Planners can stASH their ballroom theme party ideas and props away for another locale. In the desert, no props are needed. Pastel-hued sunsets and stars sprinkled across a pitch-black sky provide the backdrop.
The silence is broken only by the murmur of conversation or the howl of a distant coyote. Whether the setting is a hotel terrace at the edge of the desert, an old mining camp or canyon walls dotted with ancient cliff dwellings, guests will experience a nighttime event unlike any other.
Arizona
Whatever the situation, the stars are usually the main attraction, especially in Arizona.
"Stargazing is a really big deal," says Marilyn McIver, general manager of Southwest Conference Planners in Tucson. "You can see so many stars, but we also have an observatory [Kitt Peak National Observatory located 56 miles southwest of Tucson] and a lot of interest in it out here."
Although stargazing is possible almost anywhere in the Tucson area, according to McIver, the farther out in the desert the better.
"The Ritz-Carlton, Dove Mountain is particularly good, because it sits further out of town, but most hotels have opportunities," she adds.
Non-hotel venues with good stargazing potential include Star Dance, located in the Tucson Mountain foothills on the border of Saguaro National Park. Star Dance has indoor and outdoor facilities, including a 6,000-square-foot enclosed pavilion with sliding doors on two sides, a 5,000-square-foot terrace and a 15,000-square-foot patio with landscaped bonfire areas.
Another possibility is Cocoraque Ranch, a 16,000-acre, century-old working cattle ranch on the western edge of Tucson. While excellent for stargazing, the ranch can also be used for barbecues and rodeos and accommodates from 20 to 200 people.
In Phoenix, Hummers add a bit of extra excitement to the nighttime stargazing experience.
"We can do a scavenger hunt on the way out for a bit of team building and finish in the desert with entertainment and stargazing," says Kristin Tacey, account executive with Southwest Conference Planners in Scottsdale.
"One nice thing about the Hummers is that they have night vision ability, so people can see wildlife in the dark by using goggles," she says.
The type of wildlife haunting the Sonoran Desert at night includes scorpions, tarantulas, rattlesnakes, mountain lions, coyotes and javelin—a wild-pig-like mammal with razor-sharp tusks and a powerful odor.
Another place that Tacey recommends for nighttime events is Los Cedros USA, a private Arabian horse ranch.
"There’s a main front arena where you can do performances and a swimming pool for horses. They do a horse demonstration of different types of riding, as well as show which horses are utilized for which style," Tacey says. "I had a group who brought in Monte Roberts, the original horse whisperer. It was two companies that merged, and the whole theme was about communication. Stargazing is also beautiful at Los Cedros, because you’re north of the valley."
New Mexico
In Santa Fe, N.M., stargazing is possible from any of a number of hotels located outside the city, but, according to Arlene Schiffer, president of Passport DMC in Santa Fe, the most interesting place is Hyde Memorial State Park Lodge. The historic building, built in 1938 by the Civilian Conservation Corps as a ski lodge, has a 3,000-square-foot patio and is a popular place for astronomy.
Another very special and unforgettable experience for groups takes place at Bandolier National Monument.
"We take the group out in the late afternoon when the park is closing, so they have private time there. They’re taken out to the ancient dwelling sites so they can see the caves in the light and then come back to the main visitors center where they have dinner," Schiffer says.
According to Schiffer, the meal can be anything from an elegant steak meal served on crystal to a barbecue. Another possibility is a boxed dinner along the river.
"After dinner, at 9 p.m., they have a magical experience incorporating Native American culture that’s as if the whole canyon has come alive," she says
Schiffer will not give details of the event, insisting they remain a secret so it will be a surprise for the guests. It is an event so unique that group members will remember it for the rest of their lives, she promises.
Pecos National Historic Park, located 35 miles from Santa Fe on I-25, is another locale for a Native American experience. Schiffer has organized events that have included a late afternoon hike followed by dinner on the park’s upper level opposite the ruins of the mission, which were lit up.
