Meet in Michigan - MACVB Meeting Planners Guide 2023-2024

2023/ 2024 Michigan Association of Convention and Visitors Bureaus Meeting Planners Guide /

100,000+ SQ. FT. of MEETING SPACE for EVENTS BIG OR SMALL

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ON THE COVER

With so many spectacular places for meetings, Michigan is an event planner’s dream state. Clockwise from above left: Kalamazoo, Detroit, Port Huron, Grand Rapids

HARBOR SHORES GOLF CLUB, BENTON HARBOR

SOO LOCKS BOAT TOURS, SAULT STE. MARIE

DOW GARDENS, MIDLAND

BOOK TOWER, DETROIT

Reasons to meet

T h e V I E W S f r o m t h e c o n v e n t i o n c e n t e r a r e i n c r e d i b l e ! T h e L O C A T I O N w h e r e I - 9 4 & I - 6 9 m e e t a t a n i n t e r n a t i o n a l b o r d e r i s a s h o r t 5 0 m i n . f r o m D e t r o i t , u n d e r 2 h o u r s f r o m L a n s i n g , & 2 . 5 h o u r s f r o m G r a n d R a p i d s .

T h e P E R K S a r e p a r k i n g , W i - F i , a t e a mb u i l d i n g s c a v e n g e r h u n t , & t h r e e o f fs i t e m u s e u m a t t r a c t i o n s . A l l f r e e !

C O M I N G S O O N , a s h u t t l e b u s f r o m t h e c o n v e n t i o n c e n t e r t o o u r u n i q u e d o w n t o w n e a t e r i e s , e n t e r t a i n m e n t , & b o u t i q u e s .

Experience Unforgettable Events

IMAGINE A FUTURE where planning your next meeting or event is a breeze thanks to the presence of free, friendly, and easily accessible local experts who are genuinely excited to assist you. Look no further than the Michigan Association of Convention and Visitors Bureaus (MACVB) and its dedicated local destination experts, offering a range of complementary services, beneficial information, and invaluable connections to fulfill your every need.

TREVOR TKACH PRESIDENT & CEO, TRAVERSE CITY TOURISM; 2023 MACVB PRESIDENT

Michigan Association of Convention and Visitors Bureaus visitmichigan.org

231-823-0015

Traverse City Tourism traversecity.com 800-872-8377

MACVB’s members span every corner of our exceptional state, representing over 50 distinctive destinations. At MACVB, we hold the task of hosting meetings, conferences, and events in the highest regard. Irrespective of the venue or experience you seek, you will discover that our destination organizations and our convention and visitors bureaus are eager to go above and beyond to help you achieve your goals and ensure that your attendees have an extraordinary and unforgettable experience.

In the past, many may have taken the privilege of physical meetings for granted. Now, as most continue to reignite our in-person gatherings, the enchanting destinations of Pure Michigan are here to provide unwavering support.

If you have any inquiries or require any assistance, please do not hesitate to reach out. We are thrilled to collaborate with you, turning your vision into a reality and creating cherished memories in the remarkable state of Michigan.

Sincerely,

MICHIGAN ASSOCIATION OF CONVENTION AND VISITORS BUREAUS

P.O. Box 304

Stanwood, MI 49346-0304

231-823-0015 / visitmichigan.org

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Larisa Draves, CMP

2023 MACVB PRESIDENT

Trevor Tkach, Traverse City Tourism

Organized in 1974, the Michigan Association of Convention and Visitors Bureaus (MACVB) is an organization of the chief executive officers and staff of convention and visitors bureaus throughout the state. The mission is to serve as an advocate for its members through education and communication while representing their legislative interests.

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The pages between the covers of this magazine (except for any inserted material) are made from wood fiber that was procured from forests that are sustainably managed to remain healthy, productive, and biologically diverse.

Meet in Michigan is published annually.

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Printed in the U.S.A.

Exactly where you should meet.

When you’re true to who you are, you’re true to where you are. Come join us.

Create Enduring Memories

WELCOME TO MICHIGAN —a land of sparkling blue waters, untamed wilderness, and warm hospitality. We invite you to explore our two peninsulas, where pristine nature and majestic land will revive your spirit. Experience unique ports of call as you cruise our surrounding Great Lakes, showcasing thriving cities, grand landscapes, rolling dunes, and miles of white sandy beaches. Discover quaint beach towns that offer tranquil shorelines, as well as spectacular sunsets, cozy restaurants, uncommon shopping opportunities, and a variety of year-round activities that keep travelers coming back again.

Outdoor enthusiasts can explore thousands of acres of state and national parks and forests that stretch across both the Upper and Lower Peninsulas. Michigan boasts thousands of inland lakes, streams, and rivers that sneak through an expansive waterway—providing unmatched places to canoe, fish, and swim.

dave lorenz VICE PRESIDENT, TRAVEL MICHIGAN michigan.org

888-784-7328

This is a place where culture abounds with topflight museums and theaters. We invite you to take some time to visit our breweries or indulge in our unique dining and wine-tasting experiences to savor the distinctive foodways of our regions.

Michigan is a four-season destination, where fall-color tours will take your breath away and the abundant snow provides the perfect backdrop for first-class skiing and snowmobiling. Enjoy spring festivals that celebrate the coming of warmer temperatures, and create a summer full of memories with time spent along the nation’s longest freshwater coastline and vibrant cityscapes.

With accessible trails, overlooks, water launches, and event venues, Michigan has an evergrowing number of attractions that deliver top-notch experiences to visitors of all abilities. In Pure Michigan, all are welcome!

Sincerely,

HOLLAND PHOTOS (FROM ABOVE) SARA COZOLINO, ANDREW JENKINS/CANFIELD JENKINS HOUSE OF PHOTOGRAPHY

Meet Downtown Holland

Small enough to be charming, yet large enough to house America In Bloom’s “Coolest Downtown,” Holland’s city center serves up three luxury hotels and an eclectic mix of meeting spaces - all within a walkable fourblock radius.

Planners can choose from the Tulyp Hotel with its floor-to-ceiling windows, the Haworth with its blend of Italian design and local history, and the Courtyard with its wrought iron balconies overlooking 8th Street. Or combine all three for a larger event.

Each houses a variety of intriguing meeting spaces right on site. At the top of the Tuylp, Piek Events offers a rooftop patio and stunning views of Holland’s scenic downtown, Lake Macatawa, and a hundreds-year-old windmill. On the campus of Hope College, the Haworth Hotel has 13 meeting spaces, each an inviting gathering place that can accommodate various set-ups and styles. For a smaller group, the 477-square-foot Courtyard Boardroom features an oval high-top table for 15 along with tasty catering.

Beyond the hotels themselves, downtown Holland hosts an additional 15 venues all within an easy walk. Meeting attendees can

stroll along the waterfront to the Celebration Pavilion at Windmill Island Gardens. On 8th Street, the historic Holland Arts Council anchors one end of downtown, and the 55,000 square foot state-of-the-art Holland Civic Center Place the other. Plus, with over 100 bistros, boutiques, and breweries, downtown has many smaller venues in such interesting locales as the Cellar at Butch’s, the muraled 205 Coffee Bar, and Warehouse 6 inside Cento Anni’s woodworking shop.

The skilled staff at the Holland Area Convention + Visitors Bureau knows this amazing downtown inside and out. Let us help craft an extraordinary meeting experience and assist in marketing our small town’s big amenities. We can work with you to secure lodging, entertainment, and transportation between venues if desired. We’re also happy to provide welcome packets and spouse itineraries. Have your team contact the Holland Area CVB team today to begin tailoring a seamless, enjoyable event your attendees will always remember.

Haworth

The Right Destination

AS A CHILD GROWING UP and vacationing throughout Michigan, I thought we lived in the most beautiful state in the country. Today, as executive director of Meetings Michigan, I have been able to travel the globe, expanding my scope of reference. And still, every time I come home to the Great Lakes State, I am reminded that we do indeed have one of the most beautiful places in the world to live, play, and meet with colleagues.

Meetings Michigan is a cooperative marketing organization that bands together convention and visitors bureaus and hotels throughout the state. Our mission is to educate meeting planners about the variety of destinations and plethora of activities that can be experienced when hosting an event in Michigan. We make the request for proposals process seamless with a one-stop shop approach. No matter where you want to meet in Michigan, you can start with Meetings Michigan—we will fi nd the destination that is right for the goals and objectives of your meeting, conference, or event.

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, MEETINGS MICHIGAN

Why do we do it? It’s simple. We want to make it easy for meeting planners and show that we are a reliable team and how Michigan’s convention and visitors bureaus and hotel partners come together to share resources and promote the state. That reliability is boosted further through the bond formed among meetings industry partners across the state as we share a concerted, consistent message about Michigan.

The next time you are considering the Midwest as a meeting destination, we hope you will consider Michigan with our four seasons of fun, convenient airports, and diverse offerings. From urban hotels to expansive resorts, we have it all.

