The inland region of Mississippi may be the birthplace of some of the world’s most soul-wrenching blues, but it’s more likely to inspire planners and groups to explore and celebrate its culture than to bring them down. With 120 historical sites along the Mississippi Blues Trail and countless live music venues to visit, visitors are guaranteed to get a—purely preventative—dose of the blues. Further enriching the scene are the antebellum riverside cities and college towns that have strong ties to Civil War and civil rights history, as well as a wealth of casino properties that lend depth and color to any event. Meanwhile, a development boom in recent years is bringing an influx of guest rooms and meeting space to a region keen on attracting more and larger meetings.
Jackson
Nicknamed the “City with Soul,” Jackson doesn’t have much to sing the blues about these days. With a brand-new convention center, several hotel renovation projects and $2 billion in downtown development under way, the city is poised to boost meetings business.
Apart from the exciting new investments, the charms of the city remain the same: good value, great location and culture with a beat you can dance to.
“Mississippi is known for its rich musical heritage and hospitality, and being the capital city, Jackson is the perfect place to experience it all,” says Shun Hatten, vice president of sales at the Jackson CVB. “With great affordability and a centralized location on the Crossroads of the South at the intersection of I-55 and I-20, Jackson definitely has an edge.”
The new Jackson Convention Complex is set to open this month. Located in the middle of downtown, the 330,000-square-foot facility will be able to welcome conventions as large as 7,000 people. The new facility is located adjacent to the 74,000-square-foot Mississippi TelCom Center.
Down the street from the Jackson Convention Complex, the King Edward Hotel will undergo restoration and conversion to a 186-room Hilton Garden Inn this summer. The iconic property, built in 1967, will also add a restaurant and several ground floor retail shops.
The Hilton Jackson and Convention Center has undergone a $6 million renovation of its 273 guest rooms and 30,000 square feet of meeting space.
The landmark 208-room Edison Walthall Hotel, built in 1928, has changed hands and will become the Roberts Walthall Hotel. Its new owner plans a $10 million renovation, during which the hotel will remain open.
A new 100-room Hotel Indigo is under construction in Jackson’s Fondren District. The upscale property is scheduled to open in late 2009.
Other major meetings hotels in Jackson include the Jackson Marriott and the Old Capitol Inn, which can welcome banquets as large as 300 people.
For out-of-the-box events, planners can utilize the Mississippi Agriculture and Forestry Museum, which can host groups of up to 500 people, or the award-winning Mississippi Museum of Natural Science, located in Lefleur’s Bluff State Park, which offers a 200-seat auditorium.
The up-and-coming Farish Street Entertainment District is set to begin a new phase of development this month. Plans include a new hotel, a gospel museum, a radio station, restaurants and art-related retail. The district will focus on celebrating and promoting Mississippi’s rich musical heritage.
Another new attraction, the Mississippi Children’s Museum, recently broke ground and will open in Lefleur’s Bluff State Park in 2010.
The Old Capitol Museum is reopening this month following a $14.2 million restoration after hurricane damage. Admission is free and the House of Representatives chamber is available for private events.
“The city is growing, with over $2 billion of development under way just in our downtown area, more meeting space, and retail and entertainment districts,” Hatten says. “Our affordability and wide variety of attractions will allow us to be on the radar of meeting planners across the country. We look forward to seeing new business as Jackson expands.”
Meridian/Lauderdale County
Located on two major interstates along the eastern border of Mississippi, Meridian is a railroad town from way back and still offers convenient connections to many major cities via Amtrak. The town boasts nine registered historic districts sporting a wide range of architectural styles.
“We give you a big-city feel but small-town hospitality and convenience with an artistic flair to exceed the highest of expectations,” says Suzy G. Johnson, executive director at the Meridian/Lauderdale County Tourism Bureau. “We make meeting easy and a ‘no-brainer.’”
Some of the area’s larger meetings properties are the MSU Riley Center, a converted 1890s opera house with 30,000 square feet of meeting space on the campus of Mississippi State University, and the 133-room Hilton Garden Inn Meridian.
Possible future developments under discussion in Meridian include a $30 million, 135-room Hyatt Place with banquet space for 1,000 people and a Courtyard by Marriott in the historic Threefoot Building that would break ground in mid-2009.
In Choctaw, to the northwest, Pearl River Resort offers more than 1,000 hotel rooms; meeting space for 2,100 people; 16 restaurants; a 36-hole golf course; and considerable casino space. A 140-room Hilton Garden Inn with 2,400 square feet of meeting space opened in Choctaw in 2008.
Hattiesburg
Hattiesburg, the “Hub City,” gained its moniker first from its position at the confluence of several rail lines and later, highways. The city was also the scene of important civil rights struggles. Hattiesburg is home to the University of Southern Mississippi and William Carey University.
“What sets Hattiesburg apart for all of our visitors is that we are truly Mississippi’s affordable, family-friendly weekend getaway,” says Rick Taylor, executive director of the Hattiesburg CVB. “For meeting planners specifically, Hattiesburg offers unparalleled personalized service alongside all the desired amenities.”
Five minutes from downtown, Lake Terrace Convention Center offers lake views and 68,000 square feet of meeting space. At Forrest County Multi Purpose Center there is a 120,000-square-foot arena as well as meeting space.
Thad Cochran Center, located on the campus of USM, has a ballroom accommodating as many as 900 as well as 10 meeting rooms and a 350-seat theater. The Historic Train Depot offers 14,000 square feet of space, including a ballroom capable of hosting 400 people. Both of the latter facilities opened in 2007.
