The Golden 1 Arena Center (pictured) is just one of many great meeting venues found in Sacramento
WHERE TO NAPA VALLEY
MEET - The Estate Yountville
The Estate Yountville offers an excellent gathering place for groups of all sizes. Its 80-room Vintage House has completed the first phase of the comprehensive redesign and rebranding, while the expansive Spa Villagio is rolling out this summer, and the new Hotel Villagio will open next year. Altogether, the property boasts more than 30,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor event space across the whole estate.
STAY - Carneros Resort and Spa
Set on 28 acres of grapevines and farmland, this recently rebranded property has enhanced its outdoor spaces, pool, and guest entry and reception area following a $6.5 million renovation. It offers a number of indoor and outdoor venues, with a total of 10,000 square feet of meeting space and capacity for up to 175 people.
PLAY - Kayak Napa River
An unconventional but memorable way to experience the natural landscape of the Napa region is to book a kayaking tour with an organization like Kayak Napa Valley or Enjoy Napa Valley. Groups can paddle along the Napa River, checking out the local wildlife and seeing wine country from a whole different perspective.
When it comes to meetings, big things are happening in the Bay Area, from an expanded convention center to new hotels. The Moscone Center is in the midst of an expansion that will see its largest hall of contiguous space almost double to more than 509,000 square feet. A new 50,000-square-foot, column-free ballroom will open, as well as expanded lobbies, new outdoor terraces for receptions, and an enclosed bridge between buildings -- all slated for completion next year.
"But even as two-thirds of Moscone Center are undergoing expansion construction, San Francisco continues to be one of the most desirable meetings destinations in the country," says Joe D'Alessandro, president and CEO of San Francisco Travel.
Upcoming hotel inventory includes the new 196-room Virgin Hotels San Francisco, and 221-room Hotel Zoe (with 1,950 square feet of meeting space), both opening this summer. This fall the 203-room Yotel San Francisco will open in the center of the city's tech-driven heart. These properties come after the opening of the 159-room Hotel VIA as well as the $60 million redesign of the Hotel Nikko San Francisco earlier this year.
But it's not just the hotel inventory that's making this a good time to visit San Francisco.
"Our restaurant scene remains stellar -- in fact, no place in the U.S. has more Michelin three-star restaurants than the San Francisco Bay Area," adds D'Alessandro. "And our arts and cultural community is as vibrant as ever with new excitement generated by the greatly expanded SFMOMA and the historic and now cutting-edge Curran Theater."
But these days, groups seeking great meeting options in the Bay Area are looking beyond San Francisco. Thanks to convenient transportation, including the Bay Area Rapid Transit, and the fast-expanding meeting options in SF's neighboring cities, planners are finding that their events can conveniently (and cheaply) span more than one city. The city of Concord offers a number of meeting-ready hotels, including the 324-room Crowne Plaza Concord and 329-room Hilton Concord -- as well as more than 75,000 square feet of meeting space. This fall, the city will complete a pedestrian-friendly, open-air shopping destination, The Veranda, which will include a movie theater, restaurants, and retail shops.
ESSENTIAL Tool Box
CONVENTION CENTERS & FACILITIES
Moscone Center (992,000 sf); Sacramento Convention Center (384,000 sf); Oakland Convention Center (64,000 sf)
Room Tax:
Varies
READERS RECOMMEND
PINNACLE AWARDS GO TO:
• South San Francisco Conference Center
• Hyatt Regency San Francisco
"Affordable, friendly, and accessible, Concord offers small to mid-size groups a casual California experience with convenient access to three international airports, premier wine regions, outdoor activities, emerging food and craft beer scenes, and more," says John Montagh, president of the Visit Concord Tourism Business Improvement District.
Or groups can consider nearby Oakland, with its 64,000-square-foot convention center, and properties such as the Oakland Marriott City Center (with 89,000 square feet of meeting space), Claremont Hotel Club and Spa (with 24,800 square feet of meeting space), and Hilton Oakland Airport (with 16,000 square feet of meeting space).
About 100 miles northeast of San Francisco sits the meetings gem of Sacramento, offering the 350-acre Cal Expo, the recently opened McClellan Conference Center, the Golden 1 Center arena, memorable venues such as the California Museum, and a 384,000-square-foot convention center. These options are poised to grow even further, since in May of this year, the Sacramento City Council approved a plan to expand the Sacramento Convention Center, increasing the building's capacity and its flexible space while upgrading the convention center's technology and enhancing its interior.
The city and its surrounding area boast more than 16,000 hotel rooms, including the convention hotels Sheraton Grand (503 rooms) and Hyatt Regency (505 rooms). But beyond its hotel offerings, the city has become a popular option for groups seeking great culinary experiences, great craft beer, and all variety of extracurricular offerings.
Questions or comments? Email [email protected]
This article appears in the July 2017 issue of Successful Meetings.