Sincerely,

PHOTOS (FROM ABOVE) DISCOVER THE BLUE/MICHIGAN’S THUMBCOAST, MEETINGS MICHIGAN

CALUMET

MACVB MEMBER LOCATIONS

LʼANSE

IRON MOUNTAIN

MARQUETTE

MUNISING

ESCANABA

SAULT STE. MARIE

ST. IGNACE

CHARLEVOIX

TRAVERSE CITY

MANISTEE

HART

WHITEHALL

MUSKEGON

GRAND HAVEN

SAUGATUCK

SOUTH HAVEN

BENTON HARBOR/ ST. JOSEPH

LUDINGTON

BIG RAPIDS

MACKINAC ISLAND

CHEBOYGAN

PETOSKEY

GAYLORD

GRAYLING

HOUGHTON LAKE

CADILLAC

GRAND RAPIDS

WEST BRANCH

ALPENA

CLARE

MOUNT PLEASANT

BIRCH RUN

OSCODA

BAY CITY /MIDLAND /SAGINAW

FRANKENMUTH

OWOSSO FLINT

PORT HURON

HOLLAND

KALAMAZOO

LANSING

BATTLE CREEK

JACKSON

BRIGHTON/HOWELL

DETROIT

COLDWATER

ADRIAN

ANN ARBOR

It’s the people that make the place.

When was the last time you received exceptional service? It probably stands out, because it is rare. That’s what makes it memorable. Our goal is simple, to be the best convention destination in the world. To do that, you need exceptional people delivering exceptional service in every facet of the organization. We invite you to see for yourself. HuntingtonPlaceDetroit.com

Matt Lancaster Public Safety Operations Manager

Escanaba

L’Anse/Baraga

MICHIGAN ASSOCIATION OF CVBS DIRECTORY

UPPER PENINSULA

Sault Ste. Marie SAULT STE. MARIE CONVENTION & VISITORS BUREAU 225 E. Portage Ave. • Sault Ste. Marie, MI 49783

906-387-1717 munising.org

906-632-3366 800-647-2858 saultstemarie.com

906-643-6950 800-338-6660 stignace.com

NORTHERN LOWER PENINSULA

St., Suite 102 • Cadillac, MI 49601

Charlevoix VISIT CHARLEVOIX 109 Mason St. • Charlevoix, MI 49720

Cheboygan CHEBOYGAN AREA VISITORS BUREAU 124 N. Main St. • Cheboygan, MI 49721

231-775-0657 cadillacmichigan.com

231-547-2101 800-367-8557 visitcharlevoix.com

231-445-9045 800-968-3302 cheboygan.com Clare CLARE COUNTY CONVENTION & VISITORS BUREAU P.O. Box 226 • Clare, MI 48617 800-715-3550 clarecounty.net

Gaylord GAYLORD MICHIGAN TOURISM BUREAU 319 W. Main St., P.O. Box 3069 • Gaylord, MI 49735

Grayling

989-732-4000 gaylordmichigan.net

989-348-4945 800-937-8837 grayling-mi.com

*Bolded

indicate

MICHIGAN ASSOCIATION OF CVBS DIRECTORY

SOUTHERN LOWER PENINSULA

Adrian/Lenawee County VISIT LENAWEE 126 S. Main St. • Adrian, MI 49221

Albion/ Battle Creek/Marshall CALHOUN COUNTY VISITORS BUREAU 34 W. Jackson St., Suite 1A • Battle Creek, MI 49017

Ann Arbor DESTINATION ANN ARBOR 315 W. Huron St., Suite 340 • Ann Arbor, MI 48103

Benton Harbor/ St. Joseph

Birch Run

SOUTHWESTERN MICHIGAN TOURIST COUNCIL 2300 Pipestone Road • Benton Harbor, MI 49022

BIRCH RUN CONVENTION & VISITORS BUREAU 7971 Main St., P.O. Box 153 • Birch Run, MI 48415

Brighton/Howell EXPLORE BRIGHTON HOWELL AREA 123 E. Washington St. • Howell, MI 48843

Coldwater COLDWATER COUNTRY CONFERENCE & VISITORS BUREAU

517-263-7747 800-536-2933 visitlenawee.com

269-962-2240 battlecreekvisitors.org

734-995-7281 800-888-9487 annarbor.org

269-925-6301 swmichigan.org

989-624-9193 888-624-9193 birch-run.com

517-548-1795 800-686-8474 explorebrightonhowellarea.com

Lansing GREATER LANSING CONVENTION & VISITORS BUREAU 500 E. Michigan Ave., Suite 180 • Lansing, MI 48912

Muskegon VISIT MUSKEGON 610 W. Western Ave. • Muskegon, MI 49440

Owosso SHIAWASSEE COUNTY CONVENTION & VISITORS BUREAU 215 N. Water St. • Owosso, MI 48867

877-847-4847 experiencegr.com

800-506-1299 holland.org

269-488-9000 800-888-0509 discoverkalamazoo.com

517-487-0077 800-648-6630 lansing.org

231-724-3100 800-250-9283 visitmuskegon.org

989-723-1199 visitshiawassee.com

Port Huron DISCOVER THE BLUE, MICHIGAN’S THUMBCOAST 500 Thomas Edison Parkway, Suite 200 • Port Huron, MI 48060 810-987-8687 800-852-4242 bluewater.org

Saugatuck/Douglas SAUGATUCK/DOUGLAS AREA CONVENTION AND VISITORS BUREAU P.O. Box 28 • Saugatuck, MI 49453

South Haven SOUTH HAVEN/VAN BUREN COUNTY CONVENTION & VISITORS BUREAU 546 Phoenix St. • South Haven, MI 49090

269-857-1701 saugatuck.com

269-637-5252 800-764-2836 southhaven.org

*Bolded items indicate advertisers.

Bring the Family

There is an undeniable trend toward families joining those attending Michigan meetings—and the venues and destination marketing organizations welcome them with open arms

BY KATHY GIBBONS

WHEN LOCAL OFFICIALS joined leaders from the Sheraton by Marriott Grand Rapids Airport Hotel for a spring 2023 ribbon-cutting ceremony to mark the hotel’s post-renovation reopening, Marriott International Chairman David Marriott was there and told WOOD-TV in Grand Rapids about a travel trend he has noticed lately.

“I think that people are blending work with leisure travel as well now, which is really exciting. So, people are extending their stays, they’re getting their business done, then they’re traveling with … family members and extending [their stay] through the weekend to enjoy some time away from home,” he says. Marriott isn’t the only one taking notice of the “bleisure” trend.

Across Michigan, destination marketing organizations and hotels are seeing the same phenomenon. Part of it seems to be an effect related to the COVID-19 pandemic—as people moved out of the office and into their residences to work, the lines between home and office blurred. “I think with people having hybrid and remote work schedules … there’s so much more flexibility than there ever was before,” says Jane Ghosh, president and CEO of Discover Kalamazoo. “Also, compressed work weeks have been on the rise. All these things have made it so much easier [to tie in a family vacation].”

Year-Round Wonderland

The thing about Michigan is that almost anywhere business might take you, there very likely will be plenty of fun attractions and activities to keep family members busy. Let’s start with southern Michigan. “We’re definitely seeing the bleisure traveler,” says Christopher Moyer, senior director of communications at Visit Detroit. “This is a growing segment, [and] Detroit is ideally placed where we have great meeting and event space, a culinary and bar scene, and attractions.”

Huntington Place downtown is often at the center of it all for some of the largest conferences, conventions, and trade shows that converge on the Motor City. Families

PHOTO SAUGATUCK/DOUGLAS AREA CONVENTION & VISITORS BUREAU/CRAIG WATSON SAUGATUCK/DOUGLAS AREA

joining business travelers are likely to enjoy discovering the city’s storied riverfront, where the Michigan Department of Natural Resources operates an Outdoor Adventure Center with multiple hands-on exhibits and simulators.

Some 30 miles away in Novi, Suburban Collection Showplace is the largest privately owned exposition, conference, and banquet center in Michigan. The 460,000-square-foot facility hosts a variety of events throughout the year including public expositions, trade shows, and association and corporate conferences.

In Port Huron, the Blue Water Convention Center has a variety of exhibition, gathering, and meeting spaces, including its Lake Huron Convention Hall accommodating up to 1,600 and featuring views of the St. Clair River and Blue Water Bridge. The DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Port Huron is connected to the convention center and also offers spectacular views, an indoor pool, and Freighters Eatery & Taproom.

“We offer a kids’ guide that we send out to groups that plan on bringing their families along,” says Discover the Blue, Michigan’s Thumbcoast’s Director of Sales Terra Damchuk. “This includes activities, splash pads, kid-friendly art classes, escape rooms, kid spa days, and our local museums.”

A little north and central is Frankenmuth, which has long catered to families and attracts business travelers who bring loved ones to enjoy such attractions as the indoor water park at Bavarian Inn Lodge &

Restaurant and Zehnder’s Splash Village hotel and water park. “There is so much to keep them busy,” says Jamie Furbush, president and CEO of the Frankenmuth Chamber of Commerce and Convention & Visitors Bureau. “Families can get out and, depending on the time of year, they can do activities on the river where there is a riverboat, kayak rental, [and] an awesome aerial park.”

