authentic backdrop for diversity training and human resource workshops, or

even just offer enlightenment for educational or social occasions. Visitors are encouraged to take a moment to reflect in the museum’s courtyard — with the Lorraine Motel marque sign on one side and the balcony where King died on the other — before moving inside for a journey through civil rights history.

EXTRAS

TYPE OF VENUE Off-site, museum

CAPACITY

350

NEARBY ACCOMMODATIONS Westin Memphis Beale Street

CONTACT INFO

Courtesy Memphis CVB

August 2019

901-521-9699 civilrightsmuseum.org

The event spaces at the National Civil Rights Museum were recently renovated to feature state-of-the-art equipment and modern furnishings. Many of the rooms available for rent feature audio and visual equipment and even alcoves for live music; others, like the Links Education Center, offer a full library with desktop computers for

groups looking to dig a little deeper into the history and roots of the American civil rights movement. The museum’s staff can also help arrange for engaging experiences for groups going through the museum, such as the lunch counter sit-in experience that puts visitors in the shoes of the nonviolent college students that helped change history in the 1960s.

TOWN

k c a b r o z Ra

COUNTRY BY RACHEL CARTER

eople may have certain expectations or preconceived notions about a smallish city in northwestern Arkansas, but when they actually arrive in Fayetteville, “people are completely blown away,” said Hazel Hernandez, vice president of sales and marketing for Experience Fayetteville. They find a vibrant college town that’s home to the University of Arkansas. They find a nature-lovers’ haven nestled in the Ozark Mountains. They find an arts and culture scene that rivals that of major metropolitan destinations. Fayetteville is Arkansas’ third-largest city, home to about 86,000 residents and to university students who are central to the city’s character. “You have 5,000 new people every year who are not only learning about themselves but also learning about Fayetteville,” Hernandez said. “There’s always new energy.” Groups can explore the campus or meet there. The Arkansas Union has over 20 different meeting rooms and spaces, including the Verizon Ballroom and the 247-capacity Union Theatre. Guests can attend up to 300 concerts per year at the university’s Stella Boyle Smith Concert Hall, watch performances at the 585-seat Jim and Joyce Faulkner Performing Arts Center and explore fine art at various galleries. But Fayetteville’s culture extends beyond campus. The Walton Arts Center brings in artists and entertainers from all over the world and features a Broadway series with shows like “The Book of Mormon,” “School of Rock” and “Les Misérables.” TheatreSquared, the city’s professional theater company, founded in 2005, just cut the ribbon on a new multimillion-dollar live performance theater in downtown. The building’s architecture exposes the artistic spaces rather than hiding them; the studio, rehearsal space and main stage are all visible from the street. Residents and visitors alike take advantage of the city’s nearby nature offerings. The 37-mile Razorback Greenway trail connects Fayetteville to its northern neighbors, and Experience Fayetteville can help arrange group biking outings using the city’s bike-sharing program. The Arkansas and Missouri Railroad is hugely popular in the fall, when an autumnal onslaught slides past the windows of antique passenger cars as the train travels through mountains and valleys. For planners who want to bring the great outdoors into their meetings, Mount Sequoyah Center is a full-service, historic mountaintop retreat just five minutes from downtown that can accommodate events for up to 400 people.

All photos courtesy Experience Fayetteville

A FAYETTEVILLE MURAL

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Town Center

GROUPS CONVENING IN FAYETTEVILLE CAN HOLD EVENTS IN THE MODERN, ELEGANT WALTON ARTS CENTER.

Fayetteville Town Center is just off the historic downtown square, and there, attendees will find restaurants, nightlife, festivals, a farmers market and Fayetteville’s largest hotel, The Chancellor, which is undergoing its own big changes. The town center features the 13,570-square-foot Ozark Ballroom, which can be split into three spaces, and two smaller meeting rooms that can seat 50 to 70 at rounds. The center just completed a renovation that added a hospitality suite and refreshed the entire space.

Get Ready to Graduate

The Chancellor Hotel on the historic downtown square will become the Graduate Fayetteville this fall, joining the collection of boutique hotels located in college towns that pay homage to the local university. Decor throughout the hotel will be a tasteful ode to the University of Arkansas and all things Razorbacks, including in the 234 guest rooms, the common areas and the 14,000 square feet of meeting space. The 4,800-square-foot Eureka Springs Ballroom can become four 1,200-square-foot event spaces, and the hotel’s five other event rooms work well for smaller meetings or breakout sessions.

