7 Great Hotel and Resort Recommendations for Your Next Group or Conference
Hotels and Resorts for Groups and Conferences
I book over 100 meetings and groups per year for my HPN Global clients into hotels and resorts all over the World. I’ve traveled around the World and I’ve been in the hotel business my entire life. Below are some great hotels and resorts that I would recommend you let me search for your next group or conference.
- JW Marriott Austin – This hotel just opened up earlier this year with over 1,000 guestrooms and over 120,000 square feet of meeting space. Austin is a great city with great live music and a city that should be on your RFP’s in the future.
- Hotel Monteleone New Orleans – This 570 room hotel with over 24,000 square feet of meeting space feels like New Orleans and is in the heart of Bourbon Street. The Carousel Bar is a must see in this property and New Orleans is a group driven city and does it very well.
- Marriott Marco Island – If you haven’t been to this iconic beach resort just south of Fort Myers then you have to put it on your list. They just finished about $90 million worth of lobby/restaurant renovations and they are pouring another $210 million into this resort including an adults only rooftop pool and lounge and a virtual entertainment center which will be completed by January 2017. This resort understands group business from management on down.
- Cosmopolitan Las Vegas – Forget what you think about hotels on the strip in Vegas. This 3,000 room hotel has one of the smallest “footprints” of any property in Vegas and the way the hotel “stacks” makes it more intimate, meeting space is more manageable and the Chelsea Theater is a great place to see a show. Secret Pizza is a must “find” and the Chandelier Bar is a great spot for people watching.
- Hyatt Regency Chicago – This hotel has been around a long time but the recent lobby and Big Bar renovations have taken this property to the next level. With over 2,000 guestrooms and 228,000 square feet of meeting space, this is a group box and they “get it”. They have a fantastic location right on the heart of Chicago and just a block from Michigan Avenue.
- Casa Marina, a Waldorf Astoria Resort Key West – Key West is another great destination and the 311 room Casa Marina Resort is right on the water with a stunning pool area and beautiful beach. They have over 22,000 square feet of meeting space and just blocks away from Duval Street.
- Andaz Wailea – If Maui wasn’t beautiful enough, this 300 room resort in Wailea is the perfect blend of location, spectacular views, amazing food and beverage and just enough meeting space to get some work done.
Mark Dallman “A Meeting Planner’s Best Friend” is the Regional Vice President of Sales for HPN Global is a native Minnesotan and works out of his home in Plymouth, MN. He was in the hotel business for over 20 years and worked in 14 hotels and moved nine times. His recent positions were the Associate Director of Sales at the Manchester Grand Hyatt San Diego, Director of Sales at the Hyatt Regency Chicago and Director of Sales and Marketing at the Hyatt Regency Minneapolis. He is also the owner of the Linkedin Group “Helpful “Tips” for Meeting Planners” and sends out a Meeting Planner “Tip of the Month” newsletter to over 25,000 Meeting Planners. For more information and to check out his client recommendations and archived “Tips” of the Month, feel free to check out his personal website at ameetingplannersbestfriend.com.
With no obligation, no cost and no contracts to sign, send him your next meeting or group RFP and find out why having a former hotelier on your side will make all the difference! Contact him directly at 612-432-1397 or at mdallman@hpnglobal.com.
HPN Global is the nation’s fastest growing site selection and consulting firm and acts as a resource for meeting planners. We will assist with every step of the meeting planning process, from confidential site searches to contract review and more. HPN Global places over 400 meetings per month throughout the country and we pass this buying power to our clients. HPN Global guarantees no out of pocket cost to you and there are no contracts to sign. We are paid a placement fee by the hotels chosen. Unlike the competition, HPN Global offers a more consultative approach to doing business, with service, value and client relationships being our top priorities.