With its colorful seaside towns set on the verge of wilderness, high-adventure activities that manage to be low-key at the same time, and a coastline dotted by islands that have been called "Florida’s answer to Tahiti," Southwest Florida could easily be a meeting group’s answer to stress.
While some conferences and conventions convert to relay races of time- and money-saving efficiency, and budget cuts force others into indefinite hiatus, it might be nice to know there’s a place where groups can come to regroup, reconnect, get some work done and take a welcome break from the daily grind without breaking the bank. Southwest Florida, which stretches from the rustic wilds of Everglades City north to the historical hamlets clustered around eco-minded Charlotte Harbor, may just be the prescription.
"Rates are considerably lower in ‘resort’ areas than this time last year. Meeting planners are finding that they can book their meeting in resort destinations for about the same price they might find in second- and third-tier meeting locations," notes Jack Wert, executive director of the Naples, Marco Island, Everglades CVB. "There are certainly deals in our area for meetings. Our meeting hotels are offering great rates and open dates right now for future meetings."
Wert’s not alone in that assessment.
"Many hotels and resorts in our area offer affordable alternatives at a variety of locations," seconds Suya Davenport, executive director of the Lee County VCB, which markets itself as the Beaches of Fort Myers & Sanibel. "There are great values to be had, not only at the properties but with the bureau."
Davenport is referring to a new incentive offer that includes a 5 percent credit on actualized room revenue up to $5,000 for 25 rooms or more booked for three consecutive nights by December 2010 (except from February-April).
Becky Bovell, director of the Charlotte Harbor Visitor’s Bureau, says hotels in her area often partner with area attractions to promote value-added offerings.
"I would not even classify Charlotte Harbor as a resort destination," she says. "Our hotels, including our new Wyvern boutique hotel and the new Sheraton Four Points, are very affordable, as is the event and conference center."
Indeed, it would seem that groups on a budget, on an adventure—or both—are poised to get the most out of Southwest Florida.
Naples, Marco Island and the Everglades
The dual nature of this enclave set in the southwest corner of the state becomes apparent in the space of a few hours. You can set your group up on the golf course, send them to a local art gallery, or turn them loose on a shopping expedition along downtown Naples’ pedestrian-friendly streets, letting them browse the boutiques before stopping at a sidewalk cafe for lunch.
But then get everyone back on the bus, and a few minutes later, it feels like civilization is 100 miles away. You might be paddling into the water wonderland known as the Ten Thousand Islands—whose starting point is Marco Island, just south of Naples—which trail down to the tip of the Florida mainland, providing sanctuary for rare and endangered animals and unexpected adventure for visitors, including waverunner tours through the mangrove islets.
You could be off on a swamp walk or "muck about" through Fakahatchee Strand Preserve or Big Cypress National Preserve, knee deep in crystal-clear water and learning all about native Florida orchids, bromeliads and other rare plants while birds and butterflies keep watch overhead.
You might leave solid ground altogether on a fishing excursion through backcountry waters, as experienced operators like Soul Mate Charters guide you to prime spots for snook, tarpon, redfish and trout.
Then again, you might be munching on frogs’ legs and gator tails—washed down by ice-cold sweet tea, of course—at a ramshackle restaurant in Everglades City, a true frontier town set at the end of the Tamiami Trail right on the edge of Florida’s "River of Grass," Everglades National Park, the only subtropical preserve in North America. Home to both temperate and tropical plant communities, the park is prized for its rich bird life—particularly large wading birds like the roseate spoonbill and great blue heron—but it also is the only place in the world where alligators and crocodiles live side by side.
It seems hard to believe, but a short drive later, you’re back in the heart of Naples, wondering where to have dinner. Such destination variety is sure to please planners as they contemplate what to do off-site and after hours.
"We can help the meeting planner schedule events that range from team building in the Everglades to golf tournaments to fabulous sunset celebrations," Wert says. "Yet we offer attendees the arts and culture and dining variety of a much larger destination."
Indeed, Naples has a strong local independent dining scene—a group called Naples Originals promotes this individuality—and many restaurants feature fresh Gulf of Mexico seafood, not to mention the ever-popular stone crabs, available from October to May. Meanwhile, cultural enrichment is waiting at over 100 art galleries and at venues like the Philharmonic Center for the Arts and the von Liebig Art Center, which hosts art workshops and is also available for special functions.
In fact, venues for special functions are something of a specialty here, and planners can arrange off-site events, themed meetings, dinners or retreats in one-of-a-kind settings like Ngala, a private reserve where luxurious safari-style dinners are complemented by live animal encounters; at the Naples Zoo, whose gardens and animal programs have been enhancing group functions for years; and the Naples Botanical Garden, which will be available for meetings, conferences, receptions and dinners in January 2010. Group facilities will include the newly remodeled Windstar Garden Room, which can host up to 125, and the Garden Lecture Room, which can accommodate up to 60 guests.
Of course, this is all in addition to the area’s premier resort-based meeting and conference facilities, most located on or near the beaches of Naples and Marco Island. Options include The Ritz-Carlton and The Ritz-Carlton Golf Resort; the Naples Grande Beach Resort; the Naples Beach Hotel & Golf Club; LaPlaya Beach & Golf Resort; Hilton Naples; Bellasera Hotel; and a number of name-brand and boutique properties that can handle smaller group functions, including the stunning Inn on Fifth, which recalls 1920s Palm Beach in appearance while offering 7,900 square feet of meeting space and free Wi-Fi throughout the hotel.
