Marina del Rey offers harborside restaurants and venues with more than 100,000 sf of meeting space. Courtesy Photo

California combines a world-renowned destination with stunning landscapes, amazing cities, a gorgeous climate and a vibrant, creative culture. But its diverse geography, warm and welcoming nature, and a wide variety of outdoor venues, are perhaps what makes America’s Golden State a dream destination. California creates an environment that inspires planners to prioritize attractions and activities and engage attendees to come and experience memorable moments.

For Debra Rosencrance, vice president of meetings and exhibits, American Academy of Ophthalmology, the California weather is one of the biggest draws, as the state offers some of the best weather in the country. Diversity is another attraction — namely, the diversity of people, hotels, food and things to do.

“You name it, California has it,” Rosencrance says. “And most importantly, everyone is always welcomed in California.”

Rosencrance recently orchestrated the American Academy of Ophthalmology’s annual meeting at the Hilton San Francisco Union Square, which has some of the most significant meeting space in the city. “We placed some of our largest affiliates and their events at the Hilton San Francisco Union Square because we were confident in their staff,” Rosencrance says.

Chelsea Gillen, director of event operations at CureDuchenne, has held two national multi-day conferences and multiple smaller events for individuals living with Duchenne muscular dystrophy and their families in various cities in California, including San Diego, Anaheim, Palo Alto, Long Beach and Sacramento.

“Our biggest event of the year is our national conference for families, which is a three-day event that draws 600 to 800 people and connects families that are living with Duchenne with resources, education and information on the best care and latest treatments for themselves or their loved ones,” Gillen says. “It’s a fun event for them and also an important source of information and support.”

CureDuchenne serves families around the world and has determined that just about everyone wants to visit California. “There’s great weather and it’s easy to get to, whether you’re flying in or driving from somewhere on the west coast,” Gillen says. “Our primary large event is a family-focused conference, so having easily accessible family-friendly activities is important. With multiple theme parks and attractions and beautiful outdoor spaces, California is an appealing destination for families.”

Many individuals with Duchenne muscular dystrophy have limited mobility and use mobility aids, such as wheelchairs or scooters, so accessibility is a primary concern for CureDuchenne. “We must ensure that meeting spaces, hotel rooms and dining venues are easily accessible for individuals in wheelchairs. We also look for cities that are easy to navigate in a wheelchair,” Gillen says. “For example, San Diego is a highly accessible city, with a wheelchair accessible trolley and even sand access mats and free beach wheelchair rentals to provide easier access to the beach.”

San Francisco

San Francisco offers such diversity in an incredibly compact footprint. Only in San Francisco will meeting planners and attendees find unique meeting spaces — from Oracle Park and the Chase Center to The Conservatory at One Sansome and the historic Fort Mason Center — located alongside iconic landmarks and nestled within vibrant neighborhoods, including the Golden Gate Bridge, Embarcadero, Fisherman’s Wharf, Alcatraz, Chinatown, Union Square, North Beach and the Castro District.

Scott Young, owner of The Meeting Company, has planned several events in San Francisco, ranging from corporate incentives to pharma gatherings to partner meetings.

“San Francisco provides us with so many great choices for hotels, dining, activities and special event venues, it is impossible to ignore the positive impact this has on our clients and their attendees,” Young says.

With close access to Union Square, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art and Moscone Convention Center, Hilton San Francisco Union Square offers more than 150,000 sf of meeting space, the highest skybar in the city with panoramic eye-level views of the San Francisco skyline, outdoor pool and whirlpool, two dining concepts and sophisticated lobby bar.

According to the San Francisco Travel Association, in the fall of 2023, the Asian Art Museum debuted its 7,500-sf East West Bank Art Terrance, an outdoor platform that is ideal for evening events and presentations. In addition, the new Institute of Contemporary Art San Francisco, located in the city’s Dogpatch neighborhood offers flexible facility rental options for up to 300 attendees. The 76,000-sf space includes three galleries and a patio area.

Located in the iconic 100 Stockton building in San Francisco’s Union Square, Convene, a hospitality company that designs, builds, and manages premium meeting, event, and flexible office spaces, recently opened a 65,000-sf space, which includes six unique meeting rooms that can be configured to accommodate various event types, from town halls to classroom-style learning to corporate social events.

