Mention Colorado and many think of the state’s glorious summits and ski terrain. Others envision cowboys and 19th century mining camps. The state’s modern-day profile has all those facets and more. While it’s still possible to give groups some rousing Old West legends and lore experiences, there are also plenty of contemporary higher-brow amenities that complement the Centennial State’s 21st century visitor lures.
Denver
Downtown Denver today epitomizes Colorado’s old and new cultures.
With billions of dollars in new infrastructure—a convention center expansion, new hotels, a new airport, and a spate of new arts attractions—city managers have crafted a meetings-equipped downtown core that is ready to host about 100 percent of any size meeting in the nation. To wit: the Democratic National Committee (DNC) selected Denver as its 2008 convention city.
“People who haven’t seen Denver even in the last couple of years are amazed at how much has changed,” says Richard Grant, communications director for the Denver Metro CVB. “We’ve spent over 8 billion dollars to make Denver a first-tier meetings and conventions city, and it shows.”
New luxury hotel space is coming on-line, Grant says, in time for the DNC convention. The Ritz-Carlton, Denver, with its 200 rooms and suites, opens this summer near the 16th Street Mall and Coors Field, one of Denver’s five sports arenas. Developers also plan to break ground later this year on a Four Seasons hotel.
Another recent hotel newcomer is The Curtis, a 336-room boutique property with 19,000 square feet of meeting space and a pop culture attitude. Meeting rooms have names like “Duck Duck Goose” and “Hide & Seek,” decor includes video art, and a game area showcases favorite childhood games.
Meanwhile, the Colorado Convention Center expanded three years ago and now offers 584,000 divisible square feet of exhibit space and 100,000 square feet of meeting space, and the Hyatt Regency Denver at the Colorado Convention Center debuted in late 2005 with 1,100 guest rooms and more than 60,000 square feet of meeting space.
Denver’s light rail train stops right at the convention center and connects the center with about 7,000 hotel rooms, plus restaurants and attractions.
The convention center is within walking distance of 300 restaurants and the Denver Performing Arts Complex, which has 10,000 seats in 10 venues and is the second-largest performing arts complex in the world after New York’s Lincoln Center.
Joining the mix are new and upcoming art museums, including the bold new Hamilton wing of the Denver Art Museum. With permanent and temporary exhibition spaces, as well as a 280-seat auditorium, the expansion was unveiled last fall with galleries that exhibit Native American, Asian, African, and European paintings, as well as sculpture and other art forms.
Additionally, the Museum of Contemporary Art/Denver will open in a new location in LoDo, short for Lower Downtown, this spring. The museum will feature five gallery spaces, each showcasing different types of art, including multimedia, paper, architecture and design, photography, and new media.
For those seeking local color and history, LoDo is the place to be. Formerly a warehouse neighborhood, it’s now a vibrant district of 26 square blocks filled with art galleries, nearly 100 restaurants and clubs, residential lofts, and many retail businesses.
One of LoDo’s most popular stops is Wynkoop Brewing Company, Denver’s original brewpub. Its hardwood floors, pressed tin ceilings, pool hall, and timber pillars make it a great place to consume not just brew, but some Old West heritage.
Colorado Springs
Colorado’s second city is about an hour’s drive south of Denver. Pikes Peak is “the Springs’” famous backdrop. Most visitors get to the top of it via cog railway, motor vehicle or foot so they can observe the scenery that inspired Katharine Lee Bates in 1893 to pen the anthem America the Beautiful.
Colorado Springs is also home to the U.S. Air Force Academy and the U. S. Olympic Complex, training headquarters for several international sports programs. Tours of both sites are popular with groups.
According to Kathy Reak, director of convention sales for Experience Colorado Springs at Pikes Peak CVB, Colorado Springs is attractive to groups for its meet and play options, as well as for its affordability.
“We have all the first-class amenities groups want and need at second-tier city pricing,” she says. “Also, we offer them a relaxed atmosphere in the midst of stunning scenery. The natural beauty that surrounds us makes people feel as if they have arrived at a resort, yet we have all the big-city amenities.”
Reak also points out Colorado Springs’ good supply of airlift, with about 100 daily flights, and more are coming on-line at the end of April when Expressjet adds three daily flights from the California cities of San Diego, Sacramento and Ontario.
The historic Broadmoor is the premier resort and conference center in Colorado Springs. Today, the resort’s 3,000 acres and 700 guest rooms surround Cheyenne Lake and three golf courses, and the property recently unveiled Broadmoor Hall, a 60,000-square-foot group venue.
Cheyenne Mountain Resort is another major meetings property, with 311 guest rooms and 40,000 square feet of meeting and exhibit space.
Other options include the Marriott Colorado Springs and the Embassy Suites Hotel Colorado Springs, both of which recently completed renovations, while a Hilton Garden Inn will open near Colorado Springs Airport in June.