FAYETTEVILLE ARKANSAS

FAYETTEVILLE TOWN CENTER

LOCATION

Northwest Arkansas

ACCESS

Interstate 49, about 60 miles north of Fort Smith; Northwest Arkansas Regional Airport

MAJOR MEETING SPACES

Fayetteville Town Center, Mount Sequoyah Retreat and Conference Center, Chancellor Hotel/Graduate Fayetteville

HOTEL ROOMS 2,066

OFF-SITE VENUES

University of Arkansas, Walton Arts Center, TheatreSquared, Clinton House Museum

CONTACT INFO

Experience Fayetteville 800-766-4626 experiencefayetteville.com

August 2019

TOWN

e l l i v e t t e y Fa

FAYETTEVILLE’S BAUM STADIUM

Performing as Venues

The Walton Arts Center acts as one of Fayetteville’s premier event spaces. The Walker Atrium is a glass-walled space where seated meals for 300 or receptions for 600 are held beneath the signature chandelier. Baum Walker Hall can accommodate up to 1,200 people, and the Starr Theater can seat 250 for banquets; both are highly configurable spaces. Two smaller rooms can each host meetings of 50 or 75, and the center’s private brick courtyard with built-in amphitheater is great for outdoor events. TheatreSquared can also be booked for private events and will offer group discounts for shows.

Ale Aboard

Experience Fayetteville launched the Fayetteville Ale Trail in August 2013 to give residents and visitors a chance to sample northwest Arkansas’ craft brewery — and one cidery — scene. The trail features 15 stops in Fayetteville and in neighboring cities. In Fayetteville, West Mountain Brewing Company sits on the downtown square, and Apple Blossom Brewing Company is a few miles north, near Lake Fayetteville. Two University of Arkansas graduates opened Columbus House Brewery just off the bike trail near campus. The trail offers a passport for people to collect stamps from each stop, but Experience Fayetteville can arrange private shuttles to take attendees to a couple breweries during an evening outing.

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Meeting Spaces

v a c at i o n v i e w s

STATE PA RK MO UN T MAGA ZIN E

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Nebraska Conference Centers

THE HOLTHUS CONVENTION CENTER IN YORK CAN ACCOMMODATE UP TO 1,100 PEOPLE.

Meetdieng Gui BY PAULA AVEN GLADYCH

any areas of Nebraska are too small to offer a full-size convention center. But in numerous destinations, dedicated conference centers fill the gap, offering a dash of small-town charm, a taste of history, comfortable guest rooms and gourmet cuisine. HOLTHUS CONVENTION CENTER

York Before the Holthus Convention Center was built in 2014, York could only accommodate meetings and conferences of up to 200 people. The state-of-the-art 30,000-square-foot conference facility now hosts events for up to 1,100 people or 800 banquet style. The land for the center was donated by the Holthus family, which owns York-based Cornerstone Bank, said Bob Sautter, executive director of the York County Visitors Bureau. “They were the ones who donated the land and gave us the first seed money for that. They raised the rest of the money through donations and grants.” The visitors bureau contributed $750,000 for the construction.

August 2019

Courtesy Holthus Convention Center

“We’re very lucky the Holthus family is very generous and give back a lot to the community,” Sautter said. The facility is now run by the city of York. Near the middle of Nebraska, the center attracts conferences from Grand Island, Kearney and Lincoln, groups that want something a little different, Sautter said. The Grand Ballroom has 12,000 square feet of space and 20-foot ceilings. The venue has a built-in stage, an audiovisual system and retractable big screens. The room can be divided into five separate rooms that operate independently. The facility has 11 flexible meeting and event spaces. The York area offers about 650 lodging rooms within five blocks of the convention center. There’s plenty to do in the area, including visits to the Clayton Museum of Ancient History at York College; Lee’s Legendary Marbles and Collectables, which hosts one of the world’s largest privately owned marble collections; and the largest, longest hand-drawn solvable maze, as certified by the Guinness Book of World Records. “A lot of people are looking for those odd little things,” Sautter said. holthusconventioncenter.com