San Jose

For Dirk Van Slyke, vice president and chief marketing officer at Open Compute Project Foundation (OCP), San Jose is the ideal locale to host his organization’s annual OCO Global Summit, a premier event uniting the most forward-thinking minds in open IT ecosystem development.

As Van Slyke explains, the OCP Global Summit presents a unique platform for industry leaders, researchers and pioneers from the open community to engage in dynamic dialogues, enlightening workshops and interactive engineering sessions. “San Jose is the ideal location for a variety of reasons,” Van Slyke says. “First of all, the region is home to the majority of the leading global organizations in the IT ecosystem, and especially in the field of data centers. Second, it is an international travel hub making it easy to travel to from virtually anywhere in the world, as many of our attendees come from Europe and Asia-Pacific.”

The ‘small town feel’ within a major region makes it a comfortable and easy destination, offering a wide variety of world-class dining, arts, culture and entertainment in a very accessible footprint. The year-round sunny weather doesn’t hurt either.”

The OCP Global Summit was held at the San Jose McEnery Convention Center (SJCC), which enabled OCP to effortlessly grow within a singular location from hundreds of attendees to several thousand, and they still have plenty of room to grow. The facility itself offers the quality and flexibility to host keynotes, breakout sessions, entertainment, meetings and an exhibit hall full of hundreds of sponsors, with world-class food that can meet any desire or dietary restriction.

“The entire SJCC team have truly been our partners for this annual event for a decade now, working with us to make sure budgets are met while delivering an industry-setting service experience,” Van Slyke says. “We look forward to hosting our event there for years to come.”

Located an hour between San Francisco and Monterey, San Jose features stunning natural beauty, including parks and hiking trails for attendees to enjoy. The San Jose Meetings Campus, which covers 520,000 sf of meetings and event space including the SJCC and four performing arts venues (San Jose Theaters), is located downtown just 10 minutes from the airport and walkable to an abundance of local restaurants and bars.

Across the street from Plaza de César Chávez Park and within walking distance of the San Jose Convention Center, the reimagined Signia by Hilton San Jose is surrounded by museums, theaters, nightlife and culture. The hotel offers panoramic views of the Santa Cruz mountains or downtown San Jose, along with 65,000 sf of meeting and function space, an outdoor rooftop pool, live entertainment and extensive fitness facilities.

Anaheim

Anaheim has also proven to be a favorite option for corporate meetings and events. Conveniently located near four major airports, Anaheim celebrates more than 280 days of sunshine annually and is home to the largest convention center on the West Coast, spanning 53 acres and offering 1.8 million sf of function space. In addition, the Anaheim Convention Center (ACC) recently underwent a $190 million expansion, adding to its already impressive venue options.

Orange County’s largest hotel, Hilton Anaheim, is located across from the ACC and offers 150,000 sf of indoor/outdoor function space for up to 3,000 attendees including twin 28,000 sf ballrooms, two outdoor 19,000 sf event decks, seven small meeting rooms, 17 Mezzanine level meeting rooms and a 1,400 sf executive boardroom.

Los Angeles & Pasadena

Opened last summer, Conrad Los Angeles marks Conrad Hotels & Resorts’ first California hotel and features 13,000 sf of indoor/outdoor meeting space, the best views of downtown Los Angeles, two original dining concepts from José Andrés, including a rooftop oasis for cocktails and team dinners with 360-degree views of innovative Los Angeles history and close proximity to downtown hotpots like Gloria Molina Grand Park, Walt Disney Concert Hall and The Broad Museum.

In addition to 5,600 sf of event space, signature rooftop deck and private group dining experiences with in-suite musical entertainment, the Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills just-launched Wine and Chocolate Tasting Room, an ideal spot for teams and corporate meeting attendees to gather. Small groups can reserve the new tasting room and enjoy French wines perfectly paired with sweet treats freshly prepared by the hotel’s world-class pastry team.

Terranea Resort, located 20 miles from Los Angeles International and Long Beach Airports, is considered to be Los Angeles’ only oceanfront resort. Featuring 60,000 sf of indoor meeting and event space, Terranea Resort can accommodate a variety of different corporate groups.

