Meeting News - April 21, 2008 - (Page 34)

convention center showcase America’s Center Convention Complex st. louis, missouri St. Louis offers a variety of venues and meeting options for planners who want to schedule an event that attendees won’t soon forget. From sports and offbeat museums that pay homage to dogs, bowling, and magic—to cultural offerings of art, history, and live performances, the Gateway City is full of charm. The Gateway City has lots of group appeal. STAT CHECK AMERICA’S CENTER CONVENTION COMPLEX Total Exhibit Space: 502,000 sf Largest Ballroom: 28,000 sf Meeting Rooms: 83 Largest Banquet: 2,000 Parking Spaces: 913 CONVENTION CENTER The sprawling, bi-level America’s Center Convention Complex, located in the heart of downtown St. Louis, has spacious, contemporary facilities that are perfect for meetings and conventions of all sizes. It has 502,000 square feet of prime exhibit space, six contiguous exhibit halls with 40-foot ceilings, 83 flexible meeting rooms, a 28,000-square-foot ballroom, a 1,411-seat multipurpose Ferrara Theatre, and the recently renovated, IACC-certified St. Louis Executive Conference Center. America’s Center Catering is managed by a partnership that includes the Levy Restaurants and the famous Bommarito family of St. Louis. The result is exquisite food, attention to detail, and outstanding customer service. ACCOMMODATIONS There are 7,800 hotel rooms within one mile of the America’s Center Convention Complex and 35,000 rooms area wide. St. Louis’ hotel building boom continues, with more than 4,800 new and renovated downtown hotel rooms, and more than two dozen properties offering at least 10,000 square feet of meeting space. Downtown, the latest accommodations news is the recent debut of the Four Seasons St. Louis Hotel and Spa. The property is part of Lumière Place, a $500 million casino complex adjacent to Laclede’s Landing. The casino, which opened to rave reviews in December 2007, is attached to another new property, HoteLumiere; formerly known as the Embassy Suites Downtown, HoteLumiere has undergone a $16 million renovation and connects to the casino via a pedestrian sky bridge. DINING For Italian fare, Tony’s, Anthony’s, Charlie Gitto’s, and 10th Street Italian come highly recommended. Bamboo Bistro serves top-notch Asian cuisine, while Joanie’s Pizzeria in the Soulard neighborhood features St. Louis-style pizza. If attendees are looking for a pub atmosphere, St. Louis is the town: Maggie O’Brien’s, Flannery’s Pub, the Tigin Irish Pub and Restaurant in the Hampton Inn-Gateway Arch, and Dooley’s Ltd. all fit the bill. Skeeter’s Eatery serves steak and seafood and is within walking distance of the convention center. RECREATION For sports fans, Busch Stadium is home to MLB’s Cardinals, while the St. Louis Blues of the NHL play in the Scottrade Center. The St. Louis Rams of the NFL play at America’s Center in the Edward Jones Dome. Some of the newest venues around town include the fun-andfunky environs of Flamingo Bowl, a colorful martini bar/bowling alley located on Washington Avenue. And speaking of funky, City Museum is an architectural marvel: part funhouse, part playground. The Moto Museum displays a century’s worth of rare and vintage motorcycles from around the world. Car buffs can meet at the Kemp Auto Museum. The Gateway Arch Riverboats are excursion vessels that can handle large and small groups for day or evening cruises, team races, or a “blues cruise.” In the lush environs of the Missouri Botanical Garden, groups can conduct business in a modern auditorium, then break for dining in a number of eco-friendly settings. At the Boat House in historic Forest Park, attendees can party dockside or paddle along the park’s meandering canals. Grand Center features a number of other private event spaces, including the intimate Grandel Theatre, Powell Symphony Hall, the Sheldon Concert Hall, and the lavish Fox Theater. Of course, no trip to St. Louis is complete without a journey to the top of the Gateway Arch. ACCESS There are four general aviation airports serving the St. Louis area: Lambert St. Louis International Airport, Spirit of St. Louis Airport, St. Louis Downtown Airport, and St. Louis Regional Airport. The newly-expanded MetroLink light rail provides access to many area attractions. CONTACT Stephen R. Stickford Sr. VP, Sales & Services St. Louis CVC (800) 325-7962 Fax: (314) 621-7729 E-mail: sstickford@explorestlouis.com www.explorestlouis.com SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION 34 April 21, 2008 http://www.explorestlouis.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Meeting News - April 21, 2008

Meeting News - April 21, 2008 Contents What’s Up @ MeetingNews.com Successful Meetings University Orlando CVB’s creative marketing Advertisers Index Live from the Forum

Meeting News - April 21, 2008

For optimal viewing of this digital publication, please enable JavaScript and then refresh the page. If you would like to try to load the digital publication without using Flash Player detection, please click here.