Given the less-than-ideal economic climate coupled with lingering perception concerns, some meeting groups are still striving to stay out of the limelight and ensure their events retain an aura of seriousness. For many of these groups, hotels and resorts in gaming destinations without on-property casinos are the perfect choice.
Excellent facilities, superior service, and great value, combined with easy accessibility, are making them no-brainers for today’s meeting professionals. Particularly because room rates at these properties are competitive, as most are in highly saturated hotel markets.
Donna Massey, a Raleigh, NC-based independent planner who had been a convention manager with Chicago-based Hu-Friedy, a dental instrument manufacturer, feels having a meeting in a hotel without a casino in a gaming destination is ideal. “You can have a serious meeting in a serious environment without gaming being in your face, and then walk a few blocks and have all the entertainment options you can possibly want,” says Massey.
She has planned several meetings at The Westin Casuarina Las Vegas Hotel, Casino & Spa, one block from the Strip. Although there is a small casino on site, it is not on the scale of others in town, nor is it positioned to force guests inside.
“We didn’t want our attendees to have to walk through a confusing, maze-like casino floor. There have been times I’ve walked into a casino resort and have thought, ‘Where is the reception desk, where are the sleeping rooms, where is the meeting space?’ ” says Massey. “We had business to conduct and wanted to get our group in and out easily. Our employees were in town for a larger dental convention and our meetings wrapped around that.”
Meetings Mecca
Las Vegas might be the most popular gaming destination in the country, but it also has numerous non-gaming properties from which to choose. There are some groups that want the city’s neon lights, whirring slot machines, and top-rated shows at their doorstep, but that’s where they want it to stop.
“Las Vegas is a very diverse meeting and convention destination,” says Amy Riley, senior director of convention sales for the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA). “Non-gaming properties are available for those groups wanting to provide a more structured atmosphere for business and yet still have access to the amenities of Las Vegas after the work is complete.
“Some national brands, such as Four Seasons, Renaissance, Mandarin Oriental, and Loews, are able to provide planners with the familiarity of their brands and facilities,” she continues. “Others are operated by casino ownership groups and offer partnerships with the casino properties that can provide access to restaurants and other amenities after business hours. The non-gaming properties provide another option for planners and are another reason why Las Vegas is a premier business destination.”
Vdara Hotel & Spa, with 1,495 suites and more than 10,000 square feet of meeting space, is one such property that does substantial group business.
“Many of our groups want to escape from the excitement of Las Vegas but also want to be able to easily access it,” explains Stephanie Windham, vice president of sales and marketing for Vdara and Aria. Vdara is especially popular with groups from the medical, insurance, pharmaceutical, and financial fields. “There are still groups in the financial and insurance industries that want non-gaming environments. They are extremely careful of confidentiality. Our size is unique, and we don’t have thousands of people coming and going. Many attendees will go to their meetings during the day and escape in the evening since there is easy access to Aria and Bellagio.”
Nearby, THEhotel at Mandalay Bay features 1,117 suites and 20,000 square feet of meeting space and no casino. Also part of Mandalay Bay is the 424-room, gaming-free Four Seasons that has 28,300 square feet of meeting space.
“We’re all about serious business meetings, trade shows, and conventions here. Groups come here to get business done,” says Steve Walker, executive director of sales for Mandalay Bay. “We have many executive retreats and smaller board meetings at THEhotel, and if attendees don’t ever want to see a slot machine or a poker room when they’re in town, they don’t have to.” Approximately 40 percent of Mandalay Bay’s business is group-related, he adds.
The Signature at MGM Grand is a luxury all-suite hotel located within three towers, and yet this peaceful retreat is mere moments away from the excitement of MGM Grand. Each tower has 576 suites with one- and two-bedroom balcony suites and only 16 units per floor—and no gaming. The hotel is just steps from the MGM Grand Conference Center, which is accessible without traversing a casino floor.
“The Signature provides a private gated entrance and controlled access to the hotel,” says Brian Keenan, vice president of hotel sales for MGM Grand, adding that “you also have the ability to utilize all of the fantastic amenities of MGM Grand if you choose.”
Jill Archunde, general manager of The Signature at MGM Grand, notes, “It’s the best of both worlds. A group can have a meeting in a very focused environment during the day and go out and play in the evening.”
But because many non-gaming properties do not have a myriad of entertainment options available, the expertise of a destination management company (DMC) becomes even more important. Jaki Baskow, CEO of Las Vegas-based Baskow & Associates, an event, meeting, and destination management services company, recently planned an event at the Ravella at Lake Las Vegas with extravagant entertainment. “We arranged for living decor, strolling live tables. It was very elegant, with a model wearing a long red gown that served as the red carpet and a showgirl who walked around in a table that surrounded her with champagne glasses,” describes Baskow. Ravella is managed by Dolce Hotels and Resorts and located on the site of the former Ritz-Carlton at Lake Las Vegas.
Other non-gaming options in Las Vegas include Trump International Hotel, with 1,282 suites and penthouses and 10,000 square feet of meeting space; the Platinum Hotel and Spa, with 255 suites and 7,000 square feet of meeting space; and the Alexis Park All Suite Resort that has 495 suites and 50,000 square feet of meeting space. Another alternative is the Mandarin Oriental, a luxurious non-gaming property with 392 rooms and more than 12,000 square feet of function space.
Atlantic City Gets in the Game
In Atlantic City, there are a few non-gaming hotels catering to the meetings market. The Water Club offers the dining, entertainment, and gaming of its adjacent sister property, the Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa. But for the meetings-minded, the Water Club has 18,000 square feet of meeting space along with its 800 rooms.
For the most part, hotels with casinos do offer more variety as far as food and beverage outlets and entertainment options are concerned. “Our casino hotels generally offer more amenities such as multiple celebrity chef/restaurateur restaurants, spas, nightclubs, and shows than our non-gaming properties,” says Jeffrey Vasser, president of the Atlantic City Convention & Visitors Authority. But because many of the hotels without in-house casinos are affiliated with larger properties, planners needn’t fear that their attendees will be without access to the city’s hotspots.
Some even have unexpected amenities of their own: the Sheraton Atlantic City, for example, is home to the world’s largest collection of Miss America memorabilia. “By not having a casino, we focus on true hotel business,” says Carla Caulk, director of sales and marketing for the 502-room Sheraton Atlantic City. “We see it as a positive. What we do is focus on the entire meeting experience and our groups like the distraction-free environment.”
Prospering in PA
Pennsylvania might not jump to mind when you think “gaming destination,” but there are 10 casinos in the state, including the Mount Airy Casino Resort that offers more than 2,400 slot machines and 70 table games.
Three minutes away from Mount Airy is the 237-room The Inn at Pocono Manor, which attracts groups with its 25,000 square feet of meeting space. “In my experience, many planners who place meetings at casino hotels become frustrated that so many of their registered attendees leave sessions early, arrive late, or skip them altogether,” says Lisa Green, director of sales and marketing for The Inn at Pocono Manor. “The benefit of meeting in a casino destination, but not a casino hotel, is that it allows the guests and planner to enjoy the casino as an option for their free time or for a planned excursion while keeping their attention and attendance for the meetings during conference hours.”
International gaming destinations also are getting in on the action. Take Macau, for instance. One of its newest hotels, the Mandarin Oriental Macau, does not have a casino. Groups with serious agendas are proving that a market exists for these properties. Of course, the best part is that the action of a resort casino environment is just a short walk away.