“Every year, Terranea continues to impress me with their execution of our program needs,” says Renee Shelton, meeting planner who prefers her company remain unnamed. “We’ve been coming annually for over 10 years and can’t imagine going anywhere else. A social gathering, it runs like a conference for the adults and kids ages 2-20. Keeping everyone entertained and palates pleased, Terranea pulls it off flawlessly.”

In addition to expansive meeting and event spaces, Terranea’s dramatic setting with its south facing, panoramic 270-degree views of the Pacific, makes this one of the rare places where one can see the sun both rise and set over the ocean from a single vantage point during the months of December and January.

Horizon views aside, meeting attendees will enjoy all the Terranea has to offer including an oceanfront golf course with stunning ocean views where groups of up to 60 players can hit the links. In addition, paddle boarding, tide pooling, guided bike tours, oceanfront hikes and even a falconry program will keep attendees engaged long after the meetings have concluded.

Although it feels as though Pasadena is part of the Los Angeles sprawl, it is actually a distinct and separate city with state-of-the-art meeting facilities, a wealth of intellectual capital in arts, technology and science, as well as global cuisine, iconic landmarks and ease of traveling via Burbank Airport.

And along Pasadena’s historic Colorado Boulevard, (a.k.a Route 66), meeting planners will find a wealth of new and renovated hotels, offering ideal options for meetings and events.

Long Beach

Within the shadow of Los Angeles, Long Beach is a wonderful option for companies looking for the urban amenities of a large city, but with a more relaxed vibe that many corporation attendees are seeking. A mere 30 minutes south of Santa Monica, Long Beach offers a vibrant lifestyle that can be experienced by attendees during their stay. This unique beach city offers associations and their attendees unique experiences surrounding art, food and culture, as well as beautiful beaches and outdoor recreation.

One of the favorite venues within Long Beach is the Long Beach Convention & Entertainment Center, which has quickly become a big draw among association planners who are looking for a high-tech environment for their next association convention. As a leading state-of-the-art facility, the Long Beach Convention & Entertainment Center features exhibit halls, meeting rooms and pavilions that have been designed to allow for the greatest amount of functionality in an event space. In addition to the convention center, Long Beach offers dozens of other unique venues – from aquariums to cruises to classic ballrooms — where associations can hold their meetings and events.

Marina Del Rey

Considered by many to be Los Angeles’ “marina,” Marina Del Rey is a unique waterfront locale that boasts harborside restaurants, meeting venues with spectacular food and festivities, and a wealth of unique meeting spaces that will keep meeting attendees wanting more. In fact, Marina Del Rey offers more than 100,000 sf of unique meeting spaces — all of which are ideal for meetings, receptions, conferences or events. From the Ritz-Carlton to the Marina del Rey Marriott, there are plenty of options available that will surprise and delight attendees.

In addition, Marina Del Rey’s culinary corridor can play host to group gatherings of all sizes — from intimate soirees to more expansive company celebrations.

One of Marina Del Rey’s unique offerings can be found in the ever-popular yacht charters, which provide the memorable opportunity of hosting a coast meeting aboard a majestic vessel.

Monterey

Monterey is a scenic city where thousands of visitors come each year to mingle with otters and other sea creatures at the infamous Monterey Bay Aquarium. But for meeting planners, Monterey offers a sanctuary of sorts for attendees coming from near and far. In fact, Monterey’s biggest draw can be found in its breathtaking coastal backdrop, stunning accommodations, and rich historical and cultural gems. Groups can enjoy beach-side meetings and corporate events or take a field trip to one of the region’s many vineyards.

Of course, Monterey’s biggest draw is its expansive shoreline, unique lodging facilities and memorable golf courses. Meeting attendees can also explore the region’s plethora of art galleries and museums, before exploring the 19 state parks that dot the region. And 2024 brings plenty of new attractions, culinary experiences, and new places to host a corporate meeting or event.

So Cal

Gaylord Pacific Resort and Convention Center, currently under construction in Chula Vista, will offer the largest hotel ballroom and event space on the West Coast. The waterfront resort will feature its own convention center, as well as an additional 150,000 sf of outdoor lawns and pool space for events. Located only 10 miles south of San Diego International Airport, Gaylord Pacific Resort will offer the largest hotel ballroom space without pillars (47,000 sf) with 34’ high ceilings.

