cayman-island national yoga monthLe Soleil d’Or, Cayman Islands

Happy Yoga Month! September has been anointed as National Yoga Month, and Smart Meetings has a few suggestions on where to get your om on.

It’s great to see so many meeting properties offering yoga and other life-enriching activities. Add in healthy F&B trends that are integrated into many of these same resorts and hotels, and it’s obvious that the hospitality industry is spearheading a whole new approach to meetings and events.

So, as Madonna would say, “Strike a Pose” at any of these 10 peaceful properties.

Yoga Month Refuges

Bacara-Oceanfront-Yoga

Bacara Resort & Spa, which is just north of Santa Barbara, California, has perhaps one of the grandest venues for yoga anywhere. Classes are held on a grassy lawn overlooking the Pacific Ocean. This beachfront resort features a get-away-from-it-all nuance that fosters brainstorming and outside-the-box thinking. The Forbes Four Star property offers 358 guest rooms, many with ocean views. There is 70,000 sq. ft. of meeting space, including the Executive Conference Center, which is housed in a separate building for privacy.

Gurney’s Montauk Resort & Seawater Spa in Montauk, New York, is offering indoor paddleboard yoga. Situated on Montauk’s most pristine stretch of oceanfront real estate, Gurney’s Montauk is a Hamptons icon and the perfect yogi escape. During Yoga Month, classes will take place in the resort’s world-famous indoor, ocean-fed seawater pool with panoramic views of the Atlantic, the only pool of its kind in North America. The property offers a variety of fitness classes each day including vinyasa flow, flow into yoga and Buti yoga.  Gurney’s features 146 rooms, suites and beachfront cottages, each with dramatic ocean views, and direct access to a 2,000-foot private sand beach.

Omni La Costa Resort and Spa in Carlsbad, California, celebrates Yoga Month year-round. The Chopra Center at the Omni offers a number of yoga classes throughout the week, as well as meditation classes taught by Chopra Center Certified meditation instructors. The signature program—Perfect Health—has attraced thousands of people from around the world to experience healing through this transformative program developed by Deepak Chopra and David Simon. Perfect Health is is based on the principles of Ayurveda—a powerful natural healing system that originated in India 5,000 years ago. There are six-day and 10-day programs, including instruction in the Seven Spiritual Laws of yoga, Ayurvedic spa treatments, mind-body consultation with a board-certified physician and Ayurvedic expert, an Ayurvedic cleansing diet and instruction in Primordial Sound Meditation.

rtiz-carlton-chicago

The Ritz-Carlton, Chicago is featuring Rooftop Voga, which is yoga done while voguing to ’80s music. The class, on Fridays at 4 p.m., is $20 for hotel guests. This is a great opportunity to let loose and work out those muscles in a fun, lively environment with iconic views of the Chicago skyline.

Twin Farms in Barnard, Vermont, is an all-inclusive Relais & Chateaux property. The only Forbes Five Star resort in the state will celebrate Yoga Month with its exclusive Salutations and Libations on Friday, Sept. 16. Guests will enjoy stream-side yoga under the full moon on the new yoga deck, surrounded by 300 acres of meadows and woodlands. Following the full moon yoga session, guests can indulge in moon inspired treats and sip on lunar inspired wines and cocktails. In addition, to the yoga guests can take advantage of the Furo, a 104-degree Japanese style soaking tub (clothing optional) to truly cleanse and revitalize the mind and spirit.

Yoga-stretching----The-Spa-at-The-Naples-Beach-Hotel-&-Golf-Club-(2000x1509)

The Naples Beach Hotel & Golf Club in Florida is offering yoga in September on Thursday and Saturday mornings. The classes are being conducted in the resort’s yoga studio situated by The Spa at The Naples Beach Hotel & Golf Club. The classes are available to guests, groups and locals. The Gulf of Mexico resort also offers “Yoga on the Beach” for private sessions. This can be for individuals or groups. Private sessions in the yoga studio also are available.

