Successful Meetings - January 2008 - (Page 136)

01.08 PLACES SPACES & Inside > Galveston & Beaches PAGE 140 > Greater Seattle PAGE 145 > Singapore PAGE 147 Planners often look for convenient, affordable, family-oriented, easy-to-access destinations. But . . . “sexy”? Sure, says San Francisco-based planner, Loretta Lowe. “Absolutely a consideration for one of my high-tech young software company clients!” she says. “They look for trendiness, nightclubs, and the feeling that they are in the center of the ‘happenin’ scene.’ ” And there are more choices than ever, as formerly serene destinations, such as Palm Springs, Scottsdale, San Diego, and Atlantic City are cranking up the style-o-meter with boutique properties, trendy nightlife, and other adults-only amenities, in an effort to keep both resident and visiting adults happy at work and play. “Flawless by day, insatiable by night” is the unabashed mantra at the 144-room Le Parker Meridien Palm Springs, says general manager Thomas Meding. “Everything is geared towards unwinding after an intense day, so we’re definitely primed for fun and partying,” says Meding, who adds that a typical event might feature a Moroccan din- ner with belly dancers, fire pits, and remote-controlled powerboat races in the pools. For years, Scottsdale and San Diego have been equated with golf and retirees—one might even say they were once associated with long naps. Lately, however, the Arizona oasis has been reborn as a swank desert getaway, awash in sexy accommodations like Morgans Hotel Group’s Mondrian (which Dana Toland, planner for the MA-based IT Exchange Group, compares with the Delano South Beach), Kimpton’s FireSky Resort, and a new W Hotel, as well as a slew of hot clubs that keep the city rocking until the wee hours. San Diego’s downtown is sporting chic new restaurants, rooftop lounges, and boutique hotels (notably the Ivy, Sofia, and Keating). Atlantic City has already seen a “sexy” surge with the advent of the 2,000-room Borgata Hotel Casino and Spa, the new Red Door Spa at the 1,600-room Harrah’s Resort Atlantic City, and luxury shopping at the Pier at Caesars and The Quarter at Tropicana. This year, the $400-million, 800-room The Water Club will debut at the Borgata complex, featuring a two-story “spa in the sky,” 18,000 sf of meeting space, five heatJANUARY 2008 SUCCESSFUL MEETINGS 136

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Successful Meetings - January 2008

Successful Meetings - January 2008 Contents Editor's Note Associations Research Events Suppliers Associations On the Record Associations Suppliers Planner Spotlight Websites of the Month Management Matters Meeting the Law Personal Success Mouth for Sale Food & Beverage Professional Development On Site Pre-Event Tools of the Trade Veggie Power Tennis, Anyone? Seeing is Believing The Wild Green Yonder Game On Places & Spaces Galveston & Texas Beaches Greater Seattle Singapore Gurus

Successful Meetings - January 2008

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