Although many meeting attendees are planning spring breaks and summer vacations, winter isn't over just yet. Despite a mild season nationwide, cold weather will likely hang on for another couple months in the Northeast, Midwest, and Rocky Mountains -- and of course the cold will be back again next year. Smart meeting planners will therefore continue thinking carefully about ways to not only engage and inform meeting attendees, but also about ways to keep them warm, suggests John Abair, event coordinator at Hotel Vermont in snowy Burlington, VT.
"Just about everyone in Vermont can relate to cabin fever and feeling a certain pressure to get outside during the shorter days, making meetings feel extra long," Abair says.
To counteract the kind of cabin fever that can make winter meetings feel more painful than productive, planners should consider everything from food and beverage to entertainment and activities. "When looking for opportunities to warm up attendees, it is important think holistically," Abair continues. "Physical activity and F&B both have a great potential to warm everybody up. It's more about finding out how that warmness is going to best contribute to the specific group's objectives. Some groups are more food-minded and would like to warm-up with a hot chocolate bar while others would prefer a winter jaunt on fat bikes or some combination of both. Winter often provides more flexibility for meeting planners to get creative and coordinate a truly customized and unique experience to their guests."
Here are five ways to turn that customized and unique experience from one that's frigid into one that's fun:
1. Indoor/Outdoor Receptions -- Hotel Vermont (Burlington, VT)
Hotel Vermont offers a year-round fire on its terrace, making it the perfect setting for an indoor/outdoor reception that's simultaneously invigorating and cozy. Receptions typically feature a variety of creative food and drink stations, the most popular of which serves the Vermont classic "Maple Sugar on Snow": hot maple syrup drizzled over cold snow to create a taffy-like treat that's served with the traditional accompaniments -- a plain donut and a sour pickle.
2. Floating Meditation Classes -- Solage Calistoga (Calistoga, CA)
When they're stuck indoors all day because of cold weather and short days, attendees' minds tend to get a little dull. A guided mediation class can sharpen them up, according to Napa Valley's Solage Calistoga, which offers floating meditation classes for groups. Participants are led through a calming sequence of visualization and breathwork while floating atop pool rafts in the resort's warming geothermal mineral pool, helping them re-center and reinvigorate before or after a long day of meetings.
3. Winter Sports -- Squaw Creek Resort and Spa (Olympic Valley, CA)
To warm up, you've got to get the blood pumping. And the best way to get the blood pumping is to engage in physical activity. Doing so is easy -- even in winter -- at Lake Tahoe's Squaw Creek Resort and Spa, which offers group activities like cross-country and downhill skiing, snowshoeing, and even dog-sled rides through scenic Squaw Valley, all of which will help attendees not only brave the cold, but also embrace it.
4. Broomball Breakouts -- Madeline Hotel and Residences (Telluride, CO)
Team sports can be a fun way to build camaraderie, teamwork, and collaboration among meeting attendees. Unfortunately, flag football and ultimate Frisbee aren't options in the winter. Broomball, however, is, according to Colorado's Madeline Hotel and Residences, which offers "Broomball Breakouts" during which meeting attendees can play broomball on the hotel's outdoor ice skating rink. The fun Canadian sport -- which involves hitting a small ball around the ice with a stick called a broom -- can be leveraged as a teambuilding activity or an icebreaker to thaw attendees both socially and physically.
5. Warming Spa Treatments -- Salamander Resort & Spa (Middleburg, VA)
Attendees who have the "winter blues" may find themselves feeling depressed, moody, and fatigued. A warming spa treatment like those offered at Virginia's Salamander Resort & Spa can instantly lift their spirits. For example, consider Salamander's 80-minute Winter Warming Signature Treatment, which starts with a sensory skin brushing, a detoxifying body mask, and a three-step scalp experience, and ends with a hot stone massage using a blend of juniper, lime, rosemary, and sage designed to generate warmth and improve circulation.
Finally, if snowshoeing, broomball, and the spa don't work, remember that the best way to warm attendees' hearts is to warm their stomachs, says Abair. "Good planners choose their food and beverage and breaks wisely," he concludes. "Nothing can change the dynamic of a cold winter morning crunching numbers like a hot soup and salad bar with grilled cheese!"