Park City Canyons Golf Course in Utah is celebrating Yoga Month with sunrise yoga on its signature No. 5 hole. Taught by Park City local Ashley Battersby, who is an avid skier and former competitive freestyle skier, the one-hour vinyasa flow class will take place on the No. 5 hole, which is known as one of the most picturesque locations on the course. The 18-hole course features unrivaled views of the Wasatch and Uinta Mountains and panoramic views of Park City. Classes will take place Sept. 10 and Sept. 24 with golf carts departing from the Canyons Village. Grand Summit Hotel guests can enjoy complimentary wellness drinks and fresh juices after class.

Omni Nashville Hotel holds yoga on its rooftop on Saturday mornings. This property is across from Music City Convention Center and near the famous honky tonks. Nothing like partying to live music at night and stretching in the morning.

Le Soleil d’Or in the Cayman Islands is a renowned beachside farm-to-table wellness resort rooted in strong beliefs in a holistic and healthy lifestyle. The property’s secluded and tranquil beachside sanctuary serves as the perfect environment for yoga and meditation practices. In addition to the newly built fitness studio complete with state-of-the-art Pilates equipment, the property offers several wellness programs, including Relax & Meditate and private yoga sessions, which can be customized for one-on-one sessions or a group. These personalized sessions can be held in-room, out by the pool, on the beach or even on the resort’s 20-acre organic farm situated on a limestone bluff, which provides fresh produce for meals, spa treatments, in-room amenities and more.

Terranea-Yoga

Few properties are embracing National Yoga Month more than  Terranea Resort, A Destination Hotel, located in Rancho Palos Verdes, California. Poised above coastal bluffs and surrounded by the tranquil waves of the Pacific Ocean, this resort invites yogis of all skill levels to say “Namaste” to invigorating California fitness. Every Monday, Thursday and Friday in September, Terranea offers complimentary yoga classes in the oceanfront yoga Movement Studio at The Spa at Terranea. In celebration of September’s Harvest Moon and National Yoga Month, yoga lovers are invited for a mid-yoga-month check-in under the light of the full moon. The Full Moon Yoga Gathering takes place on Sept. 16 at 7 p.m. on the Ocean Lawn, and participants are asked to bring $20 to contribute to Vistas For Children, Inc.

In October, participants can celebrate their progress and connect mind, body and spirit with like-minded individuals during Terranea’s annual Seaside Yoga Gathering that attracts upwards of 300 participants on Terranea’s 16,000-square-foot oceanfront Palos Verdes Meadows. Yogis can mix and mingle with wellness professionals while enjoying light bites and refreshments at the Wellness Fair. Following, a complimentary one-hour class will be dedicated to finding inner peace using the most current yoga moves and techniques.

With one in three attendees falling asleep or feeling drowsy during a meeting, and productivity for the average meeting dropping around 2 p.m., it’s clear that corporate meetings need a new agenda. Attendees around the world are desperate for a change – and meeting professionals are taking notice. According to a recent survey by Hilton, while most meeting attendees consider themselves active and healthy in their daily lives, more than half admit that they don’t maintain this routine when on the road for meetings.

The results of the survey indicate that some of the main culprits of mid-meeting sleepiness are unhealthy meals and lack of fitness breaks during long meeting days. To help meeting professionals increase meeting productivity and attendee satisfaction, Hilton wants to make it easier for planners to provide attendees with nutritious meals and convenient exercise options.

In the United States, more than 40 Hilton hotels now offer a diverse set of menus that marry balanced food and beverage options with exercise breaks and sustainable solutions. Each menu was designed by Hilton chefs and carefully paired with instructor-led exercise and activity breaks to spark creativity, encourage attendee networking and give attendees that much-desired workout. Highlighted menus include:

  • Yoga & Yogurt: Morning energizing yoga session followed by a delicious breakfast of flavorful yogurt, a seasonal berry medley and house-made granola
  • Flex Power: A 25-minute instructor-led routine focused on posture, breathing techniques and easy stretches that accompany a delicious breakfast or mid-morning snack of seasonal local whole fruits, whole-grain croissants and steel-cut oats
  • Meditative Moment: A 10-minute meditation session focused on stress relief, a customizable lean protein and a veggie and/or fruit smoothie

“The typical meeting attendee is eating healthier and exercising more frequently and wants to maintain this lifestyle while traveling for business,” said Andrew Flack, vice president marketing & eCommerce Americas at Hilton. “Expanding Meet with Purpose to EMEA and offering health and wellness menus to more than 40 of our U.S. hotels reiterates our commitment to partnering with meeting professionals to improving attendee satisfaction and making a real impact in the industry.”

