Variety Makes Virginia a Meetings Magnet
By Susan Elnicki-Wade
If you’re looking for a meeting destination where there’s something for everyone, check out the four major travel regions in Virginia. The state (actually a commonwealth) is home to cutting-edge convention centers, graciously restored Victorian mansions, noteworthy historic sites, world-class arts centers, unrivaled natural beauty and that always-irresistible Southern hospitality.
The Best of Both Worlds
“When you come to northern Virginia, you get the best of both worlds,” says Karen Vasquez, PR manager at Arlington Convention & Visitors Services. “Meeting attendees can experience the downtown feel – metro, shopping, theater, etc. – without big-city prices. Or they can enjoy country living with plenty of green space and easy access to other rural treats, such as horse farms and wineries.”
Northern Virginia doesn’t have a convention center yet, mostly because it doesn’t want to compete with DC’s big new center. Instead, hotels offer a range of meeting facilities from small to big, and from luxurious accommodations at the Ritz Carlton to economy hotels.
SMERF groups can also enjoy historic sites, such as Arlington National Cemetery, Mount Vernon, Claude Moore Colonial Farm, Old Town Alexandria and Fort C.F. Smith. Two new sites have quickly risen to the must-see list of attractions: Smithsonian’s Air & Space Museum’s new Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center near Dulles Airport and the new U.S. Air Force Memorial. Unique venues include Wolf Trap, the Workhouse Arts Center, Arena Stage and Great Falls Park, and no trip to Northern Virginia would be complete without visiting some of the 140 local wineries (see http://www.virginiawine.org or Loudon County Wine Trail).
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Modern Culture Mixed With History
You’re in for some pleasant surprises when you head into the heart of Virginia, and the pulse of the region beats in Richmond. Its green certified Convention Center provides 178,159 square feet of exhibit space and 80,000 square feet of additional meeting spaces and presentation rooms, and it’s connected by skywalk to the Downtown Richmond Marriott, with 26,427 square feet of meeting space. Westin Inn Richmond, opened in late 2008, offers 10,000 square feet of event space and 10 meeting rooms, and the Jefferson Hotel and Hilton Garden Inn provide guests with a mix of historic charm and modern meeting amenities.
“Everything is easy and accessible. Airfare is cheap, and I-95 makes driving a breeze – Richmond is a one-day drive for half of the U.S. population,” says Erin Bagnell, PR Manager of the Richmond Metropolitan Convention and Visitors Bureau.
Richmond’s Museum District provides unique off-site venues, including the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Virginia Historical Society, Science Museum of Virginia, Children’s Museum and the Museum of the Confederacy, as well as outdoor venues like the Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden and the Fan District – 85 blocks of renovated tobacco warehouses and brick-and-iron Reconstruction Era buildings.
And just a little over an hour from Richmond you’ll find Charlottesville, the gem of central Virginia tucked away in the scenic Blue Ridge Mountains. This elegant town’s attractions include Monticello, home of Thomas Jefferson, and the University of Virginia, where you can tour the Jefferson-designed grounds or explore the UVA Arts Museum’s diverse collection of American and European art.
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Sun, Surf and Successful Meetings
The part of the Virginia coast where the James River flows into the Atlantic Ocean is often referred to as the Seven Cities – Virginia Beach, Chesapeake, Suffolk, Norfolk, Portsmouth, Hampton and Newport News – and the mild local climate makes it a perfect meeting destination.
Virginia Beach Convention Center opened its doors in 2007 with all the bells and whistles of a major urban meeting site. It’s the largest convention center in the state and the first to be certified Virginia Green. “The Convention Center is city owned and managed, so SMERF groups only have to deal with one entity to help with building space, planning, hotels and off-site venues,” says Al Hutchinson, VP of Virginia Beach Convention Sales and Marketing. “You can’t beat the convenience of a one-stop shop.”
When attendees are looking for ways to unwind after meetings, they can enjoy Virginia Beach’s new Town Center, a 17-block area with an urban feel featuring top restaurants, live entertainment, shopping and a new comedy club. Other nearby venues include Colonial Williamsburg, Busch Gardens, Jamestown, Cape Henry Light House and Fort Story.
Nauticus, a maritime science museum in Norfolk, celebrates the economic, naval and natural power of the sea, and the U.S.S. Wisconsin allows you to experience the thrill of being aboard a navy battleship. In Hampton, attendees can visit the Virginia Air & Space Center, birthplace of America's space program and visitor center for Langley Research Center. Virginia Living Museum in Newport News explores the state’s natural heritage from the mountains to the sea.
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Breathtaking Natural Beauty
From Roanoke in the South to Winchester in the North, the Shenandoah Valley offers spectacular views and unique meeting places as you drive along Skyline Drive and the Blue Ridge Parkway.
“Get away from the big urban environment – the standard shopping malls and museums – and explore an area that offers lots of surprises like top-quality restaurants, wineries, luxury hotels and unparalleled natural beauty,” says Richard Lewis, PR Manager at Virginia Tourism.
You might want to start in Roanoke, which offers planners 6,000 first-class hotel rooms, two civic centers and an IACC-approved conference center. Built in 1882, the Tudor-style Hotel Roanoke and Conference Center is at the center of it all, with newly renovated guestrooms and state-of-the-art conference space. Roanoke Civic Center offers 80,000 square feet of exhibit space, its Coliseum seats 10,500 and Roanoke Performing Arts Theatre seats 2,150. The new Roanoke Special Events Center, a 46,000-square-foot exhibit facility, opened in March 2007.
Unique meeting sites include Ashley Plantation Country Club, Boxtree Lodge/Braeloch, Center in the Square, Jefferson Center, the Taubman Museum of Art, Science Museum of Western Virginia, Mill Mountain Zoo and Virginia Museum of Transportation.
The new Museum of the Shenandoah Valley in Winchester anchors a regional history complex that includes the Glen Burnie Historic House and six acres of spectacular gardens. The Old Court House Civil War Museum, built in 1840, served as a prison and hospital during the Civil War, and Belle Grove National Historical Park showcases a Civil War landscape and antebellum plantation. More contemporary history includes the Patsy Cline Tour; Family Drive-In Theater (opened in 1957 and one of the few remaining drive-in theaters); Wayside Theatre and Veramar Vineyard & Event Center in the heart of Virginia's hunt country.
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