Among the city’s nine meeting hotels are a 138-room Holiday Inn, with 3,000 square feet of function space; a 154-room Hampton Inn, with meeting space for 58 people; and the Inn on the Hill, with 119 guest rooms and 4,000 square feet of meeting space.
An 84-suite Residence Inn by Marriott and a 62-room Sleep Inn opened in late 2008.
The new African-American Military History Musuem will debut in March. Another museum, Historic Eureka School Museum, is also under development.
One popular off-site venue is the Mississippi Armed Forces Museum at Camp Shelby National Guard Base. The museum welcomes groups as large as 100 people.
Vicksburg
Rooted in history and geared for growth, Vicksburg is a smorgasbord for Civil War buffs. Today Vicksburg offers a large number of historical attractions plus the activities and nightlife supplied by its five casinos.
“Vicksburg was the first city in the state to position itself as a heritage tourism destination,” says Bill Seratt, executive director at the Vicksburg CVB. “The Vicksburg National Military Park is considered by many to be one of the country’s premier outdoor art exhibits, with 1,300 bronze reliefs, busts, statuary stone carvings and monuments created by some of the leading artists of the early 1900s.”
Over the next year, Vicksburg will see more than 500 new hotel rooms come on-line, allowing the city to draw larger meetings and conventions than ever before.
Many of the city’s meetings properties offer a special riverfront appeal. Vicksburg Convention Center, the largest convention space in town, with 50,000 square feet, is located on the waterfront. The 117-room Horizon Casino Hotel is adjacent to the center.
The area’s fifth riverside casino opened in November. Riverwalk Casino Hotel offers 80 guest rooms and a conference center. An additional casino hotel and golf resort project is in the planning stages. Ameristar Vicksburg completed a $98 million expansion to its parking, gaming and retail areas in 2008 as well as a $12 renovation of its 149 guest rooms. Other casino hotels include Diamond Jack’s and Rainbow.
Another option is to get groups out of town altogether. Tara Wildlife Conference Center, located on a private 20,000-acre nature preserve 30 minutes north on the Mississippi River, welcomes gatherings as large as 100. Accommodations for 68 people are available in rustic lodges.
Downriver, the charming town of Natchez offers a convention center with 30,000 square feet of conference space and the 950-seat Natchez City Auditorium, in addition to properties such as the Natchez Eola Hotel, with 131 guest rooms and 3,995 square feet of meeting space, and Isle of Capri Casino and Hotel, with 141 guest rooms as well as conference space.
One of the oldest cities in the state, Natchez is the product of a long and colorful history. Popular activities include tours of antebellum homes and plantations, ghost tours and visits to sites significant to Native American history and blues music.
Starkville/Greenwood
The college town of Starkville is home to the largest campus of Mississippi State University (MSU), which is also its greatest asset for meetings and events.
“Starkville is a charming, small town with big-city opportunities but not with the big-city price tag and stress,” says Arma Salazar, vice president of tourism at the Greater Starkville Development Partnership. “Together with MSU and the influx of new retail, dining and attraction projects emerging, Starkville is becoming a much more sought-after city to have a conference.”
MSU’s E.E. Cooley Building, a former cotton mill now on the National Register of Historic Places, is being converted into a 50,000-square-foot conference center. The project will also include a 120-room Courtyard by Marriott.
A new Hilton Garden Inn and Suites will open in February, and two other properties, yet unnamed, are set to begin construction this year. Together, these developments will bring Starkville’s total hotel product to 1,100 guest rooms.
The 118-room University Inn, the 10,000-seat Humphrey Coliseum and the ultra-modern Henry Hunter Center, built in 2002 to welcome the MSU alumni community, are other significant venues. The center offers 14 meeting spaces of various sizes.
For generations, the fertile soil of the Mississippi River floodplains has nurtured a soulful, expressive culture famous for its music and its food, and Greenwood is no exception.
“Greenwood is located in the Mississippi Delta, the birthplace of the blues. In addition to blues history, Greenwood has a unique and historic downtown and a plethora of lodging options,” says Paige Hunt, executive director of the Greenwood CVB. “With exquisite cuisine, a world-class spa, educational museums, cool shopping and authentic blues music, Greenwood is everything you are looking for.”
Larger meeting facilities include the Greenwood Convention Center, with nearly 10,000 square feet of arena space and more than 1,800 permanent seats, and Leflore County Agri-Center, with 36,000 square feet of exhibition space.
Hotels with meeting facilities include a Hampton Inn and a Ramada Inn.
The new Elks Lodge opened in September and offers 4,700 square feet of event space.
A tasty new development for team-building opportunities is the newly expanded Viking Cooking School, created by Viking Range Corporation, which is based in Greenwood. The school offers hands-on classes for groups as large as 16 and demonstration classes for as many as eight.
For More Info
Greenwood CVB 662.453.9197 www.gcvb.com
Hattiesburg CVB 601.268.3220
www.hattiesburg.org
Jackson CVB 601.960.1891
www.visitjackson.com
Meridian/Lauderdale County
Tourism Bureau 601.482.8001 www.visitmeridian.com
Natchez CVB 601.446.6345
www.visitnatchez.com
Starkville CVB 662.323.3322
www.starkville.org
Vicksburg CVB 601.636.9421
www.vicksburgcvb.org