Hilton first launched its innovative Meet with Purpose program in January 2015 in the U.S. as a way to inspire meeting professionals to create healthier, more sustainable events using cost-effective solutions. Hilton has since worked with many customers to put these principles into practice.

“It’s been incredible to see so many meeting and event professionals truly wow their attendees by incorporating healthier food options and physical fitness breaks directly into their agenda – in a way that is smartly packaged and ready to implement,” said Toni Zoblotsky, director of B2B marketing at Hilton. “Our Meet with Purpose initiative not only makes the planner’s job much easier, it also delights the attendee during the experience itself.”

For more information on Meet with Purpose and inspiration throughout the year, visit the recently redesigned http://meetings.hilton.com/meet-with-purpose/.

arizona-biltmore-present

I will be attending Smart Event West National Sept. 11-13 at Arizona Biltmore, A Waldorf Astoria Resort, in Phoenix, and I must admit I’m pretty excited to stay at this property. Our three-day event is expected to draw close to 80 meeting planners and 80 suppliers at this historic resort known for luxurious hospitality.

One of the shining stars of Phoenix’s vast collection of stellar resorts, Arizona Biltmore is on the meetings map for many reasons, starting with its architecture. It stands out as one of the only existing luxury hotels in the world with a Frank Lloyd Wright influence. Completed in 1929, the Biltmore was designed by Albert Chase McArthur, a Harvard graduate, who had studied under Frank Lloyd Wright. Wright was hired as a consulting architect for a brief period of time.

arizona-biltmore-historic

A list of who’s who of high society has relaxed, dined and partied at the Biltmore. William Wrigley, Jr., Chicago chewing gum magnate, was owner in the ’30s and built the resort’s first swimming pool. The Catalina Pool is rumored to have been Marilyn Monroe’s favorite pool, and composer Irving Berlin used the setting for inspiration, including his song “White Christmas.”

Presidents and dignitaries have vacationed at the Biltmore, which adds an extra measure of excitement to the experience. To name-drop just a little, Arizona Biltmore features a picture on its website of the Kennedy’s posing with tennis rackets. Ronald and Nancy Reagan celebrated their honeymoon at the resort, and every president from Herbert Hoover through George W. Bush has been a guest.

To honor the Biltmore’s ties to one of America’s most respected architects, it opened the Frank Lloyd Wright Ballroom in 2003. The 24,576-square-foot ballroom, host to many a lavish celebration, was renovated two years ago; there’s a 10,798-square-foot prefunction space that elegantly welcomes guests heading into galas.

arizona-biltmore-A-Waldorf-Astoria-Resort-lobby

The resort boasts 714 guest rooms and suites, and more than 200,000 sq. ft. of indoor and outdoor event space. It’s so accustomed to hosting events that is has its own events team and a meeting planner brochure.

When attendees aren’t meeting, there’s ample networking and team-building spaces and activities scattered throughout the 39-acre property, including two 18-hole golf courses. The Adobe Golf Course has been around for 50 years and is a landmark unto itself. The resort’s Recreation Department offers bike rentals, hiking tours and offsite adventure excursions.

Besides Spa Biltmore, there are eight swimming pools. I hope to carve out time to lounge by Catalina Pool, an event space that has hosted fashion shows and social events, not to mention Marilyn Monroe.  Arizona Biltmore is indeed a glamorous choice for a Smart Event!

Casa-Marina

School isn’t just for kids. More and more properties are providing groups with learning opportunities that also incorporate team building.

Attendees will harken back to the days where they were excited for that first day of school, where open mindedness was pervasive and possibilities were endless. Here are a few properties that put class into team building.

History

American History: Commonly known as “the Midwest White House,” Hilton Chicago’s museum-style interactive lobby installation highlights the hotel’s storied past dating back to 1927. A few historic highlights include housing the U.S. army during World War II, curating its Normandie Lounge with the remains of a French cruise liner-converted WWII ship and the stories of the property hosting nearly every U.S. president since it opened.

