Do It Best Corp. held their Spring Market last year in the Orange County Convention Center’s West Concourse, offering their 6,000 attendees opportunities to learn about new hardware and lumber products, and more. Courtesy of Vince Slack

“A whole new Orlando is ready to welcome groups in 2024 and beyond.”

Those are the words of Casandra Matej, president and CEO of Visit Orlando, as the city announced all that’s new this year in the perennially popular meeting destination.

Orlando continually ups its game with spectacular new resorts and venues and a host of new attractions at its coveted theme parks. This year, among the biggest news was the opening of the much-anticipated Evermore Orlando Resort, the city’s first “beachfront” property set along a manmade sandy beach and bay. The resort includes the Boathouse, a 2,500-sf venue overlooking the bay. Also opened earlier this year is the Conrad Orlando and Aloft Orlando Lake Nona.

In nearby Winter Park, boutique Alfond Inn wrapped up a major renovation, and the Waldorf Astoria Orlando unveiled its 8,000+ sf Central Park Ballroom and completed a multi-phase upgrade of the resort.

Signia by Hilton Orlando Bonnet Creek has added more than 90,000 sf to its meeting space, including a screened lanai with views of the spectacular fireworks at Walt Disney World Resort. The Grand Bohemian Hotel Orlando, JW Marriott Orlando Grande Lakes and Caribe Royale Orlando also completed renovations and/or additions. Finally, Orange County Convention Center (OCCC) continues its impressive expansion with an additional 60,000 sf of meeting space, an 80,000-sf ballroom and a new entry to the North-South Building. There are also new venues and attractions at Walt Disney World Resort, Disney Springs, Universal Studios Florida and SeaWorld Orlando.

Bottom line: It doesn’t matter how many times you’ve gathered in Orlando. The city will always surprise you. And as these planners and groups demonstrate, Orlando is an especially superb destination for large conventions.

Indiana-based Vince Slack, CMP, meeting and market planning manager with Do It Best Corp., brought 6,000 attendees to Orlando for the company’s Do It Best Spring Market. Rather than one main hotel, the group used multiple properties including the Hyatt Regency Orlando, Hilton Orlando, Rosen Centre, Rosen Plaza and Rosen Shingle Creek, among other properties.

“We prefer to offer a variety of brands, prices and service levels to our attendees, so we cater to everyone’s needs,” he says.

Looking at the state of the industry, Slack believes things are at a new normal now. “We’re going about business as usual, and the hotel properties are as well. Business seems to be booming everywhere we go and that’s a great sign for the health of the hospitality industry.”

Availability, however, can still be a challenge. He believes that’s a lingering byproduct of the pent-up demand from so many groups postponing conventions and conferences during the COVID years.

Orlando is a great fit for the company’s spring market event. “It’s a warm and sunny destination in March where our attendees can bring their families and extend their stays. There’s so much to do and everything is convenient and accessible from the convention district. It’s a great break for people coming from cold, wintry climates. Orlando is built for conventions,” Slack adds, “and they do it extremely well. There’s nothing we can throw at them that they haven’t seen before; they’re prepared for any special request.”

Slack has built relationships with Visit Orlando and OCCC. “The team at Visit Orlando is amazing to work with. They’re quick to reply and very helpful with providing marketing materials to promote our spring market. They even created a micro-website with our logo for our attendees to link to from our official registration site to connect with everything happening in Orlando, including access to discounted theme park tickets, popular restaurants, etc.”

Planners depend on relationships at the meeting destinations they choose, and Slack is no exception. He cites Carolyn Martin, CMP, Visit Orlando destination experience senior manager, as a huge help in connecting him with marketing resources, theme park and other entertainment venue options, popular dining spots, etc.

At OCCC, he says, Kathleen Cotter, national sales manager, was incredible to work with. “Kathleen is a seasoned veteran who is extremely knowledgeable and very easy to work with.” And Sarah Berry, national sales manager with Rosen Hotels and Resorts, was an important partner. “She was instrumental in assisting to secure not only a large portion of our member-vendor housing blocks but also our staff block and our board of directors meeting space. She did a great job leading the effort to make sure all of our needs were taken care of at her properties.”

