John Monahan, CEO of Hawaii Visitors and Convention Bureau, says the state is situated perfectly between Asia and the US, making it a very attractive place to do business. The tropical state has a phenomenal incentives market and is especially alluring for planners of global meetings. Monahan states that Hawaii has remarkable, first-class meeting and post-meeting facilities for guests to enjoy.
He notes that the undeniable presence of millennials is changing the way they do business — for the better. He offers that even with the new changes this younger demographic brings, other groups are embracing the changes, as well.
Monahan adds that Hawaii conventions consistently deliver an impressive ROI with strong meeting attendance.
He still wears his colorful, sequined jackets and shirts, and plays his piano like there’s no tomorrow.
But during his performance at Caesars Palace Las Vegas Wednesday, it was clear how much, Elton John, the ’70s master of good-time rock ‘n’ roll, has matured the ’70s master of good-time rock ‘n’ roll has matured over the years as a musician and a human being. Some 2015 IMEX America participants were able to witness the extraordinary performance (Disney graciously invited me to join them).
Since 1967, John has teamed with Bernie Taupin to write the vast majority of his songs. Beginning in the early ’70s, they created engaging, generally rolllicking songs well-suited for parties and dance floors. Sure, they also wrote some wonderful ballads, but make no mistake–an Elton John concert meant partying to “Crocodile Rock,” “Saturday Night’s All Right for Fighting” “The Bitch is Back” and other high-energy tunes.
Sir Elton Hercules John (named Reginald Kenneth Dwight at birth) played many of those songs on Wednesday, and it’s clear that over the years, he’s become an even more amazing piano player. But instead of taking the role of party ringleader, he seemed comfortable baring his soul, and letting everyone know what’s really important to him.
Quite simply, John, who formerly enjoyed a party lifestyle with the likes of John Lennon and others, has matured. He has dealt with the challenges of being gay–he married longtime partner David Furnish in 2014, shortly after same-sex marriage became legal in England–and they are raising two children. And as a highly sensitive artist, he has been affected by thr stream of tragedies and global conflicts.
He provided thoughtful introductions to many of his songs at Caesars Palace, and it was stunning to realize how often he has been called upon–and motivated to–write and perform in times requiring international or national healing, including the deaths of Princess Diana and John Lennon, and the 9/11 tragedy.
John conveyed how much we was affected by these incidents. His comments were part of a thread that ran throughout the evening–that it’s vital to share our love and compassion, and understand our interconnectedness.
This is perhaps most vividly illustrated by an excerpt from a song he performed, “Circle of Life,” cowritten with Tim Burton for the movie The Lion King:
It’s the Circle of Life
And it moves us all
Through despair and hope
Through faith and love
Till we find our place
On the path unwinding
In the Circle
In the Circle of Life
This week, Middle Eastern tourism leaders are convening in Abu Dhabi to discuss the growing Muslim travel segment. From Oct. 19-21, Abu Dhabi Tourism & Culture Authority is holding World Halal Travel Summit 2015. Around 6,000 delegates from 50 countries will attend 200 exhibits and more than 150 panel discussions and presentations from 70 international speakers at Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre.
This is the first year of World Halal Travel Summit, which is specifically geared to address the rapid rise of Muslim travelers and their impact to global tourism spending. During the three-day event, leading industry organizations will showcase destinations, hotels and travel programs that are compliant with Muslim practices and beliefs.
Given its position in the Gulf region, Abu Dhabi TCA named Abu Dhabi as a location that meets the needs of Muslim leisure and business travelers.“Abu Dhabi is placing itself as the heart of this market in the gulf region, and is well placed to meet specific Muslim demands on a number of fronts, including food and beverage, segmented family and gender-specific products and segmented sessions for females at mainline attractions, and it is host to a number of high and medium-quality dry hotels,” said H.E. Jasem Al Darmaki, acting director general of Abu Dhabi TCA.
Hotels and visitor attractions that are hosting exhibits at World Halal Travel Summit 2015 offer amenities that conform to halal standards. Featured Abu Dhabi-based properties include: Al Bada Hotel and Resort, Hotel Aya, Vision Hotels Management, Hotel Majlis Grand Mercure Medina, Royal Rose Hotel Abu Dhabi, Jannah Hotels and Resorts, Southern Sun Abu Dhabi, Ramada Abu Dhabi, Armed Forces Officers Club & Hotel, Millennium Corniche Hotel Abu Dhabi, Emirates Palace, Khalidiya Palace Rayhaan by Rotana, Hili Fun City amusement park and Al Ain Zoo.