Art History: The Graffiti concierge at Hotel Indigo Lower East Side in New York City is an expert when it comes to directing groups to iconic street art locales. This allows visitors to explore like locals to spot the ever-changing walls that serve as a canvas to local and international artists alike.

Science

Marine Science: In the historic district of Charleston, South Carolina, HarbourView Inn offers behind-the-scene tours of the Avian Conversation Center and Sea Turtle Hospital at the South Carolina Aquarium where guests can learn about the Holy City’s local ecosystem, wild birds of prey, aquatic animals and endangered species.

Nutrition: Guests who step into the BodPod at Well & Being at the Fairmont Scottsdale Princess and >Four Seasons Resort and Club Dallas at Las Colinas will receive the world’s most advanced body composition assessment, measuring percentage of total weight that is fat compared to lean muscle. Well & Being fitness experts use these numbers to provide guests with healthy nutrition suggestions and exercise recommendations to help reduce overall body fat percentage.

Foreign Language

Spanish Lessons in Costa Rica: Nestled between the Pacific Ocean and a 1,100-acre tropical rainforest, groups staying at Los Suenos Marriott Ocean & Golf Resort in Herradura can learn Spanish onsite from a native language instructor. Complimentary hour-long Spanish classes are offered every day by the palm-lined pool overlooking the ocean.

Spanish Lessons in Dominican Republic: For meetings attendees who want to “hablan espanol,” AlSol Hotels & Resorts, a collection of all-inclusive resorts in Cap Cana Dominican Republic, offers daily Spanish speaking lessons by the pool. Taught by native Spanish speakers, who are also well versed in English, guests get a crash course in every day greetings and salutations, restaurant ordering and more.

Art

Westin-Cape-Coral

Painting: The Westin Cape Coral Resort at Marina Village has a partnership with eclectic local artist Leoma Lovegrove, who offers onsite group painting classes on the resort’s event lawn. Guests will channel inner creativity and relax as they paint along the water with a quiet breeze and a calming view of the Gulf of Mexico, Caloosahatchee River and San Carlos Bay.

Sand Sculpting: Award-winning artist Marianne van den Broek runs the sand-sculpting workshop at Casa Marina in Key West, Florida. Each sculpting session takes place on the resorts private beach, the largest in Key West, where groups are taught the fundamentals of sand sculpting and enjoy carving anything from a favorite pet to a company logo.

Dance

Spirit-of-New-York

Salsa Dancing: Spirit of New York’s specialty cruises feature salsa dancing lessons with New York City’s hottest international Latin dance company, Piel Canela. As groups cruise along the Hudson River with the iconic Manhattan skyline as the backdrop, they’ll be immersed in a three-hour experience featuring a sizzling mix of popular Bachata, Salsa, and Merengue hits along with a delicious buffet of creative cuisine.

Hula Lessons: Developed in the Hawaiian Islands by the Polynesians who originally settled there, the ancient form of hula dancing is a complex art that uses hand motions to represent the words in a song. At Hilton Waikoloa Village on Hawaii Big Island, a resident kumu hula, or teacher of hula, provides groups with lessons so they can take their skills back home with them.

Physical Education

Cross Country: Conrad Miami offers a pocket-sized map of local jogging routes in each guest room where guests can choose from three jogging routes (2, 4 and 6 miles) for a fun and healthy way to explore the area’s neighborhoods, including Brickell Key, Key Biscayne and Coconut Grove.

Surfing: Hilton Hawaiian Village, sitting on Waikiki’s widest stretch of beach, immerses meetings attendees into the Hawaiian culture with beginners surfing lessons at the resort’s world-famous Duke Kahanamoku Lagoon, where surfing was popularized.

Nothing like a surf lesson to promote team building. Learning can be fun, just like when we were kids.

business-travel-trends-millennials

In general, frequent business travelers are a content group with 88 percent satisfied with their business travel experiences and 84 percent that want to travel either the same amount or more frequently than they do now. It’s no secret that happy employees tend to be more productive, which could mean a better bottom line for your company. But what drives this satisfaction across workforces that are diverse in demographic, experience and generational differences? Today, the GBTA Foundation, the education and research arm of the Global Business Travel Association (GBTA), in partnership with American Express Global Business Travel released new research that explores what drives and impacts travel satisfaction for frequent business travelers by the generations.

