With its reliably temperate climate, near constant sunshine and 70 miles of coastline, San Diego inspires creativity and productivity. Scientists, researchers and writers develop brilliant concepts while surfing off La Jolla’s shores or jogging along Mission Bay. Artists and musicians feed on nature’s palette, fueling their imaginations with scenes of mountains, deserts, and the sea. Work and fun commingle naturally in San Diego’s warm sunshine. No wonder attendees enjoy checking out the action.
“A lot of people who come to California are coming for the outdoor experience,” says Steve Schell, the San Diego CVB’s vice president of sales and services. “We have an eclectic array of venues that can’t be duplicated. The diversity here is golden.”
The destination’s variety is a welcome surprise for visitors, according to Cami Mattson, president and chief executive officer for the San Diego North CVB.
“People are always surprised at how much more there is in San Diego County than they had visualized,” Mattson says. “We have this whole resort region with lots of natural expanses and lots of reserves woven in throughout. The meeting venues are surrounded by natural beauty—canyons, beaches, lagoons. You have a visually pleasing experience around you, an expansiveness that creates grandeur and is very energizing.”
At the Beach
Naturally, everybody wants to spend time near the ocean while in San Diego. But travelers don’t usually hang 10 while taking care of business. Enter the Wave House, a unique venue where up to 1,500 guests can watch pro surfers conquer Bruticus Maximus, a simulated 10-foot wave. Part of Belmont Park, an 18-acre shopping, dining and amusement complex on the Mission Beach Boardwalk, the Wave House’s 30,000-square-foot space with a full-on ocean view offers the ultimate beach party, with fire pits, hammocks, tiki bars, and the FlowRider, a continuous gentle wave perfect for wannabe surfers.
“Ninety-nine percent of our corporate events include a wave show and interactive riding by guests,” says Bob Puetz, director of events at Wave House. “It is a one of a kind experience and fun for those who participate in the wave riding as well as for those who are content to watch.”
Up the coast in La Jolla, sea creatures and awesome ocean views lure groups to the Birch Aquarium at Scripps.
“It’s pretty unlikely that you’ll encounter octopus, sharks and coral reefs at most meeting spots,” says Barbara Ramsey, special events manager for Scripps Oceanography. “Coming to the Birch Aquarium at Scripps is a true Southern California experience. It’s unique, educational and has an unmatched view of the coastline. Attendees can explore the ocean world through more than 60 tanks and watch a sunset over the breathtaking Pacific Ocean.”
The aquarium can host up to 1,500 people and offers outdoor space at the tide pool plaza, where guests check out starfish and sea anemones in manmade pools while watching the sun sink into the ocean. Indoors, guests wander around the exhibits and dine in the Galleria.
The Scripps Oceanography campus also offers the one-acre Pawka Green at the edge of the coastline, with curved seating walls designed to create an outdoor amphitheater effect.
On track for a mid-2008 opening is the new Robert Paine Scripps Forum for Science. The state-of-the-art beachside conference center will include several adjacent buildings holding more than 9,000 square feet of meeting and support space and an auditorium with flexible seating for 275 people.
Hip Hot Spots
“It’s a given that every new hotel in downtown has to have a rooftop bar and every resort needs outdoor space,” the San Diego CVB’s Schell says.
Fire pits, cabanas, concert halls, and recording studios are all the rage in downtown’s Gaslamp Quarter and East Village. Rooftop bars at the Marriott Gaslamp Quarter and Hotel Solamar overlooking Petco Park are especially popular during baseball season, while classy venues at the Ivy Hotel, On Broadway and Stingaree bring out the bling and bubbly side of attendees.
The hippest new setting for downtown parties is the Hard Rock Hotel San Diego, which opened with a concert by the Black Eyed Peas last November. With its over-the-top hipster quotient and 40,000 square feet of unique indoor and outdoor meeting space, including a poolside urban garden and a concert hall with video and satellite broadcasting capabilities, the Hard Rock is the coolest scene in downtown San Diego at the moment—unless you’re planning a huge outdoor party. Then the whole Gaslamp Quarter can become your stage for block parties and dine-arounds.
In North San Diego County, Escondido’s Stone Brewing World Bistro & Gardens recently received a San Diego Architectural Foundation Orchid award for its innovative design and seamless outdoor-indoor connection.
