Kim Hufham
President and CEO
Cape Fear Coast CVB
Wilmington
What are three experiences unique to Cape Fear that you would recommend for groups?
President and CEO
Cape Fear Coast CVB
Wilmington
What are three experiences unique to Cape Fear that you would recommend for groups?
- Downtown Riverfront: More than 200 shops, restaurants and attractions are within walking distance of each other in Wilmington’s 230-block historic district, listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Our largest meetings hotel [Hilton Wilmington Riverside] overlooks the Cape Fear River, the Riverwalk and the Battleship North Carolina. Groups can explore downtown via guided walking tours, riverboat cruises, trolley tours, and horse-drawn carriage tours. Off-site meeting venues include antebellum mansions, historic theaters, museums, and group-friendly restaurants. Groups can stage special events on the fantail of a battleship or aboard the Henrietta III riverboat. And meeting planners can look forward to the riverfront Wilmington Convention Center, scheduled to open in 2010.
- Barrier Island Beaches: Two barrier islands, just minutes from downtown Wilmington, welcome meetings. The island of Wrightsville Beach offers three large oceanfront meetings properties: Blockade Runner Beach Resort, Holiday Inn [SunSpree] Resort and Shell Island Resort. Carolina Beach, on Pleasure Island, offers the oceanfront Courtyard by Marriott, our newest meetings hotel. Off-site venues include the North Carolina Aquarium at Fort Fisher in Kure Beach and Winner Cruise Boats in Carolina Beach. Dining options include restaurants overlooking the ocean or Intracoastal Waterway. Large groups can cruise aboard a Winner Cruise Boat or the Henrietta III riverboat. Smaller groups can board the Wrightsville Beach Water Taxi for narrated cruises.
- Hollywood East: Many folks don’t realize that North Carolina consistently ranks third in U.S. film production, and that the Wilmington region is among the busiest in the state. The destination appeal that attracts filmmakers also attracts meeting planners: a mild climate, a scenic and historic riverfront town, beautiful barrier island beaches, and good old-fashioned Southern hospitality. Groups can experience Hollywood East with guided tours of EUE/Screen Gems Studios, the largest movie production facility east of L.A. And there are guided group tours of downtown movie locations. We can also put meeting planners in touch with local film industry professionals who make excellent guest speakers.