The new study, Traveler Satisfaction: Exploring the Generational Divide in Business Travel, identifies four key themes that correlate with business travel satisfaction: booking, productivity during travel, tracking and reporting and personal life. Of these themes, only booking and productivity during travel play a role in forecasting frequent business traveler satisfaction overall. The other two emerged when breaking the data down by generation.

Breakdown by Generation: What Matters Most to Each Group Booking covers everything from the variety of suppliers that travelers can choose from to book and how they are able to book to the ease of making changes to their trip and more.  As booking is often a pain point for travelers, it’s no surprise that having a seamless booking experience drives satisfaction for business travelers of all ages.

Tracking and reporting focuses on variables including methods for submitting expense reports, tracking receipts and use of a personal or corporate card to pay for business expenses. Similar to booking, alleviating this pain point drives satisfaction for all business travelers.

Productivity during travel includes variable such as traveling on a plane, renting a car, staying at hotels and enrollment in a risk-based security program like Global Entry or TSA PreCheck among others. Overall, getting through airport security is an area of frustration for frequent business travelers and tools like Global Entry or TSA PreCheck help to mitigate these hassles. Frequent business travelers are paying for these tools themselves when their companies do not cover the cost (51 percent), and many have said that having these tools drastically improved their business travel experience.

Personal life, or the ability to maintain good relationships with friends and children while traveling for work influences satisfaction for Baby Boomers. Interestingly, this theme is to unique to the Boomer generation and did not resonate with Millennials or Gen-Xers.

It is a true challenge for companies to build and sustain a satisfied employee base because of diverse generational needs. Acknowledging that there is not a “one-size-fits-all” solution is a step in the right direction for companies looking to improve employee satisfaction, particularly for employees who travel often to represent or promote their companies. The findings showed significant generational differences amongst frequent business travelers demonstrating that each generational group has unique needs. Companies should focus on supporting the key drivers of employee satisfaction and consider each driver through a generational lens.

Methodology: An online survey of 2,025 business travelers in the United States and Canada was fielded on January 4-19, 2016. This study focuses on 805 of those respondents who have traveled four or more times for business in the past year making them frequent business travelers.

Read the Full Report: The study, Traveler Satisfaction: Exploring the Generational Divide in Business Travel, is available free of charge.

millennials-airbnb

Older millennials are looking to Airbnb first when seeking trip accommodations, don’t feel connected to any particular hotel brand and join loyalty programs only to ensure that they receive free Wi-Fi, according to a recent survey.

The survey was conducted using a small focus group of a dozen millennials, 27 to 33 years old—all with no children and healthy median salaries. They were asked several questions about their travel habits, and while some of the findings were expected, others were surprising.

Travel recommendations: Participants mainly rely on friends’ recommendations regarding travel destinations. The whole group uses Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat, Pinterest, Tumblr and other social media to gain ideas, and rarely read travel magazines or travel sections of newspapers.

Hotel companies: The group recognized Hilton, Hyatt, Marriott and other top companies, but couldn’t explain the differences between them, nor identify which brands belong to which company. Participants also couldn’t clearly identify the differences between select-service and full-service hotels.

Airbnb: Participants indicated that during the past 18 to 24 months, Airbnb had surpassed hotels as their primary reference when looking to book, and they don’t consider it to be an “alternate” provider. All participants had stayed multiple times at Airbnb properties, and generally had positive experiences.

Booking hotels: The participants use Expedia, Hotels.com and Bookings.com to book properties because they facilitate making airline, rental car and other arrangements. They consult TripAdvisor prior to almost every booking, but distrust it somewhat.

