Central Pennsylvania’s reputation as a family-friendly leisure destination has been well established for decades. Descendants of the gentle people who immigrated to the region from Europe over three centuries ago continue farm-based lifestyles that fascinate 21st century visitors. Millions arrive annually to roam the heritage and culture stops in these rolling pasturelands.
All commerce here used to revolve around agriculture, but recent years have brought a much broader business reach. Modern resorts and hotels are rising alongside B&Bs and inns that remain keepers of the culture. Meetings business is on the minds of the region’s tourism managers, and they are dedicating resources to ramp up the appeal of their destinations to meeting planners. The big challenge, they say, is convincing planners that there’s much more to experience than buggies, plows, retail outlets and an amusement park.
Affordability and easy access to major East Coast population centers are among the selling points being promoted to groups considering destinations such as Lancaster County, Hershey and Harrisburg, and in these uncertain economic times, planners are doing more than politely listening to the marketing message.
Lancaster County
As one of the most popular tourism destinations in the U.S., Lancaster County continues to attract millions to a culture that was established here in the 17th and 18th centuries by religious separatists, sometimes called Plain people. Descendants of the original Amish, Mennonite and other faith adherents continue to live in a culture that is much more of a startling contrast to contemporary lifestyles than it was in the old days. Today, visitors watch local people move from farm to market inside horse-drawn buggies and buy the arts and crafts, farm produce and culinary offerings sold by the locals.
Though leisure tourism remains big business, the region is aiming to attract more business visitors with new facilities and a focus on activities of interest to meeting groups.
“Most people know we are a popular leisure destination,” says Monica Thomas, director of meeting and convention sales for the Pennsylvania Dutch CVB, “but we have a great challenge in convincing planners and others that Lancaster is an appealing business destination. The reality is that we have great art, theater, dining and shopping options—many things to do after 5 p.m. And we are getting new facilities for groups.”
In downtown Lancaster, she says, new art galleries and other new small businesses are making the city more attractive for attendees.
Out and about, groups can rely on purveyors such as All-in-One Tours for excursions to nearby Gettysburg, Hershey (dubbed “Chocolate Town, USA”), Philadelphia, Longwood Gardens, shops and theaters. Gourmet and farm tours are also in the mix, along with offbeat programs in the city of Lancaster, such as the Pubs, Prohibition & Piety Tour. Additionally, Bube’s Brewery is an absorbing, intact 19th century brewery and museum complex where groups can dine in unique venues like The Catacombs or the Biergarten.
To get the word out about Lancaster’s readiness to host meetings, Thomas says there are now four sales people dedicated to calling on meeting buyers, with three on the road much of the year.
“Our meetings target universe includes associations, corporates and collectors organizations,” she says. “We also have a strong appeal to the religious market, and our new convention center complex will enable us to interest these people as never before. Once this property opens, we will be able to host up to 5,000 attendees.”
The Lancaster County Convention Center complex is scheduled to debut next March in downtown Lancaster City. The site will include the new $170 million convention center and the 300-room Marriott Lancaster at Penn Square. Together, the facilities will offer 90,000 square feet of meeting space. Thomas says it will be the largest group facility in the region, including those in Hershey and Valley Forge.
“That,” she says, “is our big selling point.”
Meanwhile, Lancaster’s largest existing meeting facilities are upgrading to maintain their competitive edge. Eden Resort Inn & Suites, Lancaster Host Resort & Conference Center and Willow Valley Resort & Conference Center have all recently completed renovations or expansion projects.
New hotels in the destination include the Inn at Leola Village, Lancaster’s only AAA Four Diamond property. The hotel has 61 guest rooms and suites and features an executive boardroom.
Another new property is Homewood Suites by Hilton Lancaster, which opened in June with 98 suites as well as meeting space.
According to Thomas, all Lancaster properties offer great value, with room rates that are significantly less than those attached to larger destinations.
“This means that companies like Philadelphia pharmaceuticals are now looking at second- and third-tier destinations,” she says. “And because they’d like not to have to fly people into a meeting, they are looking at us with renewed interest.”
Lancaster’s central location and accessibility are also key group draws. The area has good proximity to three airports—Harrisburg, Baltimore-Washington International and Philadelphia International—as well as Amtrak rail service.
Planners frequently ask questions about getting attendees into Lancaster’s properties from the terminals, according to Thomas, and the CVB has some answers. For qualifying buyers, Thomas says the bureau will offer a motorcoach/shuttle transportation package to close sales, and that—combined with the value-inherent room rates—makes Lancaster a great choice.
Hershey/Capital Region
West of Lancaster, there’s the Hershey Harrisburg region, a destination the online meetings booking company GetThere rates as one of its “Top Ten Most Affordable” U.S. meeting locations. It’s where Milton S. Hershey’s Americana legacy continues in his candy business, philanthropic endeavors and hospitality.
The destination boasts a great range of full-service hotels, dining options, attractions and nightlife, and enviable access—a three-hour drive from Philadelphia, Baltimore, New York City and Washington, D.C.—is another plus.
Hershey Harrisburg is enhancing meeting facilities and activities that are sweetening the destination’s appeal to business groups. Site choices range from conference centers, hotels, resorts, exhibit halls and auditoriums to museums and historic theaters. And there are more than 7,000 guest rooms ranging from economy inns to four-star resorts.
The Hotel Hershey is in the midst of a capital improvement project to commemorate its 75th anniversary. The initiative includes a new recreational campus featuring an aquatic center, an 18-hole grass putting course, volleyball, tennis and a year-round skating rink. Also on the project list is a restoration and expansion of the hotel’s famed Circular Dining Room, including a 1,200-bottle wine cellar, as well as the addition of a new restaurant and 10 luxury cottages with 48 new guest rooms.
The Hershey Lodge is the destination’s primary meetings site, and its 32,000-square-foot Great American Hall recently received a soft goods renovation, while its companion business center was also renovated and expanded. The lodge’s 665 guest rooms are also receiving a soft goods renovation.
Harrisburg is Pennsylvania’s capital, and it is planning a major redesign and renovation of its primary group meeting and event site, the PA Farm Show Complex & Expo Center.
Sharon S. Altland, convention sales director for the Hershey Harrisburg Regional Visitors Bureau, says the expo center initiative will make the facility more contemporary and boost the destination’s appeal to business groups.
“We expect this project to be completed in 2010, and it will make us much more competitive in the meetings arena,” Altland says. “We plan to confidently go after much larger expositions, especially those that require meeting spaces. It will level the playing field for us, allowing us to go after the same groups targeted by expo centers that are larger and newer than we are.”
The improvement project will include the renovation of meeting rooms and other public spaces, new arena seats, new main entrance amenities and additional parking spaces.
Another popular option in the region, the Carlisle Expo Center, is located in the town of Carlisle, southwest of Harrisburg. The center features 30,000 square feet of function space for events such as trade shows, conventions, exhibitions and conferences.
Attractions and after-business activities are one of the Hershey Harrisburg region’s top features. Besides HersheyPark—debuting several new attractions for the 2009 season—Penn National Horse Racing and Hollywood Casino, there’s the Appalachian Trail for outdoor recreation and retail outlet shopping for indoor recreation in any season. Meanwhile, the Hershey Golf Collection offers 63 holes on three courses, and it is adding a new clubhouse on the Hershey Links course, with an opening scheduled for May.
For More Info
Hershey Harrisburg Regional Visitors Bureau 717.231.7788 www.hersheyharrisburg.org
Hershey Meetings 866-PA-MEETS www.hersheymeetings.com
Pennsylvania Dutch CVB 717.299.8901 www.padutchcountry.com
