Like a fine wine, Savannah and the Georgia coast just keep getting better with age.
With its ornate mansions, cobblestone streets and shaded squares, Savannah lets you treat attendees to a beautiful getaway that also packs a punch when it comes to business meetings. Waterfront convention centers, historic hotels and unique event venues make for some unforgettable gatherings. And after the meetings, visitors can stroll the historic district, enjoy Lowcountry cuisine and sample the nightlife—all within walking distance of their hotels.
Farther south along the coast, Brunswick and the Golden Isles offer a quiet, relaxing ambience and outdoor activities such as kayaking, scuba diving and golfing.
The isles have certainly seen their share of important meetings. A great example is Jekyll Island and its legendary Jekyll Island Club Hotel. Built as a hunting retreat for the elite, the property is said to be the birthplace of the Federal Reserve Act.
In nearby Brunswick, St. Simons Island, Sea Island, and Little St. Simons Island, guests enjoy a nice mix of work and play with historic lures, meandering creeks, scenic peninsulas, and pretty coves.
Savannah
Located at the mouth of the Savannah River, which makes a natural border between South Carolina and Georgia, Savannah dates back to 1733. That year, Gen. James Oglethorpe and the passengers of the ship Anne landed on a bluff along the Savannah River. Oglethorpe named the 13th and final American colony Georgia, after England’s King George II—and Savannah became its first city.
Oglethorpe was Savannah’s original designer, and when building the city he envisioned grids that allowed for wide open streets intermixed with shaded parks and 24 public squares—21 are still in existence today.
“The appeal of Savannah is its history and the quaintness of it,” says Bill McKay, vice president of sales and marketing for the Savannah CVB. “It’s one of those cities that everybody wants to go to.”
Measuring 2.5 square miles, downtown Savannah has kept its historic mansions and squares almost intact. In fact, the city center is the country’s largest National Historic Landmark.
Seven Savannah ladies can be thanked for some of the preservation. In 1954, after witnessing the demolition of many mansions, the ladies raised funds to purchase the Isaiah Davenport House, which was scheduled to be destroyed. The group then formed the Historic Savannah Foundation. They bought old buildings and sold them to private owners who promised to restore them. By doing this, they were able to preserve more than 800 historic buildings.
Known as the “Hostess City of the South,” Savannah knows how to make guests feel welcomed. An embodiment of its Southern hospitality is the statue of Florence Martus on River Street. It’s said that the “Waving Girl,” as she later came to be known, welcomed more than 50,000 ships coming into Savannah’s port in the 40 years she lived with her brother, a lighthouse keeper.
The historic district is best enjoyed on foot and offers plenty of post-meeting options.
“It’s so manageable to walk around in,” McKay says, “and what people love here is that restaurants will give them a to-go cup for their beer or cocktail so they can finish their drink while walking around—it’s very laid back.”
Meeting venues are also varied. The largest is the riverfront Savannah International Trade and Convention Center, with 330,000 square feet of meeting space, including two exhibit halls, a ballroom, an auditorium, meeting rooms, and executive boardrooms.
“There are beach chairs by the river so guests can watch ships go by during their breaks,” McKay explains.
Getting to the convention center is half the fun. Attendees take a ferry ride across the Savannah River to Hutchinson Island.
Four hotels nearby, all of which are part the Savannah Accord, a cooperative supporting the convention center, can accommodate large groups and will arrange free transportation. The 351-room Hyatt Regency Savannah, the 246-room Hilton Savannah DeSoto and the 387-room Savannah Marriott Riverfront are located downtown, and the 403-room Westin Savannah Harbor Golf Resort & Spa is on Hutchinson Island, adjacent to the convention center.
In the heart of the city, in what the Savannah CVB calls “the meeting district,” there are 17 hotels and 3,300 rooms, and within walking distance are boutiques, galleries and specialty shops that offer a selection of antiques, artwork, apparel, and gifts.
Aside from the larger properties that are part of the Savannah Accord, boutique hotels in the area such as the Mansion on Forsythe Park, with 8,500 square feet of function space, provide additional options for groups.
Two new meetings-friendly hotels are slated to open in the district in the next few months: the Four Points by Sheraton Historic Savannah and the Holiday Inn Express Savannah Historic District.