Loyalty programs: No particular loyalty program stood out to participants. Most of them never review their point balances and couldn’t remember ever redeeming points for free rooms. The only value they see in loyalty programs is free Wi-Fi.

mohegan-sunMake your next event a success at a destination with unlimited possibilities.  Conveniently located in southern New England between Boston and New York City, and near two international airports, Mohegan Sun is closer than you think. With over 100,000 square feet of flexible meeting space, there is no shortage of great presentation platforms. For meetings of the grandest scale, the incredible 38,000 square-foot Uncas Ballroom is the place. Divisible into ten rooms and equipped with a vast 14,000 square-foot pre-function space, the Uncas Ballroom is exquisitely designed for maximum versatility. Mohegan Sun’s Convention Center also boasts thirty individual meeting rooms that are the epitome of form and function. Beyond traditional meetings space, Mohegan Sun offers unique places for your business gatherings. Consider the intimate Cabaret Theatre, the 10,000-seat Mohegan Sun Arena, the high energy Wolf Den, the stunning Mohegan Sun Golf Club and even the scenic Sun Terrance Pool. Whatever you imagine for your event, Mohegan Sun will exceed your expectations.

Once you have designed your perfect meeting space, let our expert event service managers bring your meeting to the next level. Our award-winning culinary staff, audio-visual and event technology specialists and Destination Services Team will work tirelessly to create a truly seamless experience for you and your guests.

Follow an incredible meeting with an extraordinary encore with Mohegan Sun’s world-class amenities, award-winning dining and array of exciting entertainment options. Guests can treat themselves at 40 unique shops and boutiques, test their luck in three amazing casinos, relax in the serene Elemis Spa or play a round at the spectacular Mohegan Sun Golf Club. Then, astonish attendees with more than 50 unique menus at Mohegan Sun’s award winning restaurants and bars. Satisfy any craving before a night out in the 10,000-seat Mohegan Sun Arena for an unforgettable concert or sporting event.  After an action-packed day, guests can relax in the spacious rooms and suites of our 34-story luxury hotel.

Everything you need for a flawless event is all under one roof. Get ready to experience a meeting with unlimited possibilities at Mohegan Sun. Take your event to the next level and book today.

tips-for-labor-day-travel

For many Americans, the Labor Day holiday evokes thoughts of barbeque, beaches and the last hurrahs of summer. It’s always one of the busiest holiday travel periods of the year, and this year it may be even more hectic than usual.

Thanks to lower fares, Airlines for America expects 15.6 million passengers to travel from Aug. 31 to Sept. 6, an increase of 4 percent from the same holiday period last year. Lower gas prices are also inspiring many Americans to hit the road to celebrate the holiday. Of course, long lines at the airport and lots of traffic will be a given, so if you want to make the most of the last long weekend of summer, it’s best to be prepared. These tips will help.

Get Out Ahead

Expedia’s travel analytics team reports that the worst day to travel is expected to be Friday, Sept. 2. Last year, community-based navigation app Waze analyzed traffic data and found that the best time to hit the road is Thursday, around 2 p.m. On Labor Day (Monday), travelers are recommended to leave bright and early, as traffic will begin increasing around noon.

Stay Away…

…from these airports, which Expedia predicts will be the busiest in the country during the holiday weekend.

1. Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport
2. Los Angeles International Airport
3. Chicago O’Hare International Airport
4. John F. Kennedy International Airport, New York City
5. Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport
6. San Francisco International Airport
7. Denver International Airport
8. Seattle-Tacoma International Airport
9. McCarran International Airport, Las Vegas
10. Charlotte Douglas International Airport, North Carolina

If you must go through one of these hubs, get there well in advance of your departure time so that you don’t run the risk of missing your flight due to extra-long check-in and security lines.

Be Patient

Expedia analyzed booking data and found that 10 markets in North America offer exceptional deals when users book less than three days before they travel. In some cases, travelers can save up to 30 percent. If you’re looking for a last-minute Labor Day getaway, these are the cities to keep an eye on:

1. Phoenix
2. Austin, Texas
3. New Orleans
4. Detroit
5. Cape Cod, Massachusetts
6. Chicago
7. Dallas
8. Riviera Maya, Mexico
9. Fort Lauderdale, Florida
10. Orlando

Travel Smart

Don’t forget the usual travel tips! They apply during the holidays, too!

Pack smart (and light!) so that you have everything you need—and nothing you don’t. If you can fit everything in a carry-on, you’ll be able to skip the check-in lines as well as the wait at the baggage carousel.