About 150 miles southwest of Frankenmuth in Coldwater, Coldwater Country Conference & Visitors Bureau Executive Director Debra Prater says local attractions include the vintage Capri Drive-In Theater. The Aqua Pit waterpark offers a beach, kayaks, paddleboards, and a jungle gym. Nearby Colon, known as “The Magic Capital of the World,” is bursting with magic-themed venues, shops, shows, and events throughout the year.

In Bay City, the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Bay City-Riverfront frequently hosts

business meetings and conferences, with 16,000 square feet of flexible event space accommodating up to 550 guests and a new tented patio space for functions. The property boasts 150 guest rooms and suites, an indoor pool and a whirlpool, as well as a proximity to the State Theatre, Delta College Planetarium, Saginaw Valley Ship Museum, and more.

CRUISING THE ST. CLAIR RIVER, PORT HURON

DOUBLETREE BY HILTON HOTEL BAY CITYRIVERFRONT

DOUBLETREE BY HILTON HOTEL PORT HURON

Western Welcome

Discover Kalamazoo makes a point of marketing the area’s myriad family-oriented attractions and activities to meeting planners, Ghosh says. “If they choose to have their meetings downtown, we have a wonderful partner hotel in the Radisson [Plaza Hotel at Kalamazoo Center] that has great meeting space,” she notes. “There are so many things for families to do downtown without having to get in the car.”

A key venue for meetings and events, the Radisson offers 26 meeting spaces totaling 50,000 square feet, along with 340 guest rooms. Delta Hotels by Marriott Kalamazoo Conference Center is another popular venue, with 30,000 square feet of total event space, 17 meeting rooms, and 182 sleeping rooms. A short drive from downtown, the Air Zoo Aerospace & Science Experience is a major attraction with its interactive exhibits and activities.

Highlights include indoor amusement park rides, Keva Creation Stations, an Imagination Playground, and flight simulators that allow visitors to sit in a cockpit. About an hour north on U.S. Route 131, Grand Rapids is another destination with plenty to occupy families. Brandy Martin, director of convention services for Experience Grand Rapids, says more and more frequently, meeting planners are asking for information on things to do for a spouse or children.

Within walking distance of DeVos Place Convention Center, there are four museums including one for children that features a working carousel. A changing slate of seasonal activities and festivals runs pretty much year-round downtown, offering everything from ice skating to art installations.

Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park is another top attraction. Here, art meets nature with horticultural display gardens, sculpture parks, tram tours, annual highlights like spring’s Butterflies Are Blooming, and more.

Several hotels are also especially kidfriendly. At Grand Rapids’ Amway Grand Plaza, Vice President of Sales Ron Brondyke says families enjoy the hotel’s pool deck and

PHOTOS (CLOCKWISE FROM ABOVE LEFT) GABRIELA REZENDE, AIR ZOO AEROSPACE & SCIENCE EXPERIENCE, EXPERIENCE GRAND RAPIDS/SAMANTHA DENMAN, RADISSON PLAZA HOTEL & SUITES KALAMAZOO

AIR ZOO AEROSPACE & SCIENCE EXPERIENCE, KALAMAZOO

RADISSON PLAZA HOTEL AT KALAMAZOO

GRAND RAPIDS CHILDREN’S MUSEUM

DELTA HOTELS BY MARRIOTT, KALAMAZOO Continued

have also been taking advantage of rooftop pickleball courts. The Amway also offers duckpin bowling—just like regular bowling, only with smaller balls and shorter alleys.

Along the Lakeshore

Of course, Michigan’s 3,000 miles of Great Lakes shoreline are a key attraction. “There are a number of different dunes to climb and explore,” says Marcy Simpson, executive director of the Southwest Michigan Tourist Council. “There are water activities like paddleboarding, kayaking, fishing, and surfing.”

At The Inn at Harbor Shores in St. Joseph, with 92 overnight rooms and meeting spaces that can accommodate as many as 300 attendees, guests can take advantage of the waterfront location and enjoy the beach or rent paddleboats and swan boats. It also offers the Jack Nicklaus-designed Harbor Shores Golf Course.

Also in St. Joseph, The Boulevard Inn & Bistro is a full-service, all-suite hotel and restaurant set on a bluff overlooking Lake

Michigan. With three meeting spaces, the largest accommodating a group of up to 49, it’s centrally located and close to the area’s many recreational opportunities.

Just about 45 minutes to the north, the Saugatuck/Douglas area focuses on encouraging business travelers to bring the family along, says Lisa Mize, executive director of the Saugatuck/Douglas Area Convention & Visitors Bureau.

Ivy House, a Saugatuck-based event space, provides guests with a list of fun things to do—and it’s not short. Besides visiting Saugatuck’s iconic Oval Beach, Ivy House suggests dune rides, golf and miniature golf, tall ship boat cruises, hot air balloon rides, and even an outlet called Retro Boats that rents vintage fiberglass runabouts retrofitted with electric motors.

Just a little up the coast, Holland is another destination for business meetings as well as family vacations. “Most enjoy shopping downtown, visiting the Dutch attractions like Windmill Island Gardens, or exploring the outdoors—hiking, biking,

or beachgoing,” says Wendy Link, sales director for the Holland Area Visitors Bureau, adding that boating, paddleboarding, and charter fishing are popular options.

Among top event properties in Holland is the Haworth Hotel and Conference Center, featuring 10,000 square feet of meeting space and 48 guest rooms. “We love to promote that attendance can grow when participants learn the meeting is in Holland,” Link says.

With the addition of the VanDyk Mortgage Convention Center in 2021, Muskegon now hosts events for as many as 1,500 with 38,000 square feet of meeting space. It is located adjacent to Delta Hotels by Marriott, which offers meeting space and 200 rooms, and proximity to the waterfront Shoreline Inn & Conference Center.

Katie DeWeerd, director of sales for Parkland Properties, which manages all three entities, says it’s especially common to see families join business travelers in the late spring, summer, and early fall.

Continued on page 22

PHOTOS (CLOCKWISE FROM ABOVE LEFT) LEIGH ANN COBB, ARIELLE PETERS, JOSH NOWICKI, AHC HOSPITALITY

AMWAY GRAND PLAZA HOTEL, GRAND RAPIDS

THE INN AT HARBOR SHORES, ST. JOSEPH

THE BOULEVARD INN & BISTRO, ST. JOSEPH

HAWORTH HOTEL AND CONFERENCE CENTER, HOLLAND

WORK DAY MEETINGS OR MEETING AFTER HOURS — WE’RE HAPPY TO ACCOMMODATE

Check in to one of our 10 uniquely spirited hotels — each offering a different vibe, style, flavor, and focus. Meetings for 8 or 800, the Hotel District is equipped to fit all your meeting needs, wants, and gotta-have-its.

Check out the area and you’ll be amazed by the sheer number of ways to enjoy the city. Take your meeting after hours and discover museums, music, art, theater, a proper cocktail, fine-dining, or fun dining. Your meeting destination mystery, solved. Call us, let’s plan.

hoteldistrictgr.com

@hoteldistrictgr

616.776.6400

Imperial Ballroom | Amway Grand Plaza

Continued from page 20

“Some associations have a summer conference they know families will be coming to and try to include things in the itinerary that are more family friendly and take advantage of some of the fun things to do around Muskegon at that time.”

Continuing north, the Traverse City area is known for such attractions as its beaches, trails, breweries, wineries, shopping, and Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. Traverse City Tourism Director of Meeting Services Sarah Barnard says that these things make it natural for families to come along on a business trip or add a vacation at the beginning or end of the event.

“I do work with a lot of groups to plan off-site activities for families or spouses,” Barnard says, “like a spouse program going out wine tasting or out to the dunes with the families, or tours of the Village at Grand Traverse Commons.”

Mackinac Island Tourism Executive Director Tim Hygh says it’s typical for meetings that rotate around different locations to attract more participation when

Mackinac Island is the choice. Families who come along can enjoy spending what Hygh describes as “a typical Mackinac Island day.” That could mean hitting the beach, taking a carriage tour, exploring historic Fort Mackinac, or visiting attractions like the Maze of Mirrors or The Haunted Theatre.

Also in the Upper Peninsula, Travel Marquette CEO Susan Estler says it’s common to see visitors mixing business with pleasure and bringing their families along. “Because there is always something for families to do here, we often see many business travelers extend their stays,” she says, citing outdoor adventures as well as cultural and culinary offerings as highlights. “Pretty much you name it, and your significant other can enjoy it—any outdoor activity, from challenging mountain biking to sitting on one of our beaches in the summer. In the winter through early spring, downhill or cross-country skiing followed by having a warm pastry in one of our coffee shops is another great choice.”

