Small Cities: Bigger Than You Think

Small cities offer unique attractions for religious meetings.

By Kate Capleton

Rather than getting lost in the shuffle in a top-tier metropolis, a group is more likely to make an impression in a smaller community, perhaps even attracting the attention of local media. And with air access continually improving, as airlines add more direct and nonstop service to traditionally underserved destinations, bringing your meeting to a smaller city is getting easier all the time. New carriers such as Allegiant Airlines and Skybus serve city pairs such as Duluth, Minnesota, and Orlando, as well as Portsmouth, New Hampshire, and Columbus, Ohio, while major airlines beef up their own service in smaller markets like these to compete.

Easier access is only part of the appeal. One of the primary reasons planners choose a smaller market, of course, is the cost savings. And that’s no small thing. According to data from Smith Travel Research, the average daily room rate in the top 25 markets in the United States was $126 through September 2007, led by New York City at $304 a night. Compare that with the average rate for the other markets in the country-about $91 a night, and you can already see the cost savings. Investigating individual cities can show even greater savings. Baton Rouge, for example, offered an average daily rate of $82 per night through September 2007. Such vast disparities in room prices can go a long way toward stretching meetings dollars.

Many small cities also have the option of offering a unique venue or sidetrip that a metropolis can’t match: After all, there’s only one Mount Rushmore (near Rapid City, South Dakota) or Baseball Hall of Fame (near Oneonta, New York). Still, for all their attributes, smaller cities often struggle to get noticed in the competitive meetings business. Understanding that some smaller cities have fewer resources to market to and serve the meetings industry, several spots are taking the unusual step of pooling marketing resources to reach a wider audience.

One such partnership, launched this fall, pairs Madison, Wisconsin, with Hartford, Connecticut and Spokane, Washington. Designed to drive convention business to all three cities, the partners expect to take advantage of groups that rotate their conferences among West Coast, East Coast, and Midwest destinations. Other cities with marketing alliances include the trio of Portland, Oregon, Pittsburgh and Milwaukee. Virginia Beach, Virginia, has had a two-and-a-half year informal partnership with San Jose, California, hosting several joint client events and receptions. The two destinations, which have similar-sized convention centers, benefit from groups that like to move from one coast to the other. It’s worked out well so far, with one client from San Jose learning about Virginia Beach at a joint event and later booking 4,000 room-nights at the East Coast facility.

Aside from the obvious benefits, small cities can often surprise planners with amenities found more often in top tier destinations. Rejuvenate magazine has uncovered some such unique attractions and facilities across the country.

Jackson: A Convention Complex

Jackson, Mississippi, is in the midst of a major downtown revitalization-more than $1 billion in projects are either under way or recently completed, with many more announced, including retail, restaurants, hotels, and cultural centers. This development boom includes the new Jackson Convention Complex, which combines the Mississippi TelCom Center, opened in January 2006, with the new Capital City Convention Center, slated to open in January 2009. Together they will offer more than 340,000 square feet, including more than 110,000 square feet of meeting and exhibit space. The two facilities, designed to integrate seamlessly, will feature state-of-the-art technology, including WiFi and plasma-screen monitors. Natural light will illuminate the main exhibit areas of the convention center through a glass façade that mirrors that of the TelCom Center.

The new convention center will also be notable for its flexibility: each banquet hall will have a series of boxes tied into a central grid, with outlets for natural gas, electricity, and water, to accommodate a variety of food prep needs.

To complete the package, the main doors of the convention center are directly across the street from the brand new Mississippi Museum of Art, a striking facility designed by the convention center’s architect and intended to look like an extension of the rest of the complex. The museum, which opened this summer with indoor/outdoor meeting space that can serve as a great off-site meetings venue, has beautifully landscaped grounds with water features and outdoor café dining, as well as the Viking Palette Café, which can accommodate attendees from the Convention Complex. Many other restaurants are also within walking distance.

About 2,000 of Jackson’s nearly 5,000 hotel rooms are downtown. Those will soon be joined by two new hotels at the convention center. One project, the $209 million dollar Capital City Center, will connect to the Convention Complex via skywalk and offer an upscale extended-stay hotel. The other project will take the King Edward Hotel, a historic property that has been vacant for 40 years, and return it to its former glory, with 155 hotel rooms, along with condos, restaurants, and a spa.

Valley Forge: Shopper’s Paradise

Everybody knows that Valley Forge is rife with natural beauty and revolutionary history, from Valley Forge National Historical Park, where Washington’s army encamped during the winter of 1777, to the National Center for the American Revolution, scheduled to open in 2008 as the first museum to cover the entire history of the Revolution. What you may not know is that the region is also a major shopping destination, anchored by the King of Prussia Mall, the only mall in the United States featured on Forbes.com’s list of the world’s 10 largest shopping malls, and the newly opened Philadelphia Premium Outlets, which debuted last month and is already expanding.

King of Prussia Mall may not have the theme parks and other attractions offered by some other well-known shopping destinations, but it boasts more than 400 luxury retailers and 2.9 million square feet of retail space. Two Louisiana Superdomes or five of the Great Pyramids could fit inside the acreage occupied by the facility.

