While California’s more celebrated cities have quite a bit to offer, planners will find intriguing options in the lesser-known interior locales.
Fom the capital of Sacramento through the Central Valley, groups will experience the rich interior of the Golden State, while also having access to acclaimed national parks. Sports venues are also common here, with several of the CVBs employing a dedicated position for sports events sales.
Sacramento
Steeped in Gold Country history, the state capital remains competitive in the state’s convention marketplace, with comparable infrastructure and facilities, but Steve Hammond, president and CEO of the Sacramento CVB says there’s more to its appeal.
“We also offer some things that the competition can’t,” he says. “Like access to the state legislature and historic Gold Rush attractions. For the delegates, we’ve implemented the Sacramento Gold Card program, which provides special savings at participating restaurants, attractions and retailers throughout the community.”
Even better, the city is ushering in a new $1 billion terminal at its airport—a project that cannot be understated. Terminal B now has 19 gates, free Wi-Fi, USB-powered seats, large ticket counters, wide-open spaces, cutting-edge public art and much more.
Located 15 minutes from the airport and across the street from the California State Capitol, the Sacramento Convention Center is all about convenience. The entire complex hosts over 600 events a year and offers 134,000 square feet of exhibit space, 31 meeting rooms, a 24,000-square-foot ballroom, the 2,452-seat Community Center Theater and the 3,849-seat Memorial Auditorium.
The recently renovated Hyatt Regency sits adjacent to the convention center, with over 27,000 square feet of flexible indoor and outdoor meeting space, 500 guest rooms and a 15,544 square-foot Regency Ballroom offering column-free space.
As Sacramento evolves through the economic times, Hammond says it’s common for the CVB to receive requests from clients for financial assistance. It’s one way the CVB can help.
“To assist with these financial challenges we have set aside a fund to help our clients defray some of their meeting costs, which is negotiated prior to them signing their contract,” Hammond says.
Stockton
Centrally located just 90 minutes from the San Francisco Bay Area, Stockton occupies land alongside the San Joaquin River. The downtown waterfront marina area has evolved tremendously over the last few years, with sports facilities, hotels and residential units emerging to help transform the area.
The Stockton Ports Minor League Baseball team plays in Banner Island Ballpark, and visitors can travel to the games by boat. The Stockton Marina, the largest inland seaport in California, features 48 covered slips, and there are also two guest docks on the North Shore, right near the ballpark, which is available for private events.
Right next door and also along the water is the Stockton Arena, home to ice hockey, indoor soccer and arena football. The facility features 24 luxury suites, 5,000 square feet of conference space and multiple configurations for events. Other venues popular for off-site group events include the Bob Hope Theater and the Haggin Museum.
The city’s group venues are complemented by an escalating arts community and access to wineries and even Yosemite.
Modesto
The seat of Stanislaus County, Modesto is set in the middle of the San Joaquin Valley, generally one of America’s largest and most diverse agricultural regions. Right on Highway 99 and only 90 to120 minutes from the San Francisco Bay Area, the town is ripe for small meetings of a more rural sort, and the town boasts modern meeting facilities.
The primary convention complex, the Modesto Centre Plaza, offers 25,000 square feet of function space, including a 16,000-square-foot exhibit hall that can accommodate up to 2,000 delegates. The Doubletree by Hilton Hotel Modesto is attached to the plaza, offering an additional 6,000 square feet of meeting and banquet space, along with 264 guest rooms and suites.
Other popular venues include the 580-seat State Theater, as well as the historical McHenry Mansion and Museum, which offers outdoor garden space for receptions.
Merced
About an hour south of Modesto is Merced, a popular gateway to Yosemite National Park. Although rich in agricultural and railroad history, the town is proud of its new campus of the University of California, which opened a few years ago. The campus has created jobs and added much to the economy of the region.