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CAROL JOY HOLLING CONFERENCE AND RETREAT CENTER

CAROL JOY HOLLING CONFERENCE AND RETREAT CENTER Courtesy Holling Conference and Retreat Center

Ashland About 30 minutes from both Omaha and Lincoln, the Carol Joy Holling Conference and Retreat Center offers beautiful scenery, well-appointed meeting spaces, lodging and extensive team-building activities. The center has four main meeting locations on-site, including its Western Town, which can hold up to 756 people, and the Swanson Center, the Sjogren Center and the Holling House, all with spaces that hold up to 100 people. Hosting an event at the Carol Joy Holling Conference Center is a “great opportunity for businesses, organizations or groups to get out of town and get a change of scenery,” said Dani Hatfield, marketing director for the center. “You can be so much more productive and have a greater time when you get a change of scenery and a change of pace to what you are doing.” Both the Swanson and Sjogren locations have 24-hour hospitality centers with snacks and drinks for conference attendees and a host that caters to their every need. The conference center chef specializes in comfort food such as fried chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy, she said. But the staff can work with the dietary needs of any conference attendees. Team-building activities are extensive. The center has a highropes team challenge course where attendees start by climbing 30 feet up a cargo net and then working together to get to the other side of the course. It ends with a zip line to the ground. The low-ropes challenge course offers the same sorts of activities but closer to the ground. An indoor challenge course offers a nice blend of the other two courses. cjhcenter.org

GERING CIVIC CENTER

DIVOTS CONFERENCE CENTER Courtesy Divots Conference Center

Gering The Gering Civic Center is a 26,250-square-foot, multifunction banquet facility that sits on the Oregon Trail in western Nebraska. Right across the North Platte River from the city of Scottsbluff and close to Scotts Bluff National Monument, with its towering rock formations, the center can host meetings or events of up to 1,150 people in its Grand Ballroom. The national monument is the main reason most people visit Gering. It draws about 120,000 visitors a year. “One of the unique things about our conference and meeting facility is that when we have groups come from the eastern part of the state, where our large metropolitan areas are, they are surprised that our facility is of this caliber,” said Karla Nieden-Streeks, director of the Gering Visitors Bureau. Meeting planners compliment the center for its fabulous food and service. It has an in-house kitchen and catering staff. “All of us have been to conferences with great meeting rooms, but rarely do you go somewhere and the first thing you say is the food was extraordinary,” Nieden-Streeks said. Run by the visitors bureau, the center offers a one-stop shop for conference planning services, from catering and transportation to itinerary planning before and after an event. geringciviccenter.com

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HEARTLAND EVENTS CENTER

Grand Island In Grand Island, the Heartland Events Center has 180,000 square feet of meeting and events space, hosting everything from sporting events and concerts to large conferences in town. Opened in 2006, the center had been a dream of the area since the early 1970s. Back then, several studies showed there was a need for a large civic center outside Nebraska’s largest towns that could host events for up to 8,000 people. Close to Omaha, Grand Island has a population of 50,000 people. “It is easy to get to and still have amenities and things to do, having more of that city feel but the charm of a smaller community,” said Jill Lander, director of sales for the Grand Island Convention and Visitors Bureau. Conference attendees have access to local restaurants, antique stores, shops and boutiques in Grand Island’s quaint downtown. Event attendees who want to get out and explore often enjoy the Stuhr Museum of the Prairie Pioneer, which exhibits what life was like for Nebraska natives and settlers in the early 1800s. Grand Island also has the Island Oasis Water Park, as well as a shopping mall and a shooting park. “If groups are looking for tours or specific things they want to see while here, we can get that set up for them,” Lander said. Along with its large arena, the Heartland Events Center also has a conference center that can host meetings of 20 to 500 people. heartlandeventscenter.com