COLDWATER COUNTRY

CONFERENCE & VISITORS BUREAU coldwatercountry.com / 517-278-0241

DISCOVER KALAMAZOO discoverkalamazoo.com / 269-488-9000

DISCOVER THE BLUE, MICHIGAN’S THUMBCOAST bluewater.org / 810-987-8687

EXPERIENCE GRAND RAPIDS experiencegr.com / 877-847-4847

FRANKENMUTH CHAMBER OF COMMERCE & VISITORS BUREAU frankenmuth.org / 989-652-6106

HOLLAND AREA VISITORS BUREAU holland.org / 616-394-0000

MACKINAC ISLAND TOURISM BUREAU mackinacisland.org / 906-847-3783

PURE MICHIGAN michigan.org / 888-784-7328, Option 3

SAUGATUCK/DOUGLAS AREA CONVENTION AND VISITORS BUREAU saugatuck.com / 269-857-1701

SOUTHWESTERN MICHIGAN TOURIST COUNCIL swmichigan.org / 269-925-6301

TRAVEL MARQUETTE travelmarquette.com / 906-228-7749

TRAVERSE CITY TOURISM traversecity.com / 800-872-8377

VISIT DETROIT visitdetroit.com

PHOTOS (CLOCKWISE FROM LEFT) RUSS CLIMIE, PARKLAND PROPERTIES, TRAVEL MARQUETTE/AARON PETERSON

VANDYK MORTGAGE CONVENTION CENTER, MUSKEGON

MOUNTAIN BIKING, MARQUETTE

FREDERIK MEIJER GARDENS & SCULPTURE PARK

Meetings With Purpose

Think beyond the ballroom to create opportunities for volunteerism

BY KIM CORCORAN, CMP

AS ORGANIZATIONS CONVENE to share business strategies and inspire relationship building with teams, customers, and communities, the industry is seeing events with social impact integrated into meeting agendas. Through volunteerism, colleagues can connect with locals and foster a greater understanding of community challenges and solutions.

And the impact can be vast and transformational. Through the dedication of time, talent, and expertise, volunteering promotes a positive attendee experience, supports global citizenship priorities and investments, and—ultimately—advances the industry.

When planning a meeting, large or small, we must think beyond the ballroom. Incorporating volunteerism into the agenda encourages organizations to create greater connections with the communities and deeper team camaraderie. Preplanning with a well-defined objective is a must. It’s not always easy—but the end results can affect

many while enhancing participants’ overall meeting experience. Volunteerism is an action-driven agenda item that demonstrates an organization’s commitment to bring sustainable solutions to the communities where we live, work, and meet.

When the Dow Industrial Solutions (DIS) North America Commercial Team held its North America Commercial Meeting recently, which was hosted in several locations, DIS partnered with six longstanding nonprofit partners from Midland, Michigan; Houston, Texas; and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

“One way to bring colleagues together during our multilocation meeting was through the power of volunteering,” says Pallavi Nair-Shah, DIS senior marketing manager. “Together we learned about the challenges of waste management, food insecurity, displaced women and children, and digital access, and were able to partner with Midland Recyclers, Open Door, Hidden Harvest,

SUBURBAN COLLECTION SHOWCASE HOSTS THE MICHIGAN STATE FAIR IN NOVI

Midland County Emergency Food Pantry Network, Caring for Friends, and The National Museum of African American History & Culture to help make progress.”

Corporations are not the only ones giving back to the communities where they host meetings and conferences. Nonprofit organizations are rallying to help as well. “Incorporating a compassion ministry into the conferences of the Michigan District of the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod is one of the most rewarding components of my job of planning events,” says Debbie Hughes, an event planner based in Ann Arbor. “When we support the Michigan District Critical Targets, specifically Great Compassion Ministry, organizations are blessed with items—either brought to the conference … or selected from an Amazon wish list and shipped directly to the organization. In addition, organizations are blessed financially with our worship offering.”

One of the beneficiaries was Bay Area Women’s Center, which provides free crisis intervention, advocacy, and a haven to victims of domestic violence and sexual assault. The Katie Conference has supported this organization for several years with a bountiful gathering of items from their wish list and financially with their worship offering. Office Personnel Conference attendees brought slightly used purses and new health and beauty items to pack in those purses and distribute in several women’s shelters.

Another church conference, United Methodist Michigan Conference, has an experiential event that raises money and awareness for its causes. “Since bringing our annual conference to Traverse City, we’ve organized a 5K [run] for various missional needs, including our

ministry partners in Haiti and Michigan Disaster Relief and Recovery,” says Nancy Arnold, conference event planner. “With the pandemic, we recognized the increase in child hunger and food insecurity as students were not getting their meals at school anymore. The 5K pivoted to virtual with churches [also] hosting 5Ks throughout the state. We even got our pets involved with the fee for a pet bandana, providing a month of meals through a weekend backpack food program. In the last three years, we’ve raised over $85,000 for immediate relief of child hunger, with funds sent to every county in Michigan.”

Not sure where to start? Some Michigan event-planning companies specialize in helping organizations find and pair a program to fit individual organizations’ goals and objectives. Grand Rapidsbased Destination Consultants has helped multiple clients find the right projects. They have paired conference organizers with local efforts such as building craft kits for Boys and Girls Clubs, making custom picture frames for Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital, and filling laundry baskets with bath towels, toiletries, and everyday essentials for a group that supports teens facing homelessness or other life instabilities.

“Working with the Humane Society of West Michigan was one of my favorites,” says Amy Young, Destination Consultants’ president. “We brought in animals [ready] for adoption and by the end of the conference, all the pets had a new home. It really is rewarding work.”

Special D Events in Detroit helps meeting planners find rewarding work for conference attendees. Special D recently worked with a team-building provider and their client to customize activities

DESTINATION CONSULTANTS IN GRAND RAPIDS PROVIDES PUPPIES FOR ADOPTION.

MICHIGAN DISTRICT OF THE LUTHERAN CHURCHMISSOURI SYNOD GIFT BAGS PHOTOS (FROM LEFT) DESTINATION CONSULTANTS, ELISA SCHULZ

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that met their goals. “Our client wanted to support a veteran charity, so we partnered with Humble Design in Detroit to donate [to] … its building project,” says Lindsay Krause, Special D chief operating officer. “The attendees bonded and had a fun time, and they felt good about the contribution their efforts made.”

Michigan’s hospitality industry has a wonderful partner in Michigan Cares for Tourism (MC4T). Patty Janes, professor of hospitality and tourism management at Grand Valley State University, leads this initiative that partners annually with the Pure Michigan Governor’s Conference on Tourism. MC4T is a 100% volunteer, 100% give-back partnership where tourism professionals come together to help restore Michigan’s historic, cultural, and natural attractions. Hospitality volunteers can learn about a Michigan tourism destination and network across industry segments to ultimately enhance the visitor experience and become more engaged professionals. For example, the group’s September 2022 project involved building a stage for performances, enhancing trails, painting fences, and improving signage for vintage baseball games at Cambridge Junction Historic State Park in Brooklyn.

Also in Michigan, Suburban Collection Showplace hosts the Michigan State Fair in Novi. This privately produced event provides substantial positive economic impact as well as major charitable and community benefits. Since 2013, the fair has given back more than $5.9 million to charitable and community organizations. Suburban Collection Showplace sales team members volunteer annually for the Charity Preview Night where nonprofits and members of the community with special needs are invited to enjoy an exclusive and more sensory-friendly preview of the fair before it opens to the public.

The one that may draw the most smiles, though, is an initiative by Bay City Rotary Club. Holding regular meetings and events at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Bay City-Riverfront, its Rotary Smiles program has an orthodontist providing teeth-straightening treatments to community members who are unable to afford it otherwise. The Bay City Morning Rotary Club pays for the needed hardware, and Dr. Don Sabourin donates his services. The goal is to give the gift of confidence with a great smile.

DESTINATION ANN ARBOR annarbor.org / 800-888-9487

EXPERIENCE GRAND RAPIDS experiencegr.com / 877-847-4847

GREAT LAKES BAY REGIONAL CONVENTION & VISITORS BUREAU gogreat.com / 989-752-7164

TRAVERSE CITY TOURISM traversecity.com / 800-872-8377

VISIT DETROIT visitdetroit.com / 800-DETROIT

Kim Corcoran, CMP, is the executive director of Meetings Michigan.

SPECIAL D EVENTS

MICHIGAN CARES FOR TOURISM

PHOTOS (FROM LEFT) VICTORIA A. STUBBS, LINDSAY KRAUSE

This inviting, six-city region affords a whole host of hotels and meeting venues that are kind-as-can-be on budget — and the kind of unforgettable downtime experiences that make a meeting destination feel rare. Start exploring the unexpected with our Go Great Meetings Expert!

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The best ideas happen when you’re inspired. Discover breathtaking outdoor settings, a thriving art

and world-renowned culinary fare in the Art Coast of Michigan. With a host of comfortable lodging options and event

Saugatuck/Douglas is the ideal location for a unique

Michigan Momentum

New and renovated hotels, meeting spaces, attractions, and more arrive on the scene

BY KATHY GIBBONS

MICHIGAN’S HOSPITALITY landscape is blooming with new meeting spaces, hotels, attractions, and other exciting developments. It seems just about every community has good news to share as business rebounds since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic— people are meeting and traveling again, and projects that were put on pause have come roaring back to life.

From attractions like Alpena’s Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary receiving a prestigious award to the Zeeland-based 6PM Hospitality Partners taking over management of the old McCamly Plaza Hotel in Battle Creek when it reopens as a DoubleTree in 2024, there’s a lot to catch up on as we cast our gaze around the industries that support meetings and events in Michigan.

Alpena

Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary was recognized for its contributions to sustainable tourism when it received a Pure Award during the 2023 Pure Michigan Governor’s Conference on Tourism. As the first national marine sanctuary in the Great Lakes, it protects a collection of some 100 historic shipwrecks in Lake Huron.