Additionally, the biggest expansion since the city was erected is under way. Ambling Companies recently announced that Savannah River Landing, an $800 million, mixed-use development, will expand the city east along the Savannah River on land that Oglethorpe had once planned on using in the city’s original design. The complex will include homes, offices, hotels, and other establishments, ultimately boosting the city’s lineup of meeting venues.
“The due date is approximately eight years but the project will be rolled out in phases,” McKay says.
Meanwhile, getting to Savannah is very convenient. The Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport is a short shuttle ride away. In April, the airport reported 96,185 passenger boardings, an increase of 12 percent over the same month last year. With an expansion of several gates taking place, numbers are only expected to rise.
“Savannah is a phenomenal city,” McKay enthuses. “A lot of [meeting attendees] will check in early or stay after to experience the area.”
Brunswick and the Golden Isles
Approximately 80 miles south of Savannah are Brunswick and the Golden Isles, a region that consists of the port city of Brunswick, with its historic downtown, as well as Sea Island, Jekyll Island, St. Simons Island, and Little St. Simons Island.
The region is easily accessible via the Brunswick Golden Isles Airport, which recently completed a multimillion-dollar improvement project.
According to Patrick Saylor, spokesperson for the Brunswick and the Golden Isles CVB, the area’s appeal lies in the great variety it offers in terms of accommodations, recreational activities and experiences.
“Groups can tailor their activities to a range of interests, from history and culture to golf, nature, shopping, or simple relaxation,” Saylor explains. “In addition to the typical facilities for meetings and functions, Brunswick and the Golden Isles offer a large number of unique settings, including an historic town hall, a working shrimp boat, a National Historic Landmark district, theaters, and more.”
The region features nearly 8,000 guest rooms and more than 242,000 square feet of function space. Facilities range from hotels to meeting and conference venues such as the Stellar Center in Brunswick, Epworth by the Sea on St. Simons Island and the Jekyll Island Convention Center, sporting 55,000 square feet of function space. Outdoor spaces, historic homes and buildings, and a casino cruise ship add creative options for business and social gatherings.
According to Saylor, nearly a dozen new hotels have been built in the area in the past three years, including six new properties along Interstate 95 and several new inns on St. Simons Island. There are also plans for a new luxury hotel at Liberty Harbor in Brunswick.
In the past year, the biggest news in the area was the completion of the new main hotel, spa and beach club at The Cloister on Sea Island, an exclusive property that dates back to 1928 and was the site of the 2004 G8 Summit.
“These beautiful new facilities significantly increase an already high standard of excellence in accommodations, amenities and service, guaranteeing that Sea Island will continue to be a world-class resort for many years to come,” Saylor says.
On Jekyll Island, the Vanderbilts, the Rockefellers and the Morgans are among the famous guests who have frequented the historic Jekyll Island Club Hotel, which has set the scene for important meetings over the decades and is currently expanding its ballroom by 5,000 square feet.
Groups can hold small board meetings in the hotel’s Federal Reserve Room, where the Federal Reserve Act was drafted and created.
Kevin Runner, general manager of the property, explains that a meeting of what was called the “no last name club” took place in the Morgan Room.
“There were six or eight very powerful club members who met here,” Runner says. “They did a lot of business that created not only the Federal Reserve System but other things that jump-started transportation, telephone and other things. These people were all pretty heavy hitters. They had some very significant meetings.”
Other Jekyll Island properties catering to groups include the Jekyll Oceanfront Resort, the Buccaneer Beach Resort and the Villas by the Sea Resort.
On St. Simons Island, the largest of the Golden Isles, groups can retreat to the King and Prince Beach and Golf Resort and the Sea Palms Golf and Tennis Resort, as well as the Ocean Lodge, slated to open this fall with a conference center.
Little St. Simons, accessible only via boat from St. Simons, is a private barrier island that is ideal for upscale corporate retreats.
Once meetings are over, the wild marshes, sandy beaches and outstanding golf courses of the region make for great leisure time diversions.
“Few places can match the abundance of activities that add to the pleasure of meeting in Brunswick and the Golden Isles,” Saylor says. “We have 198 holes of golf; sun-drenched beaches; tennis; nature tours; fishing; water sports; historical sites; and great shops, galleries and restaurants.”
For More Info
Brunswick and the Golden Isles CVB 912.265.0620
www.bgivb.com
Jekyll Island CVB 912.635.4196
www.jekyllisland.com
Savannah CVB 912.644.6401
www.savcvb.com