New on the scene is the 85-room Hotel at Naples Bay Resort, part of a mixed-use development that includes restaurants and shopping; a new 102-unit SpringHill Suites Marriott; and a new 109-room Fairfield Inn & Suites, which just opened off I-75 at the gateway to Naples, Marco Island and the Everglades.
Beaches of Fort Myers and Sanibel
Naples’ neighbor to the north, the Beaches of Fort Myers & Sanibel, is keeping pace with new hotel developments as well, recently welcoming the 108-room Hyatt Place Coconut Point, part of a new boutique Hyatt brand; the Holiday Inn Fort Myers Airport at Town Center, a 169-room property set three miles from Southwest Florida International Airport; Value Place, a 121-room, extended-stay economy hotel featuring a rooftop pool, lounge, spa and fitness center; and AmericInn in Fort Myers, with 110 rooms, a business center and a meeting room.
Meanwhile, SunStream Hotels & Resorts, with properties throughout Southwest Florida, just unveiled the Resort at MarinaVillage in Cape Coral, a short drive from Fort Myers, offering studio and multi-bedroom accommodations, along with 20,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor meeting space plus Wi-Fi in all meeting rooms, suites and public areas, videoconferencing and full banquet services.
Larger meetings will find ample space at local resorts—the Hyatt Coconut Point (73,000 square feet), Sanibel Harbour Resort & Spa (45,000) and South Seas Island Resort (28,000)—as well as at the 42,000-square-foot Harborside Event Center, where President Barack Obama held a Town Hall Meeting last February and where a major expansion is in the works as part of an overall downtown River District transformation that will bring retail, dining, entertainment and cultural venues to the banks of the Caloosahatchee River.
One facet of the new River District development is already in place—the recently opened Hotel Indigo, featuring a 24-hour business center, rooftop pool and easy access to restaurants and attractions, including the new Butterfly Estates, home to thousands of butterflies as well as a botanical garden and cascading waterfalls. Facilities for group events are available.
Another popular attraction—not to mention a great off-site venue—are the Edison & Ford Winter Estates, neighboring properties that were the seasonal homes of inventor Thomas Edison and automobile pioneer Henry Ford in the early part of the 20th century. Not only do they offer a fascinating glimpse of a bygone era—displays include Edison’s research lab and mint-condition antique cars—but the grounds offer several locations for meetings and events, including the newly restored Edison Caretaker’s House, which can host up to 40, and the expansive waterfront lawn at Henry Ford’s estate, where tented gatherings overlook the Caloosahatchee River.
"For off-site events, we have wonderful gems like the Edison & Ford estates, Lovers Key State Park, Sun Splash Family Waterpark, sunset cruises, dine-arounds and more," notes Suya Davenport, the bureau’s executive director. "We are still a new location, so planners can avoid the ‘been there, done that’ response from delegates. But no matter how creative a meeting planner wants to be and no matter the budget, our team is here to assist. Whether off-property or on, we’ll find a way to make it happen."
Charlotte Harbor and the Gulf Islands
It’s always been a fascinating eco haven, but until quite recently, Charlotte Harbor could not rightly be classified as a meetings destination—that is, until the January 2009 opening of the $19.7 million Charlotte Harbor Event & Conference Center, set on the water in historic downtown Punta Gorda and offering 45,230 square feet of convention space broken into three conference halls with space for 112 exhibit booths or 1,500 people seated theater style.
Thus far, the multipurpose center has hosted a mix of sporting events, conferences, exhibitions and local events, with interest remaining positive and steady, reports bureau director Becky Bovell.
"We’re on hold to host a Florida Golden Gloves boxing event," she says. "We have also booked major conferences, including the Florida Association of Convention & Visitor Bureaus, the Florida Outdoor Writers Association and the Southeastern Outdoor Press Association."
It’s no mystery why these latter two groups would want to convene in Charlotte Harbor—with its unspoiled beaches, miles of Blueway kayak and paddling trails, and five National Wildlife Refuges, the area is an ecological jewel whose many facets are eagerly explored by visiting conference groups. Delegates might find themselves visiting rehabilitating animals at the Peace Wildlife Center; birdwatching at seven South Florida Birding Trail sites; or viewing alligators, Cracker cattle, turkeys, wild hogs and Southern cougars on a swamp buggy tour through Telegraph Cypress Swamp.
"Several conferences have taken advantage of our natural amenities on pre- and post-conference tours," Bovell says. "Most recently, members of the Southeastern Outdoor Press Association requested over 30 such tours."
Other signs of increasing visitor interest in Charlotte County: A $27 million rebuilt and expanded sports arena; a revamped sports park that is spring training home to the Tampa Bay Rays; new air service into the Charlotte County Airport from Direct Air and Allegiant Air; and more than 300 hotel rooms added in 2008 with another 300 due by the end of ’09. In addition, Punta Gorda has been designated a Florida Main Street community, which will help support local revitalization and preservation of the town’s 1920s-era architecture and cobblestone streets.
"Charlotte Harbor has emerged from ‘best-kept secret’ status," Bovell says.
But environmentalists needn’t worry about wildlife being crowded out of this pristine coastal haven—preserving the area’s natural charms is very much a priority.
"We are poised to provide the best of both worlds—an uncrowded, unspoiled natural environment with new hotel rooms, restaurants, storefronts, our new event center, world-class harbor and Major League Baseball stadium," Bovell says.
