Plan On The U.S. Virgin Islands As Events Industry Fully Recovers

Courtesy of the USVI Dept. of Tourism

The events industry is poised for a full recovery according to recent data. While 2022 got off to a slow start, June’s event bookings were 3% higher than in 2019, and there are 2,200 more hotel leads for July-December than in 2019. The takeaway? Business events and meetings are returning and surpassing pre-pandemic norms. Meeting planners, therefore, are eagerly looking for their next big destination, and the U.S. Virgin Islands (USVI) should be top of mind.

As the USVI welcomes back the events industry, it wants to make sure it’s obvious why its three islands are a sure bet. They provide the ideal mix of accessibility and amenities that meeting planners need.

Accessible: Nonstop flights on major carriers from New York, Newark, Philadelphia, Charlotte, Atlanta, Miami, and seasonal flights from Boston make the USVI a no-nonsense choice for planners who want to make it easy for attendees. What’s more, unlike many Caribbean destinations, the USVI requires no passports or currency exchanges for U.S. citizens. Everything is in English and even the plugs are the same as in the U.S. Having recently done away with any COVID testing protocols, the USVI is now fully open and prepared to welcome meeting attendees without delay from the mainland.

New Venues:  Frenchman’s Reef in St. Thomas offers world-class accommodations and event facilities. The property offers stunning venues, custom catering, high-tech audiovisual, and a team of event experts. Outside, 60,000 square feet of tropical outdoor space await, paired with 25,000 square feet of flexible indoor space. Corporate events are unbeatable at  The Hills St. John with its luxury condos and villa rentals. Its meeting spaces are spacious with all the relevant tech planners will need, and provide catering from the Clubhouse menu.

Ample Activities: A meeting is more than the sessions in a conference room, and that’s where the USVI truly shines. Planners can rent yachts for evening excursions, prepare a group dive at the Virgin Islands National Park, create team-building events while paddle boarding or parasailing, and host group dining experiences around local Caribbean dishes. Try getting all of that in an urban destination! A good meeting will get the message across, but an excellent meeting will be one that’s effective and memorable for years to come, and that’s precisely what the USVI is offering.

For more information about USVI, visit www.visitusvi.com