Texas-sized event and play venues are staples on the Frisco scene, says Jennifer Kimble, tourism and convention services managers for the Frisco CVB, and just about everything has been built in the past five years.
“Frisco has had tremendous growth in a short time,” Kimble says, “because it is affordable, family-friendly and only about 25 miles from downtown Dallas.”
Yet groups also have more-intimate options, she points out, ranging from ballparks to swank private dining in hotels such as the Westin Stonebriar Resort.
For team-building occasions near eats and meeting spaces, Kimble suggests indoor scavenger hunts at Dave & Buster’s or activities at the sprawling Main Event Entertainment complex like bowling, indoor ropes challenges and laser tag.
“We’ve also done chef’s challenge at Embassy Suites,” she says, “whereby teams prepare a meal with ingredients the chef gives them.”
Groups who like the outdoors can chose catamaran rides on nearby Lake Lewisville for team-building exercises, swimming parties or a combination.
“We can take about 100 on the Chamonix II, which has both indoor and outdoor spaces,” Kimble says. “You can have cookouts on the boat or accommodate even more people in combination with Charlie’s Restaurant and Bar at the marina.”
Michele Crosby of Ultimate Ventures says Frisco—like most of the DFW Metroplex—has a good selection of restaurants and private venues for groups.
“Restaurant dine-arounds are a good bet,” she says, “and so is the private club at Pizza Hut Park. It overlooks the field, and you can bring in any kind of decor to make it your own. It holds about 250 and they do all the F&B for you. You can also bring in your own entertainment.”
Attendees can find strolling options around Frisco Square, the city’s town center, and Frisco Junction, a collection of buildings that represent the area’s heritage.
Inside Lochrann’s Irish Pub, Mattito’s TexMex, Josephine’s, and Sake Toro Sushi, there’s plenty of fuel for fun. Around the junction, the 18,000-square-foot Heritage Museum tells Frisco’s story of the past 100 years, and Babe’s Chicken Dinner House serves up its famous poultry and hot biscuits, along with impromptu sessions of Hokey Pokey by the servers.
For some, Crosby likes the idea of indoor rock climbing for team-building exercises at Canyon’s of Frisco, with a 10,000-square-foot climbing area and 30 climbing stations.
“They cater to groups there,” she says, “and there are fun and energetic activities for all ages.”
Frisco is group-friendly, say the experts, because all the play sites the city offers can be platforms on which to achieve business objectives as well as just plain fun.