Ann Arbor/Ypsilanti Area

Chelsea’s 129-acre Robin Hills Farm has opened The Nest Cocktail Bar & Kitchen with a focus on farm-inspired American fare. Robin Hills had already been hosting business groups of various sizes and configurations, with some using the entire campus. Fowling Warehouse has opened in Ypsilanti, combining the sport that’s a mashup of bowling with football, with two full bars and event spaces with the option to set up tournaments for groups.

The Vanguard Hotel, Autograph Collection, is under construction in Ann Arbor adjacent to the University of Michigan campus. The full-service property will feature 188 rooms and suites and 15,000 square feet of event and meeting space. Two other properties, a 94-room Fairfield Inn and a

BOYNE SKYBRIDGE, NEAR PETOSKEY

PHOTO BOYNE MOUNTAIN RESORT

139-room Marriott AC Hotel, are also planned for the city. Venue by 4M opened in the old Lucky’s Market in Ann Arbor. The restaurant and bar has multiple meeting spaces for groups, including an outdoor patio area.

Battle Creek

The former McCamly Plaza Hotel in downtown Battle Creek has been resurrected and is undergoing $60 million in renovations with plans to reopen as the DoubleTree by Hilton Battle Creek in 2024. The property will include 12,000 square feet of meeting space, 247 guest rooms, a lobby with a gastro pub and bar, a ballroom, a 15th-floor cocktail lounge and restaurant with panoramic views, beer garden, and adjacency to Kellogg Arena with its 30,000 square feet of meeting and exhibition space.

New Holland Brewing Co. has opened a new brewpub, microbrewhouse, and microdistillery in the heart of the city. The company renovated a former J.C. Penney building to create space for a full-service restaurant and several semiprivate gathering spaces for groups of up to 30. There’s also a 4,000-square-foot beer garden.

Coldwater

A former freight train depot is now home to the recently opened Trainwreck Grill & Ale House, which includes spaces for meetings. It’s located across the tracks from the Little River Railroad, which offers steampowered train excursions.

Detroit Area

There’s so much news out of Detroit’s hospitality scene these days that it’s hard to know where to begin. The Cambria Hotel has opened downtown with more than 18,000 square feet of multifunction meeting and event space. Also downtown, AC Detroit at the Bonstelle is under construction and will tap the historic Bonstelle Theatre for meeting space. The Athenium Suite Hotel in Greektown has undergone significant renovations, and The Godfrey Hotel Detroit is new and features a ballroom that can accommodate 350-plus guests.

Detroit-based real estate developer, Bedrock, and hospitality company, Method Co., have opened Roost Detroit, Michigan’s first high-design extended-stay concept, in Book Tower, which is nearing completion on $300 million in historic restoration. Method Co. has also rolled out Anthology, with several elegant venues at Book Tower. The historic Westin Book Cadillac has undergone renovations of its 453 guest rooms and suites and 36,000 square feet of meeting and banquet space. With the addition of Sullivan’s Steakhouse, the hotel will once again have a full-service restaurant.

Flint/Genesee County

The new Sloan Museum of Discovery reopened in 2022 featuring new science, history, and hands-on learning exhibits. In addition to a science gallery showcasing the multistory Spaceship Earth exhibit,

a Maker Space, and a large interactive water table offering information about the Great Lakes, the $30 million expansion includes a new auto exhibition area and The Community Gallery, co-curated with local organizations to showcase communitybased exhibits. The Sloan offers a variety of gathering spaces for conferences, board meetings, seminars, and lectures.

The Flint Institute of Arts has opened a new gallery space dedicated to works by African American and African Diaspora artists. The collection consists of 320-plus items that include sculptures, paintings, and mixed media works from the museum’s permanent collection.

Fenton Winery & Brewery offers spaces for meetings and events with a one-of-akind rustic cedar building, garden area, and outdoor patio with a fireplace and overhead lighting.

Frankenmuth

The Bavarian Inn Lodge & Restaurant is undergoing a major expansion that will dramatically expand its water park and family entertainment offerings. The $80 million project includes construction of a new building that will be connected to the existing Family Fun Center.

Grand Rapids

The Sheraton Grand Rapids Airport Hotel has undergone a $14 million renovation. The hotel features more than 20,000 square

SLOAN MUSEUM OF DISCOVERY, FLINT/GENESEE COUNTY THUNDER BAY NATIONAL MARINE SANCTUARY, ALPENA

VENUE BY 4M, ANN ARBOR

feet of event space for meetings and conferences. There’s even a large outdoor patio area with a tiki bar for outdoor meetings.

Visitors to Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park will experience a new Welcome Center, Learning Center, transportation center for tram rides, and other enhancements including more space for outdoor picnics along with expanded and accessible parking, new urban and rain gardens to control water runoff, and tweaks in the gardens’ footprint.

Holland

The downtown CityFlatsHotel is recently renovated and rebranded as Tulyp Hotel, Tapestry Collection by Hilton. The hotel also renamed the restaurant as 1847 Lounge and chose Piek Events as the name for its event space.

Howell

The Hampton Inn & Suites Howell is now open, with 101 guest rooms and a meeting space that holds 30. Tap-In’s Range has also opened, offering an indoor golf simulator and immersive driving range experience for groups.

Jackson

While Jackson’s Bright Walls Mural Festival marked its finale event in 2022, the more than 70 murals it yielded in the city’s downtown district over its four-year run live on. Murals completed in 2022 range from a four-story Alice Cooper to a chrome dog and a 3D work by Stathis Tsavalias.

Kalamazoo

A new Hard Rock-brand hotel is opening on the site that used to be home to the Gibson Mandolin-Guitar Manufacturing Co. in downtown Kalamazoo. The Reverb by Hard Rock Kalamazoo, along with conversion of the original Gibson manufacturing building, will include a brewery and restaurant, banquet space, auditorium, Body Rock Fitness gym, and museum.

The Mill at Vicksburg, about 15 miles from Kalamazoo, is undergoing renova-tions with eventual plans to open a brewery, distillery, event spaces, a hotel, and more on the former paper mill’s 100-acre campus.

Lansing Area

Set on the Lansing riverfront, Lansing Shuffle is housed in the reimagined 11,000square-foot City Market and features flexible event space, seven restaurants, two full-service bars, a large outdoor patio, and shuffleboard courts. Heritage Hall features expanded tour orientation rooms, history exhibits, an artifact conservation space, and a large meeting space at Michigan’s State Capitol.

Two Red Cedar hotels with a combined 295 guest rooms have opened steps away from Michigan State University. The Hyatt House Lansing/University Area is designed for long-term stays, with apartment-style rooms including kitchenettes and dining areas. The AC Hotel Lansing is a full-service Marriott with 5,000 square feet of event space and European-inspired rooms.

Mackinac Island

Mission Point Resort on Mackinac Island reopened for the 2023 season with a multifaceted renovation that highlighted the natural beauty of the historic structure while providing modern amenities. The main lobby has been renovated and the front desk re-created with rocks brought by horse and wagon from the other side of the island.

Marque e

The 1891-built Marquette Savings Bank Building will undergo a total renovation to become The Vault Hotel Marquette with 40-plus rooms, a grotto spa, an underground cocktail bar, and a street-level coffee shop. It’s connected to a new-build 60-room hotel with venue space overlooking Lake Superior including a pre-function bar and outdoor patio. Breaking ground before spring 2024, The Vault will open in 2026.

Muskegon

The Starlight Room recording studio and concert space will be available for meeting and conference rentals on off-concert days, says LaShelle Mikesell of Visit Muskegon.

Mt. Pleasant

Soaring Eagle Casino & Resort is rolling out new food concepts. Ruth’s Chris Steak House has opened and a new food district includes Guy Fieri’s Chicken Guy!, Ike’s Love and Sandwiches, Bubbakoos Burritos, and Bonnano’s New York Pizzeria.

Continued on page 38

PHOTOS (FROM LEFT) MICHELLE GERARD, LESLIE MCANDREWS, TULYP HOTEL

BRIGHT WALLS MURAL FESTIVAL, JACKSON

TULYP HOTEL, HOLLAND

LANSING SHUFFLE

Africa Safari meeting spaces with animal visits and Skylark Ridge zip lines

Old-school elegance restored to this 19th century ballroom

manor

MEET US IN PURE MICHIGAN

Nomatter the season, it’s always a great time to do business in Michigan. We offer outstanding meeting facilities and concierge services to take care of any type of event across our two peninsulas, creating memorable experiences that deliver results. Whether you’re looking for the excitement of an action-packed city or seeking the peaceful respite of nature, Michigan is the best of both worlds—a destination for recreation and connection.

In Michigan, we provide the best of both worlds; from vibrant downtowns lined with shops, restaurants, and breweries to crystalclear waters, countless trails, and an abundance of golf courses and ski resorts, Michigan is ready to provide you with the quintessential Pure Michigan experience. We can’t wait to see you here.

To learn more and see what opportunities await you and your next meeting, visit michigan.org/meetings-michigan.