DIVOTS CONFERENCE CENTER

Norfolk Opened in 2002, the Divots Conference Center in Norfolk offers meeting planners the “complete experience,” said Donna Herrick, owner and property manager at the center. “We do the same things other conference centers do, but the service is a little warmer, a little more Midwestern, with more personal, warmer contact,” she said. The property is comfortable, she said. “It is not elegant or fancy, but it is like living in a nice log house.” When Herrick purchased the property, it already had a miniature golf course and driving range on it. She decided to keep the course as a perk for visitors and retained the Divots name as she began growing and expanding the lodging and meeting spaces on-site. To capture some of the regional convention business in the area, the conference center expanded to more than 100 lodging rooms at its Norfolk Lodge and Suites. It also has grown to 30,000 square feet of flexible conference and meeting space, offering two full-service kitchens and a microbrewery on property. Meeting rooms range from 483 square feet to 870 square feet. The ballroom has 4,600 square feet of space, and the onsite event center is a 21,000-square-foot space suitable for conventions, trade shows and weddings. A beautiful rooftop terrace was added to the lodge last year. divotslodge.com

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August 2019

GROUPS CAN HOLD BANQUETS UNDER THE WINGS OF HISTORIC AIRCRAFT AT THE STRATEGIC AIR COMMAND AND AEROSPACE MUSEUM IN ASHLAND.

Meetdieng Gui

Courtesy SACAM

BY PAULA AVEN GLADYCH

ebraska is a beautiful state full of history and natural wonders. From prairies, pristine lakes, rivers and rock formations to beautiful cities and historic small towns, Nebraska has a little something for everyone. Meeting planners will find unique meeting venues that offer a bit of everything that makes small-town Nebraska great. STRATEGIC AIR COMMAND AND AEROSPACE MUSEUM

Ashland The Strategic Air Command and Aerospace Museum in Ashland is a one-of-a-kind venue that integrates meetings and events with its vast collection of aerospace artifacts, many stemming from the Strategic Air Command’s Cold War activities. With more than 300,000 square feet of exhibition and event space, event planners can take advantage of the large glass atrium, organizing

Only in Nebraska

events beneath an SR-71 Blackbird, a long-range reconnaissance plane, or serve dinner or hors d’oeuvres on the mezzanine above the exhibits or among aircraft in one of the hangars. The museum can host meetings for as few as 25 people in its library or conference room or for as many as 3,000 using the entire facility. “The museum provides on-site catering with many different menu options,” said Aly Rasmussen, marketing and sales manager at the museum. “Most rooms come with AV and specialized lighting and the ability to have a private guided tour of the museum during your event.” The museum was founded in 1959 and moved to its current location in 1998. Visitors can see numerous aircraft, including a B-17G Flying Fortress, a B-52 Stratofortress and a B-36J Peacemaker. The facility also has missiles and rockets on display and special exhibits on the strategic bombers of World War II, Doolittle’s Tokyo Raiders and Clayton Anderson, an astronaut from Ashland who traveled to the International Space Station in 2007 and went on another shuttle mission in 2010. sacmuseum.org

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HAROLD WARP PIONEER VILLAGE

Minden Harold Warp Pioneer Village was founded in 1953. The village museum comprises 28 historic buildings plucked from all across Nebraska that were restored and placed on 20 acres in Minden. It includes a one-room schoolhouse that was active until 1935; a Pony Express station where settlers came to file homestead claims; an old prairie church; and the Elm Creek Fort, which was built in 1869 in Webster County and that protected five families during the Indian wars. Along with Western history, the site includes a motel and a campground. Meeting planners can host their banquets or meetings in the basement of the motel, which holds up to 150 people. The museum has hosted everything from corporate meetings and family reunions to tractor shows. The museum houses more than 350 vintage automobiles, 100 tractors and 20 aircraft. It also showcases art and statuary, guns, trains, trolleys and boats, virtually every field of human endeavor from 1830 to today, said Marshall Nelson, manager at the museum. Meeting attendees can take a guided tour of the museum as part of their event or host catered meals in the event space. Minden is about 22 miles from Kearney and 30 miles from Grand Island. The motel has 44 rooms, free cable and a continental breakfast. Visitors who stay in the motel get free guest passes to the museum. There is a snack bar on-site, and planners can bring in catered meals or organize visits to some of the area’s restaurants. pioneervillage.org