Valley Forge area also offers a 2 percent hotel room tax and a wide variety of sleeping options, with nearly 7,500 first-class guest rooms and 60 hotels, inns, and extended stay properties, including 14 full-service convention hotels. The area also has more than a dozen state-of-the-art conference centers-the largest concentration in the nation. Convention facilities include the Valley Forge Convention Center, with more than 108,000 square feet of subdividable space, two adjoining hotels, a dinner theater, nightclub, and three restaurants. For larger events, consider the 270,000-square-foot Fort Washington Expo Center-the largest suburban exhibition center along the mid-Atlantic corridor.

Kissimmee: Fun in the Sun For Less

With the average daily room rate for Orlando hovering around $90 through September 2007, according to figures from Smith Travel Research, groups might find a welcome respite in a $73 ADR in Kissimmee, with the access to all the area’s attractions and amenities, from theme parks to boat tours. Accommodation variety can meet a wide range of budgets, from motels to full-service hotels. One particularly striking property amidst the 19 meetings properties in Kissimmee is Gaylord Palms Resort and Convention Center, a 1,406-room resort with a 4.5-acre glass atrium that houses the largest hotel-based exhibit hall in the state of Florida at 175,000 square feet. With a total of 400,000 square feet of meeting space, the Gaylord Palms can accommodate a wide variety of different events while giving visitors a taste of the many parts of Florida under one roof, from St. Augustine to the Everglades and the Keys. The resort also boasts a Canyon Ranch SpaClub and on-site recreation options like beach volleyball, an executive putting course, and separate swimming pools for families and adults.

In addition to the obvious attractions like Disney World, Universal Studios, and SeaWorld, lakes and other natural attractions in Kissimmee and nearby allow attendees to enjoy hiking, canoeing, and wildlife watching at the area’s varied preserves year-round. In fact, fishing or scenic eco-tours of Lake Tohopekaliga (better known as Lake Toho) depart right from downtown Kissimmee. The Kissimmee area also has many faith-based attractions, including Holy Land Experience and WordSpring Discovery Center, as well as denominational and non-denominational churches and religious organizations, including Florida Christian College.

Gatlinburg/Pigeon Forge: Inspirational Scenery

Nestled in the foothills of the Smoky Mountains, with a year-round population of just 3,500, Gatlinburg boasts a surprising amount of state-of-the-art convention space, including some 300,000 square feet at the Gatlinburg Convention Center. The center’s Great Hall provides 67,000 square feet of exhibit space. The Convention Center Gallery area is 38,200 square feet, including 18 meeting rooms, prefunction space, two private parlors, and a special VIP/media suite. The facility, designed to bring mountain views inside with natural light, wood finishes, and stone work, completed an expansion in March 2006, adding 50,000 square feet with the opening of the W.L. Mills Conference Center. Replacing the outdated W.L. Mills Auditorium, this additional space includes a 17,000-square-foot ballroom and 8,800-square-foot auditorium. Gatlinburg offers more than 12,000 sleeping rooms in a wide variety of options, from full-service and limited-service hotels and motels to condominiums, quaint chalets, cabins, and campgrounds. The downtown area is lined with unique shops and restaurants, the 1.3-million-gallon Ripley’s Aquarium of the Smokies, and even street performers. Visitors can also ride the country’s largest aerial tram to the top of Tennessee’s only ski resort, Ober Gatlinburg. Five miles down the road, Pigeon Forge offers an additional 8,500 guest rooms, from nationally known hotel properties to large group chalets. Many of these facilities have special amenities just for church groups. The town is also home to the Dollywood theme park, featuring rides, games, shows, old-fashioned Southern cooking and crafts, and more than 40 other attractions and activities. What makes this area truly special, though, is its location at the gateway to Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the most-visited national park in the United States. When the meeting is over, attendees can take advantage of one of the last tracts of unspoiled wilderness in the eastern United States.

Green Bay: Go Packers

Green Bay is the smallest city in the country with its own National Football League team, and the Packers are the only team in the NFL to be owned by the fans. Understandably, “Cheeseheads,” as Packer fans call themselves, are incredibly proud and fiercely loyal. Organizing a group outing to a Packers game requires considerable advance planning-games are always sold out-but there are many other ways to add a bit of Cheesehead fun to a meeting in Green Bay. Following a $295 million redevelopment project in 2003, storied Lambeau Field, where the Packers play, has been transformed from a football stadium to a year-round tourist destination with many new attractions. In keeping with its 50-year history, the renovation retained the stadium’s retro feel, while adding attractions like the 18,000- square-foot Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame, which features more than 75 exhibits including a re-creation of legendary coach Vince Lombardi’s office; a children’s area where kids can dress up in Packers uniforms; and many other unique attractions. The stadium also offers numerous dining, entertainment, and retail options, as well as free WiFi at the Lambeau Field Atrium. Of course, Lambeau Field itself is also available for events-the facility offers more than 75,000 square feet of meeting space, and is very popular with faith-based meeting planners. In fact, Leap of Faith brought 10,000 attendees to Lambeau Field this summer. There are seven hotels within walking distance of Lambeau Field, and more than 4,000 guest rooms in the city, including those downtown near the KI Convention Center, which features 46,000 square feet of flexible meeting and convention space.