Reasons to consider Michigan for your meeting:

• From our affordable luxurious hotels and resorts to our new and renovated airports, Michigan offers accommodations and accessibility throughout the state.

• Michigan is home to award-winning communities, beaches, forests, parks, and the most public golf courses in the United States.

• Looking for ways to unwind? As the top wine producer in the Midwest and a Top 10 craft beer state, you will find over 100 wineries and a range of craft breweries in Michigan.

Destination details:

We offer a way to connect with Michigan destinations through a one-stop-shop experience. Based on the goals and objectives of your event, we will help find the perfect destination.

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Continued from page 34

Petoskey Area

The former Beaver Island ferry, most recently operated by Detroit-based Diamond Jack’s River Tours, has been brought to Petoskey where it’s being put into use for private events and tours by Little Traverse Bay Ferry Co.

SkyBridge Michigan has been getting a lot of buzz since it opened in late 2022 at Boyne Mountain Resort as the world’s longest timber-towered suspension bridge. Stretching to 1,200 feet in length, the experience includes a chairlift ride to the mountaintop followed by an open-air walk across a suspended 5-foot-wide walking surface 118 feet above the valley.

Port Huron

The new Wrigley Hall in downtown Port Huron provides a food hall and entertainment venue with 30,000 square feet of space. Located in a former Wrigley grocery store, it’s part of Wrigley Center and its 30,000 square feet of retail space. It offers three indoor bars and a 4,400-square-foot rooftop bar with views of the city, along with activities like golf, cornhole, pickleball, and more.

Saginaw

Home2 Suites by Hilton has opened in Saginaw with 96 rooms, a meeting room that can accommodate 30 to 40 people, a fitness center, and a pool.

Sault Ste. Marie

Interlake Maritime Services now operates the original Soo Locks Boat Tours. The tours operate on both the Canadian and American sides of the St. Marys River and have long been a popular attraction for visitors to Sault Ste. Marie.

St. Joseph

The Southwestern Michigan Tourist Council is running another year of its Creative Connections game. Those who play visit 21 destinations through April 30, 2024, and can win artsy prizes.

Traverse City

Grand Traverse Resort and Spa has completed a $10.5 million renovation of its original six-story hotel. Guest rooms were increased from 239 to 242 with two new junior suites added. In addition, all guest rooms, bathrooms, corridors, and elevators were updated, as were four hospitality suites.

Elsewhere in Traverse City, a half-dozen new hotels have either opened or are under construction and collectively will add about 550 rooms. Tru by Hilton, Avid Hotel, Residence Inn by Marriott, Staybridge Suites by IHG, a Marriott downtown, and a locally owned boutique waterfront property called the Alexandra Inn are among the new properties.

ALPENA AREA CONVENTION & VISITORS BUREAU visitalpena.com / 989-340-2288

CALHOUN COUNTY VISITORS BUREAU battlecreekvisitors.org / 269-962-2240

COLDWATER COUNTRY CONFERENCE & VISITORS BUREAU coldwatercountry.com / 517-278-0241

DESTINATION ANN ARBOR annarbor.org / 800-888-9487

DISCOVER KALAMAZOO discoverkalamazoo.com / 269-488-9000

DISCOVER THE BLUE, MICHIGAN’S THUMBCOAST bluewater.org / 800-852-4242

EXPERIENCE GRAND RAPIDS experiencegr.com / 877-847-4847

EXPERIENCE JACKSON experiencejackson.com / 517-764-4440

GREAT LAKES BAY REGIONAL CONVENTION & VISITORS BUREAU gogreat.com / 989-752-7164

GREATER LANSING CONVENTION & VISITORS BUREAU lansing.org / 517-487-0077

HOLLAND AREA VISITORS BUREAU holland.org / 616-394-0000

MACKINAC ISLAND TOURISM BUREAU mackinacisland.org / 906-847-3783

MT. PLEASANT AREA CONVENTION & VISITORS BUREAU meetmtp.com / 989-772-4433

PETOSKEY AREA VISITORS BUREAU petoskeyarea.com / 231-348-2755

PURE MICHIGAN michigan.org/meetings-michigan 888-784-7328, Option 3

SAULT STE. MARIE CONVENTION & VISITORS BUREAU saultstemarie.com / 906-632-3366

TRAVEL MARQUETTE travelmarquette.com / 906-228-7749

TRAVERSE CITY TOURISM traversecity.com / 800-872-8377

VISIT DETROIT visitdetroit.com / 800-DETROIT

VISIT MUSKEGON visitmuskegon.org / 800-250-9283

PHOTO RUTH’S CHRIS STEAK HOUSE

RUTH’S CHRIS STEAK HOUSE, MT. PLEASANT

M ORE TH AN A M EETI N G

You can have the same old meeting. Or you can have a meeting plus access to the great outdoors, winery tours, world-class golf, and a sunset cruise. Welcome to The Petoskey Area, the Land of More.

A Bit Avant-Garde

Change things up with eclectic venues that make for memorable events

BY KATHY GIBBONS

THERE’S NOTHING LIKE AN UNUSUAL SETTING to make an event stand out. Even when business gatherings are centered on convention facilities, meeting venues, and hotels, it’s common for planners to seek out a space that’s a little unusual, off the beaten path, or teeming with history, character, or quirkiness for an offsite or separate gathering.

Michigan lends itself well to atypical meeting venues that reflect some of the very features that set the state apart: edgy and urban, rural and outdoorsy, water- and car-themed, and historic. In fact, it only takes imagination and resourcefulness to transform pretty much any offbeat place with the right amount of space into a meeting venue.

PAST MEETS PRESENT

Rock Events in Detroit has become its own entity independent of Rocket Companies, where it had been supporting the creative design and execution of hundreds of internal events and productions. Rock Events now offers six Detroit venues to rent for public gatherings:

OCM16, the Icon, State Savings Bank, The Madison, The Beacon at One Woodward, and a lower-level event space in the Chrysler House building. Each is unique, offering some combination of sweeping views of the city or Detroit River, historic ambience, distinctive architecture, wide-open spaces, kitschy art, and other distinctive features.

“Many of our venues marry the historic charm of Detroit architecture with modern elegance to create a unique experience for all,” says Andrea Gengler, CEO of Rock Events. “Detroit is rich with culture and history, and venues like State Savings Bank invoke awe with its classical colonnades and bronze grillwork paired with the sleek and modern marble interior. Historic buildings add character and beauty to an event and, when combined with modern technology and design, you create the best of both worlds for clients and attendees alike.”

The historic Howell Opera House in Howell, home of the Livingston Arts Council, offers rentals on its renovated first floor any day of the week. Built in 1881, the historic landmark became

BLACK STAR FARMS, NEAR TRAVERSE CITY

PHOTO BLACK STAR FARMS

a central part of Livingston County life until it was closed by the fire marshal in 1924. While the original opera house theater and balcony are located on the second and third floors, which have not yet been restored, the main floor has been renovated and can accommodate up to 200 for auditorium seating and 150 for receptions. Oh—and as local lore has it, the opera house is haunted. Howell’s Main Street Winery, also said to be haunted, is the starting point for fall ghost tours.

In the Muskegon area, history serves up some offbeat meeting venues. Visit Muskegon Digital Media and Marketing Coordinator LaShelle Mikesell recommends the USS LST 393, first used in World War II and then put into service as a merchant ship. Today, it serves as a Muskegon Lake veterans museum and memorial, which can host up to 300. Mikesell also recommends the USS Silversides Submarine Museum, which includes a vintage Coast Guard cutter, the namesake World War II submarine, and rotating exhibits on military history. Silversides Museum Coordinator Teresa Folkmier says its Channel View Room can accommodate about 130 people at tables—and more theater-style—overlooking the channel between Muskegon Lake and Lake Michigan.

History also forms the backdrop for events at two Stafford’s Hospitality properties: Stafford’s Perry Hotel and Stafford’s Bay View Inn, both in Petoskey. In the heart of the Gaslight shopping district and overlooking Little Traverse Bay, Stafford’s Perry Hotel has 75 guest rooms and various spaces for events. Director of Sales Angela Whitener says the ideal meeting size is 50 to 60, although a tented outdoor banquet could accommodate up to 300.

Stafford’s Bay View Inn is the oldest summer hotel north of Grand Rapids. Whitener says the Bay View can host group events of 100 to 150

people. It also has 30 guest rooms. “The other thing about Stafford’s is [that] we were a restaurant before we were hotels, so we’re known for our signature food and service,” Whitener adds. “We have a benchmark of hospitality in the Petoskey area.”

PLEASANTLY PASTORAL

Sometimes getting back out in nature—or at least being surrounded by it—offers an appealing change of scenery and pace. Leaman’s Green Applebarn in Freeland rents its Back Orchard Barn for events. While it’s a new build, the timber-frame structure boasts accents of an 1800s dairy barn.

Black Star Farms near Traverse City provides a rural setting for meetings and special events. “We have plenty of spaces—some of our event spaces have a capacity of up to 150. … We’ve had some creative corporate retreats in the barn when people are looking for something a little different, or there’s a room in the inn called Aquarius,” says Managing Owner Sherri Campbell Fenton. “It used to be [home to] a swimming pool when [the inn] was a private residence.”