The space at OCCC’s West Hall met the group’s meeting needs. “The only negative,” Slack says, “was due to another show being in some of the exhibit halls, ballroom space and meeting rooms, so we had to utilize another exhibit hall further away from our tradeshow floor for our general sessions and it was quite a distance for attendees to walk. Everyone adapted quickly, however, and we’ll have all the space we need located closer when we return to Orlando for our 2025 Spring Market.” The group also used meeting space at Rosen Centre. “We had a good experience there with their sales and service team, as well as the in-house supplier partners for AV, Wi-Fi and catering,” Slack says.

In the final analysis, Slack calls Orlando “built for conventions,” noting that they simply do it very well. “They have a great team to assist with all your needs, the convention center is capable of handling any size show and your attendees will appreciate all of nearby conveniences and entertainment venues.”

Lisa Pratt, CMP, owner of Pinnacle Events, Inc. in Groveland, MA, worked on the anniversary celebration of a New England software company this spring, which drew 5,500 attendees. The large group used seven Loews Universal Resort hotels, with Loews Sapphire Falls Resort at Universal Orlando Resort the primary property.

Like others, Pratt notes that COVID still has an effect on today’s meetings. “People are excited to try new things, see new places and interact with their teams. We’re all working remotely much of the time. This change, although great for everyday quality of life, doesn’t foster the same type of water-cooler exchanges that we had in the past, which developed and solidified working relationships. When the staff does get together ‘IRL,’ they really enjoy the camaraderie and connection that you can’t get on a Teams call,” she says.

Pratt believes meetings have become more complex with dietary accommodations, safety concerns, need for access to medical facilities and emotional support such as quiet rooms.  She says, “These touch points make the planning process longer and more complex to ensure that planners understand the group’s needs, meaning more meetings, more planning and more people involved in the planning and decision making.”

She calls Orlando an incredible destination for a large company-wide meeting for thousands. “We had staff flying in from all over the world and were able to get them to Orlando relatively quickly using both commercial and chartered planes. Once they landed, transfers to hotels were seamless and quick and the entertainment options were endless for our offsite events.”

Pratt says Visit Orlando provided pre-event and onsite support, as well as information for attendees about local attractions and discounts they could use to help them plan and book their free time. OCCC provided the space for the largest of the meetings and a lunch for 5,500. “The OCCC staff were very attentive and flexible, and the food was delicious. It’s very difficult to feed that many people in a tight window and create interesting, diverse menus to accommodate various dietary needs. The convention center exceeded expectations!”

The group also used meeting space in all four of the full-service Loews properties: Loews Sapphire Falls Resort at Universal Orlando Resort, Loews Royal Pacific Resort at Universal Orlando Resort, Hard Rock Hotel® at Universal Orlando Resort and Loews Portofino Bay at Universal Orlando Resort. “We required extensive AV and Wi-Fi in all the properties and the experience was seamless,” Pratt says.

This wasn’t the first time this group booked the Loews properties. “Loews has been an incredible partner and this is the second time this group has used these properties. The dedicated, attentive, responsive staff; the proximity of the hotels to one another to create a ‘campus’ feel for our attendees; the modern, airy function space; and the creative menus made it an easy choice to come back to Loews for a second time,” Pratt notes. “The entire Loews team from the line staff to senior management is approachable, able to quickly make decisions and accommodate last-minute adjustments and requests. The entire team makes all our attendees feel appreciated and welcomed.”

To prove her point, she explains just how accommodating they were. “We had a charter flight from India that was delayed. It meant that those staff members would miss our welcome dinner and they had already been traveling for over 24 hrs. Five hours before our dinner for 5,500, we asked the hotel if they could make 250 to-go vegetarian dinners that we could have waiting on our buses at the airport for when the staff disembarked from their plane. They made that happen in the middle of executing a dinner for 5,500. That’s a true partnership!”

Not surprising, given the popularity of Orlando and the Loews hotel group, Pratt advises planners considering the destination to “book early to ensure you have access to any and all options that would work for your group, and take two days off post event to enjoy Orlando and experience all it has to offer!”