In a galaxy not so far away, passengers will soon be able to board a Star Wars-themed airplane to destinations around the globe. Japanese airline All Nippon Airways (ANA) began flights this week between Tokyo’s Haneda Airport (HND) and Vancouver International Airport (YVR) aboard a blue and white bedecked jet based on a brand new character from the upcoming film Star Wars: The Force Awakens.
In partnership with The Walt Disney Company and Lucasfilm Ltd., ANA designed the livery of the Boeing 777-300ER aircraft after BB-8, a droid that will make its official debut when the film is released in December 2015. Star Wars characters will also grace the inside of the plane, from headrest covers to paper napkins and cups. Plus, all six films from the franchise will play on in-flight entertainment systems—the first time such an offering has been provided.
“We’re excited to be involved in this collaboration with ANA, one of the world’s leading five-star airlines,” said Kayleen Walters, vice president of marketing for Lucasfilm Ltd. “We’re proud of the innovative R2-D2 design, and we look forward to witnessing the first-ever flight of a passenger aircraft featuring a Star Wars character. We’re confident that Star Wars fans around the world will absolutely love this design.”
The new aircraft will be joined by two R2-D2 planes, a Boeing 767-300 and a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner. Next month domestic Japanese routes will be offered, and by March 2016 service will extend to multiple destinations across the U.S. So far, Seattle and San Jose have been named as a future bases for the Star Wars aircrafts. ANA also plans to expand service to Munich, Paris, Brussels, Sydney, Beijing and Jakarta.
ANA’s film-themed planes are not the first to feature film or cartoon characters on its livery. Taipei-based Eva Airways introduced a regular fleet of Hello Kitty-branded aircrafts in 2005. And not far behind Star Wars is the recent announcement of Frozen-themed aircrafts from Canadian carrier WestJet Airlines.
Ray Bloom, chairman of the IMEX Group, couldn’t be happier thanks to record-breaking numbers during the largest meetings and events industry trade show in the United States that concluded Thursday in Las Vegas.
Cathy Tull, senior vice president of Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, also is understandably giddy over the $8.5 million in direct spending her city experienced as a result of IMEX. And Michael Woody, chief operating officer for Meeting Professionals International (MPI), reported that his organization raised a record $335,000 for its foundation during the show, among other noteworthy figures.
Ray Bloom
“Every year the show grows,” Bloom said at the closing IMEX press conference. “We are delighted with the demand. This is an absolutely perfect venue.”
–More than 10,600 people participated in the event. –3,100 companies were represented on the showroom floor. –Exhibitors were represented from 150 countries. –More than 3,000 hosted buyers.
-Hosted buyers hailed from 54 countries.
-Show grew by 80 booths from 2014.
-66,000 business appointments, including 57,000 one-on-one appointments and booth presentations.
One exhibitor, Melia Hotels and Resorts, reported that 99 percent of appointments scheduled before the show began on Tuesday did indeed take place. Bloom applauded the seriousness of buyers and suppliers, all of whom helped make the fifth annual U.S. IMEX event a complete success. “Business is being conducted on the showroom floor,” Bloom said.
Las Vegas, which also hosted the first Democratic presidential debate this week, will have even greater international notoriety next year when IMEX takes place Oct. 18-20. The presidential debate is scheduled to be held in Las Vegas the same week.
“For us it’s a win-win,” Tull said. “It underlies that we are a serious place to do business.”
MPI had a huge presence during IMEX with more than 30 education sessions on Smart Monday, drawing 900 attendees before the trade show began. MPI also hosted four keynote sessions, which drew 1,200 during the three-day IMEX show.
One of the hottest tickets during IMEX was MPI’s Rendezvous fundraising party, which attracted 2,000 on Wednesday. It took place at Drai’s Beach Club, an incredible outdoor/indoor space on top of The Cromwell, a Caesars Entertainment property.
The rooftop venue offers spectacular views of The Strip and brought together meeting professionals, suppliers and planners for an evening that magnificently celebrated an industry that really does mean business.
The Northern California chapter of MPI (MPINCC) is demonstrating exciting new ideas under the leadership of Joey Nevin, who took on the role of chapter president for the 2015-16 term. Nevin Played MC at an event held this morning at the campus of Genentech, a biotechnology corporation in South San Francisco. The session was part of the MPINCC Professional Breakfast Program.
“We’re really excited about this program as a chapter. Genentech is a leader in multiple industries. They do a lot in the meetings and events world, and to have something on their campus, we get to see how their employees go about their day and we can learn from [Genentech’s] leadership. It’s exciting and hopefully a new trend that we can create in terms of working with leaders in the Bay Area,” Nevin said.
