Northeast Florida
The Past Meets The Present In Northeast Florida
By Christy Clark From the vibrancy of Jacksonville to the historical ambiance of St. Augustine, Northeast Florida has a diverse appeal for groups of all kinds, according to destination marketing officials from the area. And, the hospitality industry within the area is capturing on the natural attraction of the area to build the destination into a top meetings location.
Jacksonville
“We want people to realize that we are a destination for meetings—we have so much to see and do here, not just in Jacksonville, but in all of Northeast Florida,” said Lyndsay Rossman, director of corporate communications for Visit Jacksonville, the area’s newly branded destination marketing organization. Rossman said Visit Jacksonville’s new brand represents its goal of promoting the city as a destination. “It was important for us to go that route because the former name (Jacksonville and the Beaches Convention and Visitors Bureau) was confusing, and it wasn’t customer friendly or accurate to our mission.”
Rossman went on to say that the city’s “natural resources play a large part in our life here. Water especially plays a huge part in the area’s activities with the St. Johns River splitting Jacksonville into two sections, the North Bank and the South Bank. Plus, we have the beaches and the Atlantic Ocean, and we have a good climate—our average winter temperature is 58 degrees, which is a great selling point when meeting planners are looking at booking meetings during the winter months.”
Located downtown near more than 1,500 hotel rooms, the Prime F. Osborn III Convention Center once served as Jacksonville Terminal, the railroad gateway to the state. Now completely restored and renovated, the SMG-managed facility accommodates concerts, conventions, trade shows, banquets and meetings in its 265,000 square feet of space.
Rossman said that many area hotels also cater to meetings business, and that many of them have upgraded their offerings, including the Wyndham - Jacksonville Riverwalk Hotel, a downtown, riverfront property with 322 guest rooms and 35,000 square feet of flexible meeting space. According to Kim Thompson, director of sales, the hotel is newly improved. “We recently completed a multimillion-dollar renovation of our public space and our guest rooms. In addition to our meeting space, we have a 100-seat amphitheater/high-tech conference room.” Additional Wyndham amenities include wireless Internet access, audio/visual services, two restaurants, an outdoor pool and a fitness facility.
The 354-room, Four-Diamond Omni Jacksonville Hotel, with 14,000 square feet of meeting space, has added Omni’s signature “Scentsational Meetings” amenity, according to Wendy Priesand, director of sales and marketing, who explained that depending on the goal of the meeting, hotel staff will enhance meeting rooms with the appropriate lighting, aromatherapy, food and background music to correspond with objectives. “The packages are cost effective and make attendees feel special,” she said.
Also along the riverfront is the Hyatt Regency Jacksonville Riverfront. Gary Gotling, director of sales and marketing, said, “We have 966 guest rooms and 110,000 square feet of flexible meeting space, which includes our 28,000-square-foot ballroom. As of October 2006, all of our guest rooms have been totally renovated. We also have 20,000 square feet of outdoor decks that overlook the St. Johns River.” The hotel also provides complimentary wireless Internet access in the lobby area as well as kiosks for guest to print their boarding pass before leaving for the airport.
“We are the place to meet,” said Janice Dailey, director of sales and marketing for the Crowne Plaza Jacksonville Riverfront. This 292-room property has 12,000 square feet of flexible meeting space for a total of 18 meeting rooms. “When you have a meeting at the Crowne Plaza, it comes with a Crowne meeting director who has undergone extensive training. All of our in-house meeting planners are required to become certified. When you book a meeting with us, you get a daily meeting with your planner to go over any details and see what needs to be done or changed. We really are service orientated.”
Downtown St. Augustine is a historic, quaint area that’s home to Flagler College, pictured in the background. |
Located near the airport, the Holiday Inn Jacksonville Airport has 8,000 square feet of meeting space, including a 2,900-square-foot ballroom that can accommodate 300 people. The ballroom was recently renovated, and the 489 guest rooms are slated to be renovated this year, said Kimberly Alsobrooks, director of sales. “There will be an extensive renovation of our executive-level rooms that will include granite countertops,” she said.
The Embassy Suites Hotel Jacksonville completed a renovation in September 2007, said Shannon Barr, director of sales. “Among the upgrades, Omaha Steakhouse is on property and provides our banquet and room service product. We also have an Embassy BusinessLink, a business center that is open 24 hours and includes two computer stations. We also have a remote printing system that allows guests to print from their suite.” The 277-suite hotel has more than 8,000 square feet of meeting space within 14 meeting rooms.