Native American performers provided the entertainment, with a pow-wow style grand entrance, dancing and flute music. The Pecos Pueblo was once a powerful center for trade between the Plains and Pueblo indians, and in the 15th century had a population of more than 2,000 inhabitants.
Palms Springs
In Palm Springs, Calif., unique nighttime activities focus on the desert and golf. Tour operator Desert Adventures puts on a desert discovery party at its re-created mining camp on 840 acres along the San Andreas Fault.
Participants travel through the desert to the mining camp in jeeps at sunset. Dinner is usually a barbecue, and activities include gold panning, target shooting, mechanical bulls and musical entertainment. Stargazing is anther activity many people enjoy here.
The evening is meant to be educational, says Kim Nilsson, owner and CEO of Desert Adventures.
"Everything we do revolves around the desert, getting people out to enjoy the scenery and to learn," she says. "We focus on the history, plants and animals, and geology of the area. And how many times can people say they partied on the San Andreas Fault?"
Another Palm Springs activity popular with many groups is golf, and those staying at the Miramonte Resort & Spa can participate in the hotel’s nighttime putting course golf reception at the Indian Wells Golf Resort, a short walk from the hotel. Hors d’oeuvres and cocktails complement the nine-hole putting course, which is brightly lit under the desert skies.
"It’s more than a put-put course. It’s a miniature version of a real golf course," says Chris Kandziora, director of sales and marketing for the resort.
The Miramonte Resort & Spa also produces a wine-stomping event that takes place under the stars in an olive grove on the property. Participants can feel the grapes squishing beneath their feet, guided by celebrity look-alikes such as Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz, who lead the way and add a bit of excitement to the evening.
Las Vegas
Meanwhile, another desert destination, Las Vegas, provides the stage for a vast array of nighttime activities, ranging from outdoor concerts to sailing and theme tours.
"It’s all about the atmosphere, the environment," says Jackie Baskow, president of Las Vegas DMC Baskow & Associates. "Vegas is a playground of venues, and it’s all about how the entertainment is put together. People don’t have to pay a lot of money here to get a magical moment."
"We’ve done jazz concerts under the stars at Red Rock Casino, taken people on private yachts on Lake Las Vegas and blocked off the walkway overpass [over Las Vegas Boulevard] at New York New York, so that people could eat over The Strip," she continues.
For one group, she took over Fremont Street and set up stages, where different bands played music through the decades. One played ’50s and ’60s music, another ’70s and ’80s tunes and a third ’90s and current music.
Las Vegas lends itself to a range of nighttime sightseeing tours that groups can take to get a better sense of the city’s history and non-casino attractions. One popular tour that Baskow & Associates puts on is a mob tour, highlighting the history of Mafia activities in Las Vegas.
It includes dinner at places like Capo’s, an Italian restaurant designed as a mob speakeasy with a hidden entrance and menu items that have names like Scarface Shrimp Scampi, Angels With Dirty Faces and Gotti’s Chicken Angelo. Old-time celebrities perform, setting the atmosphere for the days when Frank Sinatra brought fame to Las Vegas.
The mob tour will be even more interesting when the so-called Mob Museum, officially known as the Las Vegas Museum of Organized Crime and Law Enforcement, opens late next spring or early summer.
Located in the historic former downtown courthouse and post office, built in 1933 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the museum will feature exhibits tracing the city’s connection to organized crime from the days of Bugsy Siegel to Tony "The Ant" Spilotro. There will be interactive displays, historic films and artifacts, including part of a collection owned by Mayor Oscar Goodman, a former attorney for Mafia members.
Other nighttime activities in Las Vegas revolve around parties on pool decks, and one of the most unique of these is Tao Beach at the Venetian. Tao Beach sits on top of the Tao Asian Bistro and Nightclub and is available for groups of up to 800 people. Catering is provided by the Tao Restaurant chefs and includes such dishes as the restaurant’s signature miso-glazed Chilean sea bass. The evening can include musical entertainment, a pool light show, 14-foot fire columns and floating Chinese lanterns. Tao Beach has seven cabanas, and the Grand Cabana doubles as a stage.
Judy Jacobs has been covering the travel industry for over 20 years.