The session began with the presentation of the chapter’s Meetings Professional of the Quarter award. Elise Sandoval-Wong, CMP, HMCC, and Mason Foster, co-chairs of the Volunteer Development Committee for MPINCC, split the award for their work in ensuring anyone who wants to volunteer for the association has a place, and that their roles remain engaging and fulfilling.
“Each person that wants to volunteer, a person will contact them and talk to them about what they want to do—if they want to help with a specific event, if they want to be involved in logistical aspects, in-person or behind the scenes—then we’ll introduce them to the committee,” Sandoval-Wong said.
The meat of the session was a talk by Len Kanavy, senior vice president of commercial business operations at Genentech. Engaging, down to Earth and quite humorous, Kanavy outlined the green initiatives put forth by Genentech, including reducing CO2 emissions by 30 percent by cutting onsite energy use and using efficient transportation, and reducing landfill waste by 80 percent per employee. Appropriately, those leading the initiatives are known as the “green genes team,” and the MPINCC session was held in their LEED Gold Certified building 35, the newest building on campus.
Kanavy also stressed the importance of meetings and the people who drive the meetings and events industry—and gave insight as to how Genentech’s meetings strategies can be effective across the industry. “It’s clearly energizing,” Kanavy said. “I’m a big believe in something we call empowering partners. We have a model we call TK squared, which is build a relationship, ask good questions, align and then advance. The very first thing is building a relationship, that’s how you become empowered partners, and face-to-face is how you build a relationship—and it’s a positive return on investment.”
If the response by the planners and other meetings professionals in attendance—including Nevin—is any gauge, Kanavy’s insights hit home, and MPINCC will be planning many more events like this one.
Hyatt is one of the latest hotel chains to pull the plug on pornography. It follows in the footsteps of Marriott International, Hilton Worldwide, Omni Hotels & Resorts, Drury and several other large hospitality providers that have discontinued offering in-room, on-demand adult entertainment channels at their properties.
Marriott International led the way, announcing in early 2011 that it would phase out adult-content, in-room video services from its properties around the world. At the time, there was speculation that the move was made in response to pressure from special interest groups that promote family values.
As the Washington Post reported, a coalition of Christian organizations met with Marriott International officials in Washington in 2008 to encourage the hotel chain to stop offering pay-per-view adult movies. Although Marriott did not take action immediately, it ultimately changed its policy, citing other reasons.
A Transition in Viewing Habits
Years ago, hotel guests were eager and willing to pay for premium adult channels they could view in the privacy of their rooms. Yet the proliferation of personal portable devices such as smartphones and tablets has permanently altered that. Reporting for ap.org, Beth Harpaz notes, “Decreasing revenue from movie rentals in hotels has driven the trend, with movie rental revenue per available hotel room dropping from $339 a year to $107 a year between 2000 and 2014, according to a report from PKF Hospitality Research. Hotel guests are renting fewer in-room movies because they can watch them on smartphones or laptops instead.”
Declining sales is just one consideration motivating the hotel chains. They are apparently listening to organizations such as the National Center on Sexual Exploitation (NCSE), a watchdog group which earlier this year changed its name from Morality in Media. The Washington, DC-based group is the leading national organization opposing pornography; publicly exposing its connection to sex trafficking, violence against women, child abuse and porn addiction. NCSE is actively reaching out to hotel chains with its message.
In a posting on its website, NCSE President and CEO Patrick Trueman praised Hyatt for taking action. “Hyatt was eager to work with the National Center on Sexual Exploitation after we reached out to the corporation to share concerns about the neurological and psychological harms of pornography. By removing on-demand pornography, Hyatt is also taking a stand against prostitution and sex trafficking, which are crimes that often takes place in hotels,” he stated.
NCSE released a similar statement this August when Hilton pledged to remove adult programming from its properties by July 1, 2016. Hilton Worldwide was targeted by NCSE on its annual “Dirty Dozen” list of companies it maintains contribute to sexual exploitation. Earlier this summer, Roadwarriorvoices.com contacted Hilton for a statement. An unnamed Hilton spokesperson told Jelisa Castrodale, “We believe in offering our guests a high degree of choice and control during their stays with us, including Wi-Fi on personal devices. However, we have listened carefully to our customers and have determined that adult video-on-demand entertainment is not in keeping with our company’s vision and goals moving forward.”
In their 5th year of production, IMEX America comes out swingin’! Taking place in electrifying Las Vegas, the event stretches over three days, hosting companies from 150 countries and does it over a spacious 12,000,000 sq. ft. showroom floor. In a staggering trend, companies are noticing a great influx of millennials and are welcoming the new challenges and ideas these young contenders bring with them.
Most likely, meeting planners are generally unfamiliar with southern West Virginia’s three National Park Service sites. That’s all about to change, however, because of the area’s convention and visitors bureau’s new marketing campaign.