HAROLD WARP PIONEER VILLAGE Courtesy Harold Warp Pioneer Village

NATIONAL WILLA CATHER CENTER

Red Cloud Author Willa Cather has breathed new life into her former hometown of Red Cloud. When the National Willa Cather Center opened to the public in 2017 in the heart of downtown Red Cloud, it was the catalyst for numerous renovations and preservation efforts. The arts and cultural center serves as a memorial to this Pulitzer Prize-winning author who moved to the area with her family in 1883 and is best known for her novels, such as “My Antonia” and “One of Ours,” that detail life on the Great Plains during the early 1900s. The 20,000-square-foot center includes a public museum, an archive, a research center, a classroom, a bookstore, an art gallery and a performing arts center. It “provides a unique small-town experience in a modern setting for any corporate meeting or small weddings at various sites and in the Opera House,” said Catherine Seiberling Pond, marketing coordinator for the center. The Red Cloud Opera House hosts groups of up to 200 people and includes audiovisual equipment. Local caterers and restaurants are available to tailor menus to a group’s preferences. The center offers group tours and a country tour, “which is a really interesting way to explore outlying farm properties and things related to her books,” Pond said. “We find that the people who come here want to get away from it all and get a bit of quiet.” willacather.org

NATIONAL WILLA CATHER CENTER Courtesy National Willa Cather Center

August 2019

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SPRING CREEK PRAIRIE AUDUBON CENTER

Denton When many people envision Nebraska, they think of tallgrass prairie. The Spring Creek Prairie Audubon Center in Denton is one of the best places in the state to get away from the hustle and bustle of the city and see some of the last, untouched tallgrass prairie in the state. The sanctuary sits on 850 acres of native prairie grasslands, wetlands and ponds, wildflowers and grasses about 20 minutes southwest of Lincoln. The visitor center, which opened in 2006, is a good place for meeting planners to host events and help get attendees out of their comfort zones and into nature. Groups of up to 150 people can rent out the entire center, but most meetings held there are for fewer than 100. While the facility doesn’t have an in-house caterer, it does provide a full kitchen, place settings, silverware and coffeepots for those who host meetings there. Conferences are welcome to hire outside caterers or bring in their own meals. Along with the meeting rental, conferences can book a guided tour of the property for their attendees. “We are rustic,” said Kevin Poague, operations manager for the center. “Some people really like that. They are away from the city, away from their office. They feel they are out in the country and can focus more on what their meeting is about, and not worry about traffic and phones and things.” springcreek.audubon.org

WESSELS LIVING HISTORY FARM

York Meeting groups get a distinctive experience at Wessels Living History Farm, a 1920s-era working farm. Attendees can get see miniature ponies, donkeys, goats and calves up close. They can feed the animals, shell some corn, learn how to make ice cream or churn butter by hand. The original owner of the 145-acre farm, David Wessels, wanted part of his property and money to go toward establishing a project that would educate future generations about farming. Since the mid-1990s, the York Community Foundation, which manages Wessels’ bequest, has acquired numerous buildings from the 1920s and 1930s, including a giant barn, a granary, a church, a schoolhouse, a windmill, a Model T garage and outhouses. The barn is a fine location for receptions or meetings of 100 or fewer people. The farm also has a tent that can add capacity to the venue. “It is a barn. It is not real fancy, but it seems to draw a lot of attention,” said Bobbie Bock-Itzen, the director of Wessels Living History Farm. A church on the property can host events for up to 100 in the basement. Unlike the barn, the church is air conditioned and has access to a kitchen. Attendees can tour the farm and the original farmhouse, which looks as it did in the 1920s. Visitors can play vintage games or take a tractor-pulled wagon ride around the farm. livinghistoryfarm.org

At the Crossroads of Highway 81 and Highway 30 "SOMETHING GOOD" awaits you in...

Columbus, Nebraska With over 20,000 sq. ft. of meeting and banquet facilities Ramada-Columbus & Rivers Edge Convention Center has just what you need. www.VisitColumbusNe.com www.RiversEdgeColumbus.com

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Every year 5,000 kids run 1,375,000 miles trying to get to Kearney.

Kearney, where the Heartland gathers. It’s not just State Cross Country that comes here. Every year Kearney hosts more than 1,350 events. Everything from the Shrine Bowl to conferences large and small, heck even half a million Sandhill Cranes make sure to meet in Kearney every year. You know why? Because Kearney has the best facilities between Denver and Omaha, experienced staff and wonderful volunteers that make sure every event that comes to town is taken care of. If you’re looking for a host city for your next event make sure you look at Kearney, after all there’s a reason those kids run all those miles.

VisitKearney.org

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