Research attractions and plan your schedule before you arrive so that you don’t waste precious vacation time looking for fun things to do when you could be doing them.

Be flexible! You never know what life will throw at you—especially during one of the busiest holidays of the year. If you miss a connection or get lost while on the road, don’t let it ruin your weekend. Stay positive, and be open for an unexpected adventure.

zion-national-park-utah national parksZion National Park, Utah

During the U.S. Travel Association annual ESTO conference Aug. 27-30 in Boca Raton, Florida, 28 members of the organizations were honored for their accomplishments in destination marketing and imaginative promotional programing.

Vicki Varela of the Utah Office of Tourism, Film and Global Branding was named State Tourism Director of the Year by  the National Council of State Tourism Directors (NCSTD). The award recognizes a state tourism director who has successfully raised the profile of his or her state as a travel and tourism destination. Prior to ESTO, state tourism directors from U.S. states and territories voted for the individual exhibiting the most impressive achievements in destination marketing.

Utah’s current advertising campaign features the slogan “The Road to Mighty.” And as the video says, “the road begins at visitutah.com.” The Mighty 5 refers to Utah’s five magical national parks.

Arches National Park is accessible from the southeastern town of Moab. Take the 40-mile scenic drive through a fantasyland of strange shapes and textures, molded into gargoyles, towers, hoodoos (tall, skinny rock spires shooting up from basins or gorges), impossibly balanced boulders and, of course arches. Keep an eye out for the color contrasts, as the blue skies seem to pierce holes in the golden rock formations.

Bryce Canyon National Park is located in southwestern Utah, Bryce can list alpine among its varied eco-systems, because it’s at an altitude of 8,000 to 9,000 feet. As a result, you’ll find animal and plant life there, as well as geometric formations you won’t find at other Utah parks. In fact, many groups of hoodoos seem to have been carved into red-rock amphitheaters. Some believe the color saturation is deeper here than at other Utah parks, as well.

Canyonlands National Park is located in southeastern Utah near Moab. It across 527 sq. mi. of gorges, canyons, buttes, mesas and spires. It contains what could amount to thousands of square miles of slick rock, and the tiny microsystems and habitats that flourish in it. This park is an artists’ palette that only nature could create. The “canvas” changes almost by the minute as the sun makes its way across the sky. Moab Adventure Center can take your group on tours of Canyonlands or Arches national parks—on foot, by bus, on rafts and even in the air.

Capitol Reef National Park features broad vistas stretching for miles, no sign of human life (or automobiles), stark geometric forms shooting straight up, rock ridges flowing gently and rocks that somehow form swirls, Capitol Reef appears almost out of a science fiction movie about life on another planet. It’s less visited than the more-famous parks in the state, which means it sometimes feels as if you have it all to yourself.

Zion National Park offers 147,000 acres of high plateaus, deep canyons and stark formations. One of the best ways to experience it is by stepping into the Virgin River and looking up; you’ll see the colorfully delineated strata and sediment that came from millions of years of wind and rain. Zion is known for the immense walls of red and white Navajo sandstone that shoot 2,000 feet up. Take a guided interpretive walk or challenge yourself to high-adventure in narrow slot canyons.

Mercury and Destiny Awards

Also during ESTO, the Destiny Awards recognized excellence in destination marketing on the local and regional level, while the Mercury Awards recognize this accomplishment on the state level. A judging panel of industry leaders from companies including National Geographic, Fathom, Ogilvy Public Relations, McGarry Bowen, Facebook and Google selected a total of 26 winners for these two award categories.

Destination Marketing Rising Star

The Destinations Council named Carla Fiorita of the Greater Houston Convention & Visitors Bureau as the 2016 DMO Rising Star of the Year. This award recognizes the achievement of an individual who has worked for a destination marketing organization for three years or less, but already made significant contributions to the travel and tourism industry.

ESTO is the premier national forum for destination marketing professionals from local, state and regional levels to share ideas and expertise. ESTO provides an opportunity for destination professionals to learn about new tools and techniques, share best practices, and debate pressing issues affecting destinations in a non-sales environment.

networking-tips

There is perhaps no more paralyzing fear than standing alone in a crowded room of strangers at a networking event or during a break between sessions. But there are a few things to consider that make this scenario less stressful.

