Aside from corn and soybeans, Iowa’s best-known export is the Iowa Caucus, the quadrennial contest that begins the U.S. presidential campaign. The Caucus process shines a constant spotlight on Iowa’s ability to host guests, meaning the Hawkeye State enjoys more than its share of up-to-date hotels, meeting facilities and attractions.
Central Iowa
State and (every few years) national politics center on Des Moines, where the 2016 U.S. presidential race is already hopping, says Greg Edwards, president and CEO of the Greater Des Moines CVB.
“This week Hillary Clinton is in town, Donald Trump was here last week, Ted Cruz was in town—it seems every week a candidate and their entourage is here,” Edwards says.
The Caucus creates year-long spikes in demand for hotel rooms and the city’s many other amenities, which it’s showcasing via a new website, CatchDesMoinesActive.com.
Des Moines is home to Iowa’s first self-serve wine bar, Della Viti, which lets patrons electronically pour samples of different vintages. New cultural attractions include the reopening of the nearby John Wayne Birthplace Museum following a $2 million renovation, and the MB2 Raceway Iowa in Grimes, which features a 40,000-square-foot, indoor go-kart racing facility.
The Renaissance Saveury plans a $10 million remodel by Jan. 1, 2016; a 108-room AC Hotel by Marriott will open in 2017; and groundbreaking on a new StayBridge Suites is expected imminently, with June 2016 set as the completion date. In addition, the Hotel Fort Des Moines is undergoing a complete $40 million renovation and will reopen in late 2016 or early 2017 as one boutique hotel and one extended-stay hotel. Finally, a 108-room Holiday Inn Express will open downtown later in 2015.
Ames is home to Iowa State University, whose Cyclones football team plays at Jack Trice Stadium. A new project will enclose the south end zone and add the Sukup End Zone Club, an indoor/outdoor event space with upper-level glass facades facing the stadium and Reiman Gardens.
A Sleep Inn Hotel, TownePlace Suites by Marriott and Hampton Inn & Suites will open this summer, fall and spring 2016, respectively.
Planners should also check out Marshalltown, with meetings-friendly properties including the Best Western Regency Inn & Conference Center; Grimes Farm Nature Center, a conservation showpiece; and the Big Treehouse, a giant, ever-evolving series of arboreal rooms and terraces.
Eastern Iowa
Sarah Tarnowski, director of convention sales at the Cedar Rapids Area CVB, says agriculture meetings fit her city well.
“Many aren’t aware that Cedar Rapids is home to 24 grain-processing companies and is the No. 1 producer of ethanol and cereal in the nation.”
The city’s downtown continues to thrive. Restaurants are packed, the restored Paramount Theatre is a gem, and the new McGrath Amphitheatre touts national acts such as Chicago and the Gipsy Kings. Around the corner a new restaurant, Popoli, occupies a Louis Sullivan-designed bank building.
Cedar Rapids’ newest hotel is the 267-room DoubleTree by Hilton Cedar Rapids Convention Center, and a Residence Inn will open in summer 2015.
The “Quad Cities”—Moline, East Moline and Rock Island on the Illinois side of the Mississippi, and Bettendorf and Davenport on Iowa’s side—jointly market themselves through the Quad Cities CVB. Most of the area’s 5,000 hotel rooms are in Iowa, and Davenport is home to the Quad Cities Event Center, where connected venues include the RiverCenter conference and events facility, the Adler Theatre, the classic Hotel Blackhawk (100 years old in 2015) and the Radisson Quad City Plaza. Fine arts fans will enjoy the Figge Art Museum, with current exhibits including modern Danish furniture and Yuriko Yamaguchi’s fantastic leaf, seed and pod sculptures.
Neighboring Bettendorf offers the Quad-Cities Waterfront Convention Center and the connected Isle of Capri Casino Hotel, whose south tower is undergoing an $8.5 million renovation. Other new properties here include the 104-room Holiday Inn & Suites Davenport and the Hilton Garden Inn Bettendorf.