When the agenda calls for some Old West experiences, Reak says many groups elect Flying W Ranch for a chuck wagon-style dinner of steaks, trout, chicken, and ribs served off tin plates and cups. Rodeo demonstrations are also available.
“The W is a lot of fun, and if a group wants to get a little Western-style hospitality, it’s the place they need to go,” she says.
Boulder
About 100 miles north of Colorado Springs is Boulder, one of the state’s “hippest” towns. Here, students at the University of Colorado mingle with baby boomers to create an artsy culture.
The Coors Events Conference Center on the university campus has 37,000 square feet of function space, and among the city’s premier hotels is the Hotel Boulderado, with 160 guest rooms, 8,000 square feet of meeting space and almost a century of history inside its walls. Victorian elegance surrounds guests and gives them a sense of Boulder’s earliest days.
The destination’s newest property is the St. Julien Hotel and Spa, offering 200 guest rooms and 16,500 square feet of meeting space.
Other meetings-friendly facilities include the Boulder Marriott and the Millennium Harvest House–Boulder.
Meeting attendees are more productive in Boulder, says Mary Ann Mahoney, executive director of the Boulder CVB, because of the city’s distinct lifestyle.
“Attendees are more engaged and productive while they’re in Boulder,” she says. “They see a community that is lively and energetic—people walking, biking and running—and they want to be more lively and energetic, too.”
Mahoney also points to Boulder’s 45-minute proximity to Denver International Airport and its affordability, namely from October through May.
Fort Collins
Up north, another college town, home to Colorado State University, has a more laid-back culture and a claim to fame as the town with the most microbreweries per capita in the state. The Annual Colorado Brewers Festival happens the last weekend of every June in downtown Fort Collins, where 23 historical buildings testify to the town’s early beginnings in the late 19th century.
The Old Town district is where attendees enjoy shopping, entertainment and restaurants. Locals are proud to tell visitors that Disneyland’s Main Street USA was modeled on Fort Collins’ historic district.
Groups can opt for properties such as the Hilton Fort Collins, the Fort Collins Marriott and the University Park Holiday Inn.
Estes Park
A scenic setting and plenty of relaxing places to convene are top selling points in Estes Park, a quaint town roughly 60 miles northwest of Denver.
The Estes Park Conference Center accommodates gatherings of up to 1,000, while several area lodges and resorts are well suited to groups.
Large religious conferences and other types of groups find affordable facilities and mountainside fun at the nonprofit YMCA of the Rockies resort, which has two properties: Estes Park Center, located just above the town of Estes Park, and Snow Mountain Ranch, located southwest of the center. Both resorts are specifically geared toward conference retreats.
Grand Junction
Grand Junction is the heart of the state’s wine country, about four hours west of Denver. Groups enjoy private dining in the vineyards, as well as tours and tastings.
Barbara Bowman, director of sales for the Grand Junction CVB, says groups may combine the best of the region by having a lunch or dinner complemented with local wines and views of the scenery.
“The Colorado National Monument looks like the Grand Canyon, and our winemakers often set dinners at sites overlooking a red rocks canyon part of the monument,” Bowman says.
Two new Marriott properties, the Courtyard Grand Junction and the Residence Inn Grand Junction, join meetings options such as the Two Rivers Convention Center, the Doubletree Hotel Grand Junction and the Holiday Inn Grand Junction.
Mountain Resorts
Colorado’s world-famous sky-high resorts don’t operate just in high ski season. They provide inspiring platforms for meetings and plenty of recreation choices year-round.
Besides significantly enhancing its profile as a leisure destination, Vail’s billion-dollar renewal project has meetings in mind. Great detail and attention has been directed to business centers, meeting rooms and conference centers—renovations and expansions that make Vail a top choice for business and leisure.
Vail Village’s recent tech transition to Wi-Fi literally gives new meaning to the tagline “best view in the office,” says Monica McCafferty, spokesperson for the Vail Valley Partnership.
“Also, when business subsides and play begins, recent spa renovations are an experience not to miss, and they bring new meaning to Vail’s reputation as a destination that is part business and all pleasure,” McCafferty says.
Meanwhile, the destination is pouring millions into hotel room renovations and adding new property options, with eight major hotels and resorts set to open over the next few years.
The Arrabelle at Vail Square will debut in 2008 with a 36-room RockResorts property, condominiums, restaurants, retail space, and an ice rink.
The Vail Plaza Club Hotel Resort is set to open this summer with 207 guest rooms and suites and 7,000 square feet of meeting space. The new resort is a $150 million redevelopment of the former Vail Village Inn.
Popular hotels for groups currently include the newly renovated Park Hyatt Beaver Creek Resort and Spa; The Ritz-Carlton, Bachelor Gulch; and the Vail Marriott Resort and Spa, which recently renovated its meeting facilities.