The University of North Florida offers the second largest university-based conference center in the country, according to Erin Pauls, sales and marketing coordinator for the University Center. “We offer 95,000 square feet of meeting space. Our 35 meeting rooms can seat anywhere from 10 to 800 attendees and each offers state-of-the-art equipment. We also have a full catering kitchen along with a full liquor license.”
Additional meeting venues include the Jacksonville Municipal Stadium with 100,000 square feet of meeting space, and the 255-room Jacksonville Marriott Hotel with 14,500 square feet of meeting space.
St. Augustine Area
One of the nation’s oldest cities, St. Augustine, offers visitors ‘Old World charm’ with modern-day accommodations and meeting facilities, according to Wanda Graves, sales manager for the St. Augustine, Ponte Vedra and The Beaches Convention and Visitors Bureau. “We are great for planners who are looking for something unique, something they won’t find in other cities,” she said. “We have a lot of hidden things and unique venues. You have to come to touch it, feel it and see it.”
The Comfort Suites at World Golf Village offers 160 oversized guest rooms and 2,100 square feet of meeting space, according to Carolyn Kring, director of sales. “We have wireless and hard-wired Internet access in each room, and we upgraded the Internet access in our meeting space. We have earned the Gold Award from Choice Hotels two years in a row.”
The Renaissance Resort at World Golf Village recently completed a $10 million renovation, said Mark Schwantner, general manager. “There’s not a part of the resort that isn’t being touched by this multimillion-dollar upgrade. We’re very excited about all of these changes and know that meeting professionals, incentive specialists, groups and leisure guests will just love all of the enhancements.” The 301-room resort and conference center combination offers a total of 86,000 square feet of meeting and event space and sits next to the World Golf Hall of Fame, the Walk of Champions and the PGA Tour Golf Academy. Resort offerings also include two 18-hole championship courses.
Ponte Vedra Beach is home to the Marriott Sawgrass Resort and Spa, which offers 56,000 square feet of meeting space with state-of the-art audio/visual technology, 508 guest rooms, 24 suites and 80 two-bedroom villas. The resort recently underwent a $56 million transformation that included enhancements to The Players Stadium Course, a new 77,000-square-foot clubhouse that includes an 11,000-square-foot lawn and 11,000 square feet of meeting and banquet space, and a renovation of the guest rooms.
Another option is Ponte Vedra Beach Resorts, which includes the Ponte Vedra Inn and Club with more than 30,000 square feet of meeting space and the Lodge and Club with 13,000 square feet of meeting space.
Amelia Island
Key Info · Taxes:
Jacksonville (Duval County):
7 percent sales, 6 percent hotel.
Amelia Island (Nassau County):
7 percent sales, 2 percent hotel.
St. Augustine and Ponte Vedra
(St. Johns County): 6 percent sales,
3 percent hotel. |
“Amelia Island was just named by Condé Nast as one of the top five island destinations in the country,” said Gil Langley, managing director for the Amelia Island Tourist Development Council. “In Amelia Island, meeting planners have a very strong destination brand to help build delegate attendance. We have everything from upscale resorts to the more laid-back downtown areas, and we have first-rate meeting facilities that will accommodate any group.”
The 621-room Amelia Island Plantation is a Four-Diamond luxury resort with 49,000 square feet of meeting space divided between three venues. The indoor spaces range from 440 square feet to 11,165 square feet, including the Grand Pavilion, a 10,824-square-foot space.
Renovations of the 249-room Amelia Inn and Beach Club were completed at the end of March 2007. “The redesign of the Amelia Inn completes a thorough renovation of our Amelia Inn and Sandcastles complexes, which began last year. The ceiling-to-floor upgrades of these two complexes comprise 95 percent of our oceanfront hotel rooms and 80 percent of our ocean view one-bedroom villas,” said Jack Healan, president of Amelia Island Company. “The Amelia Island Plantation and Sandcastles villa owners have spent a total of $8.6 million on these renovations to exceed the expectations of our increasingly sophisticated resort guests,” Healan said.
The Ritz-Carlton, Amelia Island, is nestled on 26 oceanfront acres and has 444 guest rooms. According to spokesperson Beth Williams, the property has 32,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor function space, including the 13,348-square-foot Ritz-Carlton Ballroom.
For smaller meetings, the Best Western Inn Amelia Island is a perfect venue, said Lanay Riordan, general manager. “We have 1,700 square feet of space that divides into three rooms. Our 135 guest rooms have complimentary wireless and data ports and come with kitchens.”
The Hampton Inn and Suites - Amelia Island specializes in smaller meetings, according to Dottie Richards, director of sales. “We have 1,700 square feet of meeting space and 122 guest rooms.”