Groups have the option to rent out the entire inn, including the 10 guest rooms and public spaces. Its bistro is also available. Black Star partners with Traverse City Tourism to arrange overflow lodging and shuttle service. “We have the most rave reviews after we put these on, and it’s such a delight,” says Fenton. “We just kind of wrap our arms around a group and take care of them.”

In Boyne City, Lavender Hill Farm hosts business-related events with a barn featuring chandeliers, twinkle lights, space for 150 comfortably, and outdoor areas including covered porches and side decks that overlook the countryside. In addition, says Event Director Trisha Lockman, groups can book experiences like classes on

PHOTOS (FROM LEFT) SOUTHBY PHOTOGRAPHY, VISIT MUSKEGON

USS SILVERSIDES SUBMARINE MUSEUM, MUSKEGON

STAFFORD’S BAY VIEW INN, PETOSKEY

themes that include distilling lavender essential oils, lavender cultivation, and more. With no on-site catering, planners can choose from a preferred vendors list for food planning.

Windmill Island Gardens in Holland showcases a permanent outdoor pavilion for events that can accommodate up to 250 seated for dinner, says Event Specialist Julia Johnson. The 36-acre island includes exhibits, gardens, and natural areas, with a landmark windmill offering a nod to the area’s Dutch heritage. “We do host several corporate events each season,” Johnson says. “We are only open mid-May [through] late September each year for events.”

MOTORING ON

Set on 87 acres off iconic Woodward Avenue in Pontiac, M1 Concourse presents indoor, open-air, and outdoor spaces with views of its Champion Motor Speedway for private groups and business events. Director of Marketing and Communications Blair Cremeens says groups might opt to ride shotgun with professional drivers in supercars or try auto-cross racing and simulators. M1’s Event Center has three large salons that can be transformed into a ballroom. Designated spaces can accommodate up to 2,000 guests, although it seems the sky’s the limit when it comes to spaces and opportunities for customizing events in terms of size, scope, theme, and activities. M1 also partners with four area hotels.

“For an outdoor event, you can almost do anything you can imagine—outdoor concerts, big galas, and nonprofit events,” Cremeens says. “It’s not really like anywhere else. It’s one of the few places you

can be in a ballroom one moment and a couple minutes later you can be on the racetrack. … Literally, you can walk from the dance floor to outside the pit row.”

EXPERIENCE GRAND RAPIDS experiencegr.com / 877-847-4847

EXPLORE BRIGHTON HOWELL AREA explorebrightonhowellarea.com / 517-548-1795

GREAT LAKES BAY REGIONAL CONVENTION & VISITORS BUREAU gogreat.com / 800-444-9979

HOLLAND AREA VISITORS BUREAU holland.org / 800-506-1299

PETOSKEY AREA VISITORS BUREAU petoskeyarea.com / 231-348-2755

TRAVERSE CITY TOURISM traversecity.com / 800-872-8377

VISIT DETROIT visitdetroit.com / 800-DETROIT

VISIT MUSKEGON visitmuskegon.org / 800-250-9283

PHOTOS (FROM LEFT) LIVINGSTON ARTS COUNCIL, M1 CONCOURSE

M1 CONCOURSE, PONTIAC

HOWELL OPERA HOUSE

Going High-Tech

Conferences and events are bringing the heat with the newest technology

BY CRAIG MANNING

ROBOTS WAIT ON conference attendees, bringing water and snacks. Virtual reality learning experiences instantly transport guests beyond the conference room to places like the International Space Station. Speakers present as holograms. And there is no place more likely to see these brilliant technologies in action right now than at a conference or convention in Michigan.

The meetings and events industry is rebounding with bells and whistles aplenty. Innovations are affecting nearly every aspect of the event experience. Just how tech-dominated will the next conference on your schedule be? The answer, of course, depends on a variety of factors, from the organization or association hosting the event to the venue they’ve chosen. Every player in the sector right now has a different comfort level with cutting-edge technology and its disruptive potential.

Still, we’ve reached a point that even relatively no-frills meetings are likely to rely on at least a certain base level of technology. Case in point are mobile applications like Eventbrite, which are now the go-to apps for conference organizers to handle guest registrations and check-ins, event schedules and programs, post-conference surveys, and other aspects of attendee engagement.

There’s an App for That

Kim Corcoran is president of Destination Michigan and executive director of Meetings Michigan, organizations that work with partners throughout the state—including convention and visitors bureaus and hotels— to educate meeting planners on the destina tions and venues that the Great Lakes State offers. Both regularly host showcase events and expos to promote Michigan meeting venues, and those events are largely driven by Results@Hand, a Michigan-based busi ness that offers app-based solutions for meetings and conferences.

“We are using Results@Hand to power our mobile app and contactless registration process,” Corcoran says. “It has been great

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for attendees to be able to walk up to our [on-site] tablets, start typing in their name, and [have] their registration pop up. They confirm their attendance, and their badge prints right there for them.” Results@Hand also provides tools that can put conference schedules, event itineraries, venue maps, social networking features, audience polling, and much more into a conferencebranded mobile app.

When the Michigan Economic Development Corp. (MEDC)—along with the Michigan Association of Convention and Visitors Bureaus (MACVB) and Experience

Grand Rapids—presented the 2023 Pure Michigan Governor’s Conference on Tourism at the Amway Grand Plaza Hotel in April 2023, planners relied on app-based solutions from Cvent.

“The calendar, all the speaker bios, all the breakouts—everything was on the app,” says Otie McKinley, media and communications manager for the MEDC and Travel Michigan. “That’s huge because it means we’re not printing hundreds and hundreds of schedules. … So that’s obviously a huge reduction in waste and a huge reduction in costs. But it’s also more user-friendly. If you’re attending the conference, you’re not having to carry around a bag full of schedules and agendas.”

The Rise of Artificial Intelligence

McNeel Keenan, Cvent vice president of product management, says the company is also working to incorporate even more sophisticated tech like machine learning, which teaches computers to learn from experience, into its app. “We’re exploring how enabling technologies like machine learning and AI [artificial intelligence] can be used to unlock new experiences for attendees and make event planning easier for organizers,” Keenan says.

With AI in the global spotlight recently, it stands to reason that meeting professionals would be looking at how that technology could streamline and make improvements

on both the planner and attendee sides of the equation. For instance, the big star today in AI is ChatGPT, a sophisticated chatbot that users can lean on to do research, write content, craft code, and more. Lindsay Krause, chief operating officer of the Detroit-based Special D Events, says the buzz about ChatGPT has led to quite a bit of talk about how ChatGPT could affect the events industry. “I can tell [ChatGPT]that I need an agenda for 45 people visiting Detroit,”

Krause says. “I put all the specs in, and ChatGPT spits [the agenda] out.”

ChatGPT is just one piece of the growing AI puzzle, though, and it’s not even the most advanced example of AI that conferencegoers could see at meetings. “As far as the AI stuff goes, everyone is talking about ChatGPT right now, and rightfully so—it’s taken the world by storm recently,” says Mark Smith, executive director of the Michigan Association of Computer Users in Learning

(FROM ABOVE) CVENT, MACUL

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MEETING PLANNERS TAKE ADVANTAGE OF CVENT TECHNOLOGY.

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(MACUL). “But ChatGPT is actually already on version 4.5. It has been around for a while. There’s more advanced stuff happening.”

MACUL alternates its annual conference between Huntington Place Convention Center in Detroit (2023) and DeVos Place in Grand Rapids (2024). Working closely with both venues, as well as with Experience Grand Rapids and Visit Detroit, the association draws on its own tech-driven mission to deliver some of the most state-of-the-art conferences in Michigan. Increasingly, that means incorporating AI.

“I recently shared with a friend of mine a list of 60 different resources for AI, and we have that because we’ve been using AI in education forever, with all our algorithms or early-warning systems,” Smith explains. “Things like video creation and animation are all being done through AI and AR/VR [augmented reality/virtual reality].”

Going Virtual

Because these technologies are taking root in the classroom, they also end up getting showcased on the floor of MACUL’s conferences. Just a few years ago, Smith says MACUL would get less than a handful of AR/VR submissions from presenters

Going All In On Accessibility

In one of the TV spots for its refreshed advertising campaign, Pure Michigan features a person in a wheelchair. Titled “Fresh Path,” the commercial briefly shows the individual navigating a wooded trail in an all-terrain wheelchair, which have become increasingly commonplace in Michigan parks over the past few years. Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore became the first national park in the country to offer the chair back in 2019, and numerous Michigan state parks provide all-terrain chairs as well.

Throughout the hospitality and tourism industries, accessibility has become a priority that organizations are really dialing in on, from hotels and festivals to restaurants and event venues. “Access to travel experiences shouldn’t be limited to those without disabilities,” says Dave Lorenz, Travel Michigan vice president, adding that focusing on accessibility in an ad is a signal to people with disabilities that they are welcome in Michigan. “We know that people are more comfortable going to places where they ‘can see themselves,’ so [the ad] is a way to demonstrate our attempt to be more welcoming.”