First, other people at the event are in the same boat as you and are too busy worrying themselves to notice that you are also nervous.  Second, the hardest part is breaking the ice. Conversation will, for the most part, flow naturally after that first painstaking ‘hello.’ Third, breaking the ice will get easier over time, either because you start to see more familiar faces at industry-specific events or because you’ve had enough practice meeting strangers that it will begin to come naturally.

When you’re at a conference or event, other attendees expect to network, so you’re not going to find people turned off by your attempts to chat. First you should consider what your goals are for the event and networking. Are you new to the industry and looking to learn the ins and outs of the business? Are you aiming to spread awareness about your company? Does your company have a new product you hope to share with attendees? Setting a goal will help you to structure your conversation. (And if there is no clear goal, you’re likely looking to engage in small talk).

Some icebreakers sound easy enough on paper, until you hear the words come out of your mouth and realize how cheesy or unnatural they are. “Great weather we’re having, huh?” might work if you really mean it, but otherwise, stick with what is natural to you. Here are some comfortable suggestions:

1. The almost-too-easy hello and handshake

A smile, confident handshake, eye contact and friendly introduction is the simplest fool-proof way of starting a conversation.

“Hi, I’m Tom. Nice to meet you.” Now the trick is figuring out your next line.

2. Come here often?

If this is an inaugural event, an easy icebreaker is to find out what motivated someone else to attend. If it’s an annual event, a common question to ask is if they’ve attended before. This gives you the opportunity to share insight or advice with newcomers, or reflect on a previous year’s memorable moment. If it is your first time at the event, it’s a great opportunity to seek out someone who looks like they’ve been here before to gain some insight and even introduce you to more attendees.

“Is this your first time at one of these events, or have you been before?”
“Oh, I’ve lost count at this point—I’ve been to plenty.”
“You’re just the person I’m looking for! Can you tell me which tracks you recommend attending?”

3. Location, location, location

Asking someone if they are from the city the event is located in provides you both with a couple of opportunities. If you are both from the host city, you’ve found something in common. If neither of you are from the host city, you’ve also found something in common. And you likely have something to offer about your home city or state—whether the other person has been there or not.

“Are you from Chicago or are you visiting for this event?”
“No, this is my first time to Chicago, actually. I’m from Montana originally, but my business is in Iowa.”

4. Food friends

What better topic to connect on than food? Whether it’s deciphering dishes or asking someone who’s already grabbed a plate where to get the same course they’re eating, the conversation flows easily when it’s around the topic of food.

“Ooh, is that ziti? Can you point me in the direction you found that?”
“There’s a pasta bar to the far left—it’s delicious!”

5. Looking for feedback

If you recognize someone who was in the same education track or watching the same keynote as you, ask them for their thoughts on the presentation. People often like to give their feedback—but it’s important that you listen. You did ask, after all.

“You saw Dr. Ellman’s keynote, right? What did you think of his presentation?”
“Very interesting! He has a great presentation style, and I love that he had everyone up out of their seats.”

6. Start with a compliment

You can’t go wrong with a quick ego boost. Whether you’re commenting on an item of clothing or perhaps a product owned the company of the person you’re speaking with; it’s a great way to kick things off.

“You’re earrings are gorgeous!”
“Oh, thank you, that is so sweet. I got them on a work trip in Italy, actually.”

“I noticed your badge says SquareTech—we’ve actually used your services before, and your customer service team is fantastic.”
“Oh, I love to hear that! I will let them know you said so. May I ask what you used them for?”

7. Avoid latching on

Remember that your newfound acquaintance is also here to network—and that typically means they’re hoping to connect with several people, so if you’ve hit it off from the start, exchange contact information to continue the conversation at a later date so you’re not taking up too much of their time. Likewise, to get the most from the event, you’ll want to connect with multiple people. And now that you’ve found a icebreaker that worked the first time, you’re ready to try it again, right?

Once you’ve become a regular at recurring events and know you’ll spot familiar faces instantly–remember there will always be new and timid attendees. If you’re chatting with a group of colleagues and see someone standing alone, introduce yourself and your group.  It’s a gesture they’ll appreciate and won’t soon forget.