The Merced Multicultural Arts Center is a keen example of downtown revitalization. Previously a rundown, 28,000-square-foot building that once housed a Montgomery Ward’s department store, the building was reinvented as a modern, three-story complex. As a result, the project won awards from the American Institute of Architecture and the League of California Cities. For planners, much of the complex is available for events, including a 2,400-square-foot black box theater, plus a variety of instruction and meeting rooms.
Other alternatives for groups include the Merced County Courthouse Museum, as well as pursuits like golf, bird watching and farm stays.
Accommodations include the Holiday Inn Express & Suites, a Hampton Inn, a Best Western and a Courtyard by Marriott.
Fresno
Fresno, the fifth-largest city in California, is popular mainly for sports events but also accommodates many conventions and trade shows. The Fresno Convention & Entertainment Center consists of many components. With over 90,000 square feet of meeting space, the facility offers an interconnected web of options for groups, from gargantuan events to intimate boardroom meetings. In addition to the main exhibit hall space, the Saroyan Theater, the Selland Arena and Valdez Hall all offer flexible options for groups of various sizes.
Meanwhile, the Tower District is bustling with a nouveau hipster vibe, replete with vintage shops and alternative nightclubs. The Art Deco Tower Theatre for the Performing Arts, originally a 1930s movie house, is common for conferences, lectures, seminars and events. Many delegates come away with more than they expected from Fresno.
“What surprises planners the most when they come to Fresno is that there is actually a big city once they exit Hwy 99,” says Laura Calderon, lead sales manager of the Fresno/Clovis CVB. “Once planners arrive in Fresno for a site visit they are surprised at the amount of venue space we have.”
National Parks
Yosemite is a scenic outdoor wonderland. Some of America’s most sought-after locales for rock climbing, camping and hiking all exist here, as well as several accommodations either at the park or on the way to the park.
Tenaya Lodge at Yosemite, a AAA Four Diamond mountain resort, sits right at the South Gate and offers a high-end spa, more than 15,000 square feet of indoor meeting space and multiple outdoor venue options. Yosemite’s iconic Ahwahnee is another meetings favorite, and it recently completed a renovation that included guest rooms and public spaces, while the Wawona Hotel and Yosemite Lodge also welcome groups.
On the other side of the park, the meetings-friendly Groveland Hotel sits on Highway 120 and features a Wine Spectator Award-winning wine list.
The Wuksachi Lodge at Sequoia National Park and the John Muir Lodge at Kings Canyon National Park provide additional wilderness escapes for groups.
Mammoth
For world-class skiing, Mammoth is a top getaway. Aside from the aptly named mammoth peaks, the area also features other diversions—everything from museums and historical sites to ghost town tours.
The Mountainside Conference Center, the Canyon Lodge and the Westin Monache Resort are some of the options for meetings.
Visalia
The closest major city to Sequoia and Kings Canyon national parks, Visalia presents another alternative in the agriculturally rich Central Valley. Groups can take advantage of agritourism, ecotourism, farm stays, hiking, geology and remnants of the Wild West.
Facilities include the Visalia Convention Center, with 114,000 square feet of space, plus the Holiday Inn Conference Center and Visalia Marriott, both featuring several meeting rooms. As with many cities throughout the Central Valley, Visalia provides numerous lower-capacity sports venues, and planners can arrange several tie-ins, from minor-league baseball to golf.
Bakersfield
A traditional breeding ground for roots and country music, Bakersfield produced legendary talents like Merle Haggard and Buck Owens, who created what’s now known worldwide as the Bakersfield sound. To this day, Bakersfield remains a close third, behind Nashville and Texas, in regards to country music fame.
For planners, The Rabbobank Arena, Theater and Convention Center provides over 70,000 square feet of meeting space, including a 29,500-square-foot exhibit hall and 13 breakout rooms. The theater features 3,000 permanent seats, and the arena provides another 10,000 seats. The Bakersfield Marriott, offering 14,000 square feet of meeting space and four breakout rooms, is connected to the complex.
Gary Singh is a newspaper columnist, travel writer and freelance journalist.