Visit Southern West Virginia, formerly known as Southern West Virginia Convention and Visitors Bureau, announced that it will be featuring the sites—New River Gorge National River, Gauley River National Recreation Area and Bluestone National Scenic River—in its campaign.
Some 1 million copies of the publication The Great American Vacation, focusing on the West Virginia parks, will be printed and distributed through the National Park Service, West Virginia Division of Tourism, local visitor centers and other outlets.
Marketed as the National Parks of Southern Virginia, the three sites already attract more than 1.2 million annual visitors to the region and generate $60.6 in the local economy, but the CVB contends that the locations are underappreciated. Studies show that 45 percent of visitors to the sites didn’t realize they were visiting national parks, and that they would have visited sooner if they’d known, according to a New River Gorge National River source.
The campaign is banking on the National Park Service being one of the most recognizable brands in the world—and it will be celebrating its centennial in 2016.
Southern West Virginia consists of nine counties, offering more than 2,700 guest rooms in a variety of conference and meeting facilities that can accommodate everything from small meetings to gatherings with 1,200 attendees. The area also features rafting, kayaking, mountain biking and many other outdoor adventure opportunities. More relaxing options include golf, fishing, snow skiing, live theater, artisan centers and historic sites.
The region is within 500 miles of 60 percent of the U.S. population. Local airports include Raleigh County Memorial Airport in Beckley (BKW), Greenbriar Valley Airport (LWB) in Lewisburg Mercer County Airport and neighboring Yeager Airport in Charleston (CRW).
Nothing caps off a business luncheon or dinner better than a spectacular dessert, which is precisely why meeting planners should stay on top of the latest dessert trends.
In a blog posting on hotelsmag.com, Sherri Scheck-Merrill reveals the dessert ideas that are peaking (mini desserts, dessert sampler plates, new takes on cheesecake and ethnic desserts), as well as ones that she believes have already had their 15 minutes of fame and are on the downtrend (cupcakes, mini bundt cakes and cronuts.)
New Dessert Trends
There are several new and exciting dessert trends that meeting professionals should be aware of. According to Scheck-Merrill, pastry chefs are experimenting with nutella, a chocolate hazelnut spread that originated in Italy. In addition, they are tantalizing taste buds with vegetable-centric desserts such as onion chocolate tarts.
But the dessert trend that the blogger finds especially intriguing is Dirty Cookies. This handcrafted confection, created in Southern California, is a new take on the perennially popular cookies with milk, and she predicts it will explode across the country. It takes the classic cookie and transforms it into an edible shot glass, which is then filled with the customer’s choice of milk from a tap.
The Dirty Cookie was invented by a startup in Tustin that has customers lining up for them at Union Market @ The District. Pastry chefs begin with chocolate chip, cookies n’ cream or red velvet cookie dough, which is shaped into a cup using a special mold. The cup is baked until hard, and then the inner wall and lip is coated with fine Belgian chocolate. The Dirty Cookie is then filled with either a traditional, chocolate or almond milk shot from a tap. The cookie is guaranteed to hold the liquid without leaking or collapsing.
On the Horizon
Scheck-Merrill reports that scientists at University of Edinburgh in Scotland have isolated a new ingredient that could be added to ice cream to make it melt slower. BsIA is a naturally-occurring protein that researchers found can bind together the air, fat and water in ice cream. It will keep the ice cream frozen longer in warm weather, prevent gritty ice crystals from forming and allow products to be manufactured with lower levels of saturated fat—which means fewer calories. The new ingredient will not affect the taste of the treat, and will actually make the texture creamier.
On a practical level this could be a boon for suppliers, who would not need to worry about keeping containers of ice cream in a deep freeze when delivering them. It will also be a blessing for hotels, which will be able to serve ice cream-based desserts without concern about them melting. It is estimated that ice cream enhanced with BsIA could be available in three to five years.
Chew on This
Scheck-Merrill points out that 99% of American consumers routinely eat dessert; 70% do so at least weekly. This represents a significant jump from the 57% who reported consuming dessert weekly three years ago. The sweet news is that dessert is clearly an important component of F&B that meeting professionals should be happy to stay on top of.
He still wears his colorful, sequined jackets and shirts, and plays his piano like there’s no tomorrow.
Ray Bloom, chairman of the IMEX Group, couldn’t be happier thanks to record-breaking numbers during the largest meetings and events industry trade show in the United States that concluded Thursday in Las Vegas.
Ray Bloom
Most likely, meeting planners are generally unfamiliar with southern West Virginia’s three 
Nothing caps off a business luncheon or dinner better than a spectacular dessert, which is precisely why meeting planners should stay on top of the latest dessert trends.