“They have some fascinating outdoor space where you sit on tables made of rock around a fire fountain, and they have gargoyles everywhere,” says the San Diego North CVB’s Mattson, who also raves about the brewery’s food.
Stone Brewing World incorporates a one-acre beer garden, a 55,000-square-foot brewery (available for tours) and seating for 385 guests.
Just east of Del Mar’s coastline, The Grand Del Mar, which debuted in October, is surrounded by glorious outdoor space overlooking the Los Penasquitos Canyon Reserve.
“Because of San Diego’s great all-year climate, we see many groups wanting to have activities outdoors—from golf outings and hiking to cocktail parties and dinners,” says Rob Stirling, director of sales and marketing at the resort. “Our outdoor venues include the 8,000-square-foot Aria Lawn, with a built-in pavilion staging area; the Salon Terrace, with dual stone fireplaces and covered areas set up as a living room for a more casual gathering; and a covered area overlooking the 3rd hole, with a fire pit for a more intimate affair. Our wine director, Jesse Rodriguez, is also available for wine tastings, and we customize each event with a unique menu.”
In its fall 2007 issue, the James Beard Award-winning magazine Wine & Spirits named Rodriguez one of America’s “Best New Sommeliers” not only for his extensive wine expertise but also for his charm, friendliness and desire to make sure guests have fun.
Military Mixers
Helicopters hover over the USS Midway, the massive battleship-gray aircraft carrier docked at the edge of downtown in San Diego Bay. Fireworks flash above a fleet of 25 restored aircraft on the ship’s 17,000-square-foot hangar deck, where up to 3,500 guests can wander about playing with flight simulators or rocking out on revolving dance floors.
“The Midway is an absolutely unique venue,” says Vanessa Pineda, marketing manager at the Midway, adding that it has a special wow factor. “Not only are guests coming onboard to have a wonderful time, but they also get to experience our nation’s longest-serving aircraft carrier. The flight deck has a 360-degree view of all of downtown, the bay and Coronado. We can do fireworks, helicopter landings and skydiving.”
According to Schell, parties at Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS) Miramar are also very popular.
“They’re not new,” Schell says, “but they do a great job.”
Maybe it’s the Top Gun vibe at the Officers’ Club or the sheer enormity of aircraft hangars capable of holding up to 6,000 revelers.
“Most [attendees] have never been on an active duty military installation before, and certainly not on an active flight line buzzing with jets and helicopters taking off and landing before their eyes,” says Mary Joe Heath, director of food and hospitality at MCAS Miramar. “The exclusive nature of bringing civilians into a secured area, surrounded by combat veterans and heroes, and giving them a glimpse of what it is like to be the ‘few, the proud’ is an experience that guests tell us exceeds any they have had before. Most leave here about an inch taller with a renewed sense of pride in their country and their Marine Corps. How do you top that?”
Spy Power
At the Estancia La Jolla Hotel & Spa in La Jolla, the on-site destination management staff creates intriguing team-building programs such as a recent event that was designed around a spy espionage theme, with teams assigned black attaché cases and clues for a daylong scavenger hunt.
“Our client said they wanted to have fun,” says Todd Wiggins, Estancia’s director of sales. “They were looking for a very unique event for team building and networking and had people coming in from all over the country who had never been to San Diego. We wanted to get them to some of the hot spots while supporting their program. We took them to Petco Park, Seaport Village and the Maritime Museum, which had things hidden in secret locations.”
Wiggins says the daylong event was a success, thanks in part to San Diego’s extraordinary selection of venues. On other hunts, groups have explored Old Town and the Gaslamp Quarter and sailed on a replica of the original America’s Cup yacht. This particular hunt ended at the Wave House for an awards ceremony.
“We had them sitting in lifeguard chairs right in front of Mission Beach,” Wiggins says. “The attendees were flabbergasted.”
For More Info
Carlsbad CVB 760.434.6093
www.visitcarlsbad.com
Chula Vista CVB 619.426.2882
www.chulavistaconvis.org
Coronado Visitors Bureau 619.437.8788
www.coronadovisitors.com
San Diego CVB 619.232.3101
www.sandiego.org
San Diego East Visitors Bureau 619.445.0180
www.visitsandiegoeast.com
San Diego North CVB 760.745.4741
www.sandiegonorth.com