This winter, Orgill Inc. brought a group of 20,000 attendees to Orlando for its Orgill Dealer Market. Hilton, Hyatt and Rosen hotels provided the lodging. Tennessee-based Adrienne Richardson, director of events & print services, says planning and executing meetings at the company has been a positive experience.

“The last time we were here was February 2022, after the pandemic,” she says. “Back then, there was a bit of nervousness about gathering in person, cleaning, masking, quarantining. We have since recovered from the apprehension of attending and executing in-person events. A positive is that during the ‘time away,’ we had the opportunity to explore our event and the operations of executing our meetings. We were able to expand on the things we were good at and eliminate some of the unnecessary.”

Richardson believes one of the biggest challenges for planners these days is staying on top of last-minute attendee and exhibitor registrations. She says, “We’re working through processes that make sure latecomers get the same great experience, premier lodging and quick communication that early birds receive.”

She calls Orlando “just right” for Orgill’s exhibitors and attendees. “As an independent hardware distributor, many of our customers and exhibitors travel with their families. Our hotel blocks are within easy walking distance of the convention center for business during the day, and there’s plenty of retail, attractions and restaurants to enjoy in the evening. The hotels offer a range of price points and amenities to suit everyone’s needs. And flights into and out of Orlando are a breeze, accommodating attendees from all over the United States, Canada and beyond.”

Richardson says Visit Orlando is one of the company’s key partners. “They keep us informed about all the developments happening in and around town, including hotels that are coming online or in the planning stages, as well as any new attractions and entertainment options. They are key to helping us plan all of our offsite co-events and meetings.”

With 20,000 in attendance, it’s no surprise that the group used nearly all of the convention center’s meeting space. “Throughout the event, we host a variety of meetings, ranging from tech symposiums and general sessions with over 400 attendees to small, private meeting rooms for off-floor discussions with our customers.” The convention center was able to accommodate those diverse needs.

As for the hotels, they chose three anchor hotels for a multitude of reasons. Richardson says the Hilton Orlando, Hyatt Regency Orlando and Rosen Centre Hotel Orlando tick all the boxes.

“The hotels offer a range of room options to accommodate diverse needs, are conveniently situated near the convention center and airport for easy access and provide ample function space and amenities to enhance our event experience,” she says. “Additionally, the pricing is competitive and aligns with our budgetary requirements.”

Moreover, she continues, “the hotels’ versatility perfectly suits our varied groups within our block. With two to three groups hosting welcome receptions and several holding private dinners throughout our events, the hotels’ flexible event spaces are invaluable. Furthermore, the ability of the properties to accommodate larger customer groups who prefer to stay together fosters a sense of community and camaraderie among attendees.”

Richardson says that Orgill considers the Orange County Convention Center an extension of the company. “We consider them another department. The OCCC staff truly impressed us, and their assistance was invaluable, especially when we faced unexpected weather during our event setup. With their transparency and support, we were able to devise a plan and execute it seamlessly, minimizing any disruption for our exhibitors and attendees. We’re definitely planning to meet there again.”

In addition to space at OCCC, the group also used hotel conference and function space. Having all services in-house ensured smoother coordination and fewer hiccups during their events.

“Challenges often arise when we need to bring in an outside supplier to support us at a venue,” says Richardson. “For our dinners, receptions and meetings, we typically require AV support, including music and presentations. Having reliable Wi-Fi and technical capabilities is crucial for seamless communication and event execution. Attentive and efficient staff are essential for ensuring our events run smoothly from start to finish.”

To her fellow planners she says, “Here’s some advice straight from the heart for planners contemplating this destination and the hotel partners: Lean into your CSM at the OCCC and your allies at Visit Orlando. They’re the experts and incredibly helpful. Plan ahead together, clearly outlining your meeting objectives, attendee demographics, budget and load-in expectations. The hotel partners, OCCC staff and Visit Orlando team treat your event like it’s their own. They take personal pride in its success, and that makes all the difference.” C&IT