Prevue March/April 2013 - (Page 60)

Cover: Private island at Sandals Royal Bahamian Spa Resort Previous: Dune at One&Only Ocean Club Below, from left: Dorado Beach, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve; Condado Vanderbilt Hotel “Planners can book a luxury group program and not compromise the budget.” Okay, all of that infrastructure is great for big groups. But sometimes you want to escape from the tradeshow to recalibrate and go over the day’s events in a quiet, peaceful setting. With Chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten tapas, if possible, on a wood terrace over the sea. Twice during Marketplace, we grabbed the free shuttle from Atlantis for the 7-minute ride next door to the impossibly charming sister resort, One&Only Ocean Club. You pass though a beautiful British colonial lobby that opens out to a grand lawn sloping down to a small cliff over the beach. On the edge of the precipice, celeb chef Vongerichten operates Dune restaurant. We cannot get enough of this place both for the setting and the food. Whatever you do, try the black truffle and fontina cheese pizza, and peekytoe crab salad. For special events, One&Only offers a few drop dead settings, such as Versailles Garden and Versailles Pool Terrace for 120/110 diners, and the Beach Deck seating 100. 60 | prevue magazine THE EVOLUTION OF SANDALS RESORTS Purpose-built with groups in mind, Sandals Emerald Bay in Great Exuma encompasses 245 villas and suites, with a Greg Norman-designed golf course overlooking the perfect crescent beach. For anyone who knows the Caribbean/Bahamas, few will argue that the most calm, bath-like crystal clear water is found in the Out Islands. In Nassau, the recently renovated Sandals Royal Bahamian Spa Resort is 15 minutes from the airport, and it comes with a private offshore island with permanent facilities for truly memorable day/evening events. It has 14,000 sf of meeting space and 10 F&B options. Sandals helped invent the all-inclusive pricing model and they’ve been industry leaders in the region for decades. Within the last couple of years, the brand has built up its sales, services and infrastructure to attract incentive groups. We spoke with Jim Bullock, vp of group development, to learn more about Sandals’ attributes for groups. “While the brand is known as a destination for couples, there’s a side of Sandals that has evolved to meet the incentive market,” says Bullock. “Many of our resorts offer distraction-free meeting environments, flexible function space and ballrooms. We now have professionally trained meeting and event planners to expedite the process from start to finish. Beyond dedicated meeting rooms, there are casual spaces throughout the resort for groups to mingle, so they have their own space.” Everyone understands the inherent value of all-inclusive pricing, because you know the cost upfront and can budget

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Prevue March/April 2013

Planner's Pick: Miami
Fresh Meets: Renaissance Hotels
Bureau Buzz: Austin
Good Business: Washington, DC
Sea Shores: Cruising Sweden
Feelin' Good About Incentives
Special Section: California
On Location: JW Marriott Desert Springs
Caribbean & The Bahamas
On Location: U.S. Virgin Islands
On Location: Aruba
On Location: Omni Amelia Island
The South: Best of Golf & Spa
On Location: Fairmont Scottsdale
On Location: W Singapore
Austria
Ireland
On Location: Mexico City
On Location: Starwood Los Cabos
On Location: Universal Orlando
On Location: Villas of Grand Cypress, Orlando
Check Out: Alpina Gstaad, Switzerland
Club Med

Prevue March/April 2013