When it comes time for attendees to relax and unwind, the resort’s amenities, including four swimming pool areas (a lazy river; a family pool; an adult pool and a wave pool) will offer the ideal respite.

In La Quinta, CA, you will find the much-celebrated La Quinta Resort & Club. Here, you will find 190,000 sf of event space for up to 2,000 attendees. From intimate board meetings to full-size conferences, La Quinta Resort plays host to many different types of corporate events.

Golfers will revel in the resort’s amazing golfing options. In addition, groups can experience nearby adventures including exploring the Coachella Valley Preserve, embarking on an ATV experience, going on a windmill tour or having a BMW driving experience.

San Diego is home to the mid-century modern Town & Country Resort & Convention Center. This convention center hotel offers a unique experience for business events. Recently, the resort renovated its 671 guest rooms. In addition, the resort’s 295,000 sf offer state-of-the-art technology, and when it comes time to unwind, attendees can enjoy three pools, sand volleyball court, fire pits and a four-story water slide.

Omni La Costa Resort & Spa is north of San Diego,  featuring 100,000 sf of indoor and outdoor space nestled amidst lush gardens. With an impressive award-winning spa, golf course, multiple pools and locally-sourced cuisine, attendees will enjoy the leisurely charm of this coastal gem.

Another Southern California favorite is the Ojai Valley Inn & Spa. Because incentive programs are their specialty, the resort partners with 360 Destination Group to creative memorable itineraries for all types of group incentive needs — from bike tours to pool parties, from sailing regattas to jeep tours. In addition to a wealth of  meeting spaces, Ojai Valley Inn features The Farmhouse — an expansive 20,000 sf event center that is ideal for indoor and outdoor gatherings.

Sacramento

As the state capitol, Sacramento has emerged as a key meetings and event destination for corporations and companies. Not only do attendees enjoy the region’s culture, food, and drink, but the national beauty of the Sacramento area is breathtaking. Downtown Sacramento is filled with venues aplenty, as well as resorts, hotels and outdoor spaces ideal for corporate gatherings. Recently, the downtown SAFE Credit Union Convention Center underwent an impressive renovation and expansion, resulting in 240,000 sf in meetings and event space.

Greater California

Everline Resort & Spa, formerly known as the Resort at Squaw Creek, features several immersive experiences that are designed to help groups enjoy the Tahoe outdoors. Corporate groups can take part in the Pedal Paddle Adventure, which begins with a seven-mile guided bike ride on the Truckee River Bike Trail to Lake Tahoe. Once at the lake, attendees will embark on a paddleboard tour of the west shore of the Lake Tahoe, followed by the seven-mile bike ride back to the resort. Groups also have access to customized hikes and bike excursions to fit the preferences and experience level of attendees, with options ranging from adventurous day trips to stargazing hikes.

When getting down to business, the resort offers several meeting options including 33,000 sf of indoor meeting space, as well as 14,750 sf of outdoor meeting spaces, which provide expansive views of the nearby mountain meadows, as well as several scenic locations at the Links at Everline. The course showcases the dramatic mountain setting with the front nine holes climbing along the mountainside through trees and narrow fairways, and the back nine weaving through the wetlands of Olympic Valley with tall grass, marshes and wooden cart paths.

Corporate groups can arrange one-of-a-kind fishing experiences at the resort’s on-site fly-fishing center, which features two mountain valley ponds stocked with Rainbow Trout. The fishing center also provides several fly-fishing classes for all experience levels, custom fishing classes, and half- and full-day fishing trips to the nearby Truckee River.

Everline’s claim to fame is its idyllic skiing opportunities. Situated at the base of Palisades Tahoe, the resort features a “resort chair” lift that takes guests to the slopes. Some of the property’s lower-level rooms provide patio access outfitted with ski racks that open directly to the ski lift for convenience.

Ethelyn French’s song says it best, “California, California — the pride of the golden West.” The meeting/event industry is lured back to California again and again, “where sweet scented breezes blow. To the land of fruit and flowers, where the golden poppies grow.” C&IT