Iowa City and Coralville are built around the University of Iowa’s students and Big Ten sports contests that attract thousands of visitors. The University’s law and medical schools and hospital system attract specific groups, says Joshua Schamberger, president of the Iowa City/Coralville Area CVB.
“We don’t do a lot of marketing at national trade shows, except in the healthcare and education meetings markets, which we’re obviously deeply rooted in. We spend our energy on state associations.”
Two major developments are creating new venues here: Coralville’s Iowa River Landing includes a Marriott hotel and several restaurants, and a Drury Hotel will break ground in April 2016. Meanwhile, Iowa City’s downtown Riverfront Crossing area will include a Hilton Garden Inn near the fast-rising Clapp Recital Hall.
Cedar Falls and Waterloo neighbor one another along the Cedar River and total about 160,000 people. The University of Northern Iowa campus in Cedar Falls and a major presence by John Deere Co.—the Boeing of the global farm-machinery business—underpin the economy, while an extensive shared trail and park network create outdoor opportunities, says Kim Manning, manager of the Cedar Falls Visitors and Tourism Bureau.
“We’ve been doing site visits and make sure [planners] see our downtown and trails to have something to do outside the meeting,” Manning says.
A full-service, 113-room Hilton Garden Inn features outdoor fire pits and a saltwater pool, and the Park Place Event Centre is Cedar Falls’ largest free-standing conference center.
In neighboring Waterloo, Paige Nieman, director of convention sales at the Waterloo CVB, markets primarily to Iowa-based groups plus some outreach to surrounding states.
“We ask, ‘Does this group have a tie to Waterloo somehow?’ That could be John Deere, a veterans’ group because of the Sullivan Brothers Iowa Veterans Museum or wrestling,” Nieman says.
The new John Deere Tractor and Engine Museum will officially open in June 2015, and another major attraction is the $26 million Cedar Valley Sportsplex, which has indoor basketball courts, a swimming pool, and a field house for soccer, indoor golf or paintball sports.
A 228-room Ramada hotel is attached to the Five Sullivan Brothers Convention Center, and a new 81-room Fairfield Inn will open here in June.
Western Iowa
Sioux City is one of Iowa’s fastest-growing cities. Situated along the Missouri River, it perennially wins quality-of-life awards—best for small business, most livable—thanks to a diverse economy, beautiful parks and cultural sites such as the WPA-era Sioux City Art Center, which has steadily collected artists such as Thomas Hart Benton, Salvador Dali and Grant Wood since 1937. The Sioux City Convention Center, Tyson Events Center and Sioux City Orpheum Theatre provide event spaces, while dozens of limited- and full-service hotels provide guest rooms.
Council Bluffs benefits in two ways from its proximity to Omaha. Council Bluffs can request Omaha hotel rooms as overflow for events such as a USA Wrestling competition that recently drew 5,000—but a little distance is an advantage too, says Josee Beier, sales manager at the Council Bluffs CVB, since Council Bluffs casino properties court Nebraskans and others from states with tighter gambling restrictions.
“It’s great for the regional states—right off I-80 and I-29—and we share the Omaha airport just 10 minutes away, so it’s very convenient,” Beier says.
Local attractions include walking, hiking and biking trails at Tom Hanafan River’s Edge Park, while Joe’s Karting, an indoor go-kart racing facility, adjoins a 12-theater cinema and the Mid-America Center.
In northwest Iowa, the vacation destination of Okoboji is also well equipped for business, and plenty of attendees bring their families along to experience its lakeside charm.
The destination has more than 1,400 guest rooms and more than 45,000 square feet of meeting space, and properties such as The Inn at Okoboji boast outdoor event facilities along the lakeshore.
Golf and waterborne activities are popular, and the area is also home to cultural attractions such as the Iowa Rock ’n’ Roll Music Association Hall of Fame and the Sami Center for the Performing Arts.