With one of the best group facilities in the Colorado Rockies, Keystone Resort can host everything from small, intimate get-togethers to large, high-tech gatherings of up to 2,000 people. Keystone Resort Conference Center blends with the nature that surrounds it and offers sophisticated amenities and a sleek design.
After business, there are plenty of leisure-time options, including two golf courses, mountain biking, wine tasting, fly-fishing, tennis clinics, and more. When it’s time to dine, the two villages at Keystone dish out more than 30 restaurants, cafes and nightspots.
Breckenridge has been around since 1859, so it has a significant historic presence and interest for groups who want old and new Colorado. Besides all the mountaintop recreation available, it is home to a historic district with 249 antique structures, and the town of only about 3,000 people demonstrates its hospitality with more than 140 restaurants and clubs.
Several Breckenridge properties can handle groups of up to 700. Among the largest options are Beaver Run Resort and Conference Center, featuring 35,000 square feet of meeting space.
Located just 90 miles from Denver International Airport, Copper Mountain Resort offers groups regular airport shuttle services, along with 750 guest units and 68,000 square feet of meeting space in a spectacular mountain setting.
The Village at Copper is the place to enjoy restaurant variety, nightlife and special events throughout the year.
Aspen/Snowmass may be best known for its lifestyles of the rich and famous, but it also has a laid-back side, and groups are encouraged not to feel intimidated by the glitter on the streets. Aspen Groups, a new arm of the Aspen Chamber Resort Association, aims to make business visitors feel at home, with services to arrange bulk air, lodging, lift tickets, activities, conference space, and ground transportation.
St. Regis Resort Aspen is a popular group choice, as are properties such Aspen Meadows Resort, scheduled to open the 22,000-square-foot Doerr Hosier Center in June; Sky Hotel; and the legendary Hotel Jerome, which is about to receive a $20 million renovation that will include a new spa, room upgrades and new restaurants.
Nearby, Snowmass Village also has several meetings-ready mountainside hotels. The Silvertree Hotel, Wildwood Lodge and Snowmass Conference Center comprise a complete meetings package for up to 2,000 people. Amenities include tech-equipped meeting rooms with terraces that promote networking under peaks and blue skies.
Steamboat Springs is a century-old town that mixes Western heritage with a contemporary attitude and facilities. From its perch at 7,000 feet, Steamboat has one of North America’s biggest ski mountains, featuring a 3,600-foot vertical drop.
Groups that choose Steamboat gather in lodgings such as the Sheraton Steamboat Resort and Conference Center, and Steamboat Grand Resort Hotel and Condominiums.
Mining history and modern facilities satisfy groups in southwest Colorado’s famous towns of Durango and Telluride. Both are good platforms for smaller groups in search of year-round recreation and hotels that range from boutiques with Old West character to national chain properties and luxury enclaves.
Telluride’s surrounding peaks, historic streets and mining-era attractions are great destination companions with Mountain Village’s contemporary group lodging and meeting facilities.
The centerpiece high above the historic streets is Telluride Conference Center, with its tech-savvy ambience amid the summits, and a St. Regis hotel is scheduled to open later this year next to the center.
Meanwhile, the Peaks Resort and Golden Door Spa is a top choice among groups.
Durango offers elegant Victorian-era boutiques like the Strater Hotel, as well as outdoors-oriented sites at the Wits End Guest Ranch and Resort and the Lodge at Tamarron Durango.
The town’s most popular attraction is the Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad. It transports riders to Silverton, another old mining town that sits at an elevation of 12,000 feet.
For More Info
Aspen Chamber Resort Association 970.925.1940
www.aspen-groups.com
Boulder CVB 303.442.2911
www.bouldercoloradousa.com
Breckenridge Resort Chamber 970.453.2913
www.gobreck.com
Colorado Tourism Office 303.892.3885
www.colorado.com
Copper Mountain Resort 970.968.2318
www.coppermeetings.com
Denver Metro CVB 303.892.1112
www.denver.org
Durango Area Tourism Office 970.247.3500
www.durango.org
Estes Park CVB 970.577.9900
www.estesparkcvb.com
Experience Colorado Springs
at Pikes Peak CVB 719.635.7506
www.experiencecoloradosprings.com
Fort Collins CVB 970.232.3840
www.ftcollins.com
Grand Junction Visitorand Convention Bureau 970.244.1480
www.visitgrandjunction.com
Keystone Resort 970.496.4242
www.keystone.snow.com
Marketing Telluride Inc. 970.728.3041
www.tellurideconference.com
Snowmass Village Resort Association 970.923.2000
www.snowmassmeetings.com
Steamboat Springs Resort Association 970.879.0880
www.steamboatchamber.com
Vail Valley Chamber and Tourism Bureau 800.525.3875
www.meetingsinvail.com