Meeting planners should consider and understand who their attendees and speakers are and be ready to make accommodations for those who require them. For example, Michigan Association of Convention and Visitors Bureaus Executive Director Larisa Draves praises the Amway Grand Plaza Hotel in Grand Rapids for having a turnkey setup for accessibility accommodations. Draves was involved in helping put on the 2023 Pure Michigan Governor’s Conference on Tourism at the hotel in April. “We had an accessibility session, and we needed a stage with a ramp because we had a speaker in a wheelchair,” Draves explains. “The Amway had that available.”

That address was delivered by Cory Lee, a blogger with a mission of “sharing the world from a wheelchair perspective.” Lee urged Michigan travel leaders to recognize that the word “accessible” has different connotations for every person with a disability. As such, he says, destinations should try to be “as specific as possible when talking about accessibility,” instead of just touting accessibility as a broad concept or feature.

As the call for accessibility in travel grows louder, so too does the demand for transparency around which specific accessibility accomodations businesses have to offer. Lansingbased AbleVu (formerly Able Eyes) is a Yelp-style app for accessibility information, intended to help persons with disabilities get details about the specific accessibility features of shops, restaurants and bars, event venues, and other businesses.

Like the Amway Grand, many meeting venues in Michigan are taking steps to create more inclusive, accessible spaces. The Bavarian Inn Restaurant & Lodge in Frankenmuth, for instance, designed its conference center “with no required steps within the public areas.” The venue boasts “a large gradual ramping system” throughout the resort to make things wheelchair accessible, three swimming pools that are equipped with electric transfer chairs, Amigo mobility scooters for rent, and 18 accessible guest rooms.

A new grant program could give accessibility efforts statewide a boost as well. Lorenz says Travel Michigan was working with the U.S. Economic Development Administration to create a program that would allow Michigan convention and visitors bureaus to apply for a 50:50 match grant to build accessibility infrastructure, create accessibility websites, and conduct accessibility assessments. Applications to the $1 million grant program were expected to be available this year.

PHOTOS (CLOCKWISE FROM ABOVE LEFT) MEDC, BAVARIAN INN RESTAURANT & LODGE, MEDC

PURE MICHIGAN GOVERNOR’S CONFERENCE ON TOURISM USED CVENT FOR SCHEDULING

Ignite their enthusiasm. Whether it’s four C-level execs galvanizing goals, 10 eager hires training or 50 sales reps seeking tips, fire them up and their guests, too. Meet where daylight streams in and meals are infused with locally harvested flavors. Then paddle Lake Michigan-bound rivers, tour a lighthouse, taste craft beverages and shop in charming resort towns. Feel energized in Southwest Michigan.

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EXPLORE FLINT & GENESEE

For a one-of-a-kind, memorable experience for your meeting or event, look no further than Flint and Genesee County. With a variety of distinct venues with the backdrop of a vibrant city and county, Flint and Genesee County have great places for planners to utilize.

Venues include:

• Sloan Museum of Discovery and Flint Public Library, with its recent multimillion-dollar renovations, offering beautiful event and meeting options for planners

• Flint Institute of Arts, Michigan’s second largest art museum, with meeting and event spaces, including a theater

• Crossroads Village and Huckleberry Railroad featuring historic buildings and shops, including Michigan’s oldest operating gristmill, which can accommodate a variety of meetings or events

• Fenton Winery & Brewery, a unique craft beverage purveyor in the southern

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• Dort Financial Center, home of the Flint Firebirds hockey team and host to many conventions and events in the area, including the Tattoo City Tattoo Convention

• Kettering University’s Historic Atwood Stadium, the home field of Flint City Bucks and Flint City AFC soccer teams, and a great place to host sporting events, concerts, and other events

Explore Flint & Genesee staff works with planners across markets: sports, associations, corporate, fraternal, educational, and more. Experts act as a personal concierge for any event or meeting coming to Flint and Genesee County. Genesee County also offers competitively priced hotels, as well as conference and banquet facilities; various sports facilities; and professional service providers to make any event successful.

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MACUL show featured 16 general sessions that revolved completely around AR/VR. More than that, Smith says MACUL “ran a full AR/VR playground for two full days of our conference.”

MACUL conferences have generated a lot of excitement and buzz by testing some of these technological learning pathways on attendees. “Through Oculus Go headsets, we actually had people do work on the International Space Station last year through an AR/VR setup,” Smith recalls of a particularly

memorable 2022 conference highlight. Opportunities to showcase technology like that, he notes, are often the best way to drive classroom adoption and implementation. In other words, tech advancements in education often start on the trade show floor.

Beyond continued leaps forward in AR/ VR, what is Smith most watching for in the next year or two? The answer is holographic technology, which allows speakers to attend conferences virtually in a newer, cooler way—not on a Zoom screen, but in 3D

hologram form. “You could have a speaker from anywhere in the world feel like they’re in the room with you,” he says.

In Person—Or Not

At Kellogg Hotel & Conference Center on campus at Michigan State University in East Lansing, Lead Audiovisual Technician Jon Worful says his department is seeing more demand for live streaming and meetings that incorporate Zoom sessions to make it possible for remote attendance, too. He describes it as a post-pandemic carryover that hasn’t gone away.

“The technology was helpful for the situation we all found ourselves in, but has actually lingered on,” Worful says, explaining that many groups live stream and preserve the recording to post on YouTube or some other space after the event. While a lot of us got adept at setting up or signing into a Zoom meeting, trying to make one work in a conference format can prove to be more challenging, and that’s where Worful and his staff come in.

“You have people trying to use Zoom and … they only know their lane,” he says. “[So] when it gets into knowing some of the deeper settings of those programs, you need someone there to help kind of guide them through that.”

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KELLOGG HOTEL & CONFERENCE CENTER, EAST LANSING

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The Future Is Now

Even most futuristic stuff—that, until now, we’ve only seen in science fiction movies— is closer than most of us realize. For example, are you planning an event and trying to find the perfect venue? You might be able to save time and travel thanks to beautifully rendered virtual tours of hotels and conference spaces. Ann Karbo, director of communications and community engagement for Destination Ann Arbor, says the organization works with Florida-based Threshold 360 to create virtual tours of all its member hotels as well as of numerous high-profile Ann Arbor attractions, such as Michigan Stadium. “Those virtual tours are then included in any proposals or bids for conferences, meetings, or sporting events, to help the planner visualize the event space before making a decision,” Karbo explains.

Alternatively, maybe your hotel is staffing an event and is short on workers in its banquets department. Ariel Backus, a sales manager for the Greater Lansing Convention & Visitors Bureau, recalls a recent conference in Peoria, Illinois, where event planners used robots to deliver snacks and other items during session breaks.

Regardless of the hurdle, a cool, techsavvy solution can help. Karen Totaro, general manager of Huntington Place, says

event organizers are increasingly inquiring about specialty LED walls and designs. Some planners simply want the extra LED to spice up the look and ambience of a presentation, while others are seeking to curb “FOMO (fear of missing out) panic” by broadcasting especially popular sessions to overflow viewing rooms.

Larisa Draves, Michigan Association of Convention and Visitors Bureaus executive director, sees even more wow-factor potential on the LED wall front, pointing to the Parallel Reality displays installed last year at Detroit Metropolitan Airport (DTW). Debuted at CES in 2020 and now enjoying its real-world implementation inside the Delta Air Lines terminal at DTW,

Parallel Reality is a screen-display technology that, per Delta, “allows up to 100 customers to each see their personalized flight information on a single digital screen at the same time.” Once any customer opts in to use the technology, the system assigns that person a specific and private “viewing zone” at their location.

For her part, Draves likes the idea of conferences and meetings becoming opportunities to show off tech innovations whether relevant to the theme or not. “In the state of Michigan, we’re one of the leaders in technology in the United States,” Draves says. “The more that we can showcase some of our technology, [the more] that benefits everybody.”

DESTINATION ANN ARBOR annarbor.org / 800-888-9487

EXPERIENCE GRAND RAPIDS experiencegr.com / 877-847-4847

GREATER LANSING CONVENTION & VISITORS BUREAU lansing.org / 517-487-0077

MEETINGS MICHIGAN michigan.org/meetings-michigan 734-646-0791

MICHIGAN ASSOCIATION OF CONVENTION AND VISITORS BUREAUS visitmichigan.org / 231-823-0015

MICHIGAN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT CORP. michiganbusiness.org / 888-522-0103

VISIT DETROIT visitdetroit.com / 800-DETROIT

HUNTINGTON PLACE, DETROIT

DELTA AIR LINES PARALLEL REALITY AT DETROIT METROPOLITAN AIRPORT

Let us help you guide your next meeting or event to Muskegon, Michigan.

Rich in scenic beauty and hospitable surroundings, Muskegon is sure to impress your attendees. From the new VanDyk Mortgage Convention Center to board rooms draped in art, Muskegon County’s unique array of meeting venues will accommodate groups of all sizes. When the work day is over, our social districts and natural areas will bring your group together out on the town.

Choose Muskegon County Michigan for your next meeting or event. We can’t wait to light it up!

DETROIT DOES MORE

When you meet in Detroit, you join the innovators who are bringing the future to life. Take your event to state-of-the-art venues, then send attendees to enjoy award-winning cuisine and uncover our rich cultural roots.

Plan a meeting in Detroit.