Incentive - December 2007 - (Page 64)

The Springs Preserve las vegas ITINERARY incentive marketplace client-focused incentives DAY ONE Arrivals throughout the day. Evening: Welcome reception in a hotel lounge area, subtly branded with the color palette of the host corporation and serving a casual meal through food stations. Cascata Golf Course DAY TWO Morning: Group breakfast, including guests and spouses, followed by a meeting for corporate employees and clients. Spouse program: Choice of backstage tour or yoga class in Red Rock Canyon. Afternoon: Box lunches for everyone, then group splits into their choice of activities, including golf, spa treatments, racecar driving experience at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, or mountain biking in Red Rock Canyon. Evening: Hotel reception with appetizers and mingling, followed by a celebrity show and a late-night dinner in a restaurant that has been bought out for the group. DAY THREE Morning: Group breakfast, followed by a teambuilding activity. Each team is given the pieces of a bike, which they work together to build. They then present the bikes to a group of kids from a foster program. Afternoon: Free time to explore. Evening: Pre-awards dinner reception in hotel ballroom, dinner, then a Vegas performance by an all-female electric violist group, dueling pianos, or a comedian or magician. which is known for its spectacular view of the Strip. “With clients and their guests, we pull out all the stops. Everything is private and upgraded; the ultimate VIP experience,” says Hance. “And we included a gift on each outing.” The group at Charlie Palmer was given a personal gaming kit; those on the LOVE backstage tour received a special program of the show; and at Mariposa, guests received a scarf from Neiman Marcus. The Springs Preserve, one of the newest special event venues in the city, is another ideal setting for incentive programs with clients, according to Hance. “The new trend is going green, and this is a really great place for companies who support that movement,” she says of the venue. The $250 million, 180acre cultural, natural, and historical attraction opened last June around what was the original oasis of Las Vegas. Along with desert botanical gardens, museum galleries, an outdoor amphitheater, an immersive indoor theater experience, and a series of walking trails through a scenic wetland habitat, the preserve has 50,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor space and can accommodate events for up to 5,000 people. “An event there is a wonderful way to say to customers, ‘We are having this great event, but at the same time we are respectful of the environment,’” says Hance. Because building relationships in a natural way is often a main goal for an incentive focused on clients, AWG’s Stargazing Party is popular with this type of group. The event is staged on a hilltop section of Cascata Golf Course, a very exclusive desert course about a 30-minute drive from the Strip that is open only to golfers staying at the Harrah’s Entertainment resorts. The experience begins inside the clubhouse, which features a dramatic 30-foot waterfall. Over a three-hour period, while the party is underway, a dozen people at a time board golf carts and drive onto the course through huge wooden doors. Arriving at the hilltop, they are greeted by individual telescopes and astronomers to guide them through exploring the millions of stars overhead. “Inside the clubhouse, anything is possible for the party,” says Hanley. Playing off the stargazing theme, AWG has brought in entertainers like palm readers. “This event is well suited to a larger group—we have done up to 200 people—because people’s excitement feeds off one another. And it is great for clients because it shows you put a lot of thought into something special for them.” SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION 64 | December 2007

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Incentive - December 2007

Incentive - December 2007 Contents Editor’s Note: Revved Up In the News Cover Story: Rolls-Royce Empowers Its Own Case Study: Booz Allen Hamilton Beating Your Best Incentive Primer: Add Value to Your Event Keeping Safety In Mind Incentive Interview Potentials Here and Now Research: Corporate Gifts Facts Report Tabletop Awards: Travel Gift Cards Travel News Viva Puerto Vallarta Indigenous Spas Advertiser Index Off the Cuff: Ambassador Christoph Bubb Luxury Brands Special Supplement

Incentive - December 2007

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