Successful Meetings - March 2010 - (Page 50)

FLORIDA KEYS > KEYS TO SUCCESS FOR A SMALL TO MID-SIZE MEETING, THE FLORIDA KEYS OFFER GREAT RESORTS IN A LOW-KEY, LAID-BACK DESTINATION By Leo Jakobson hile some of its associations and other incoming groups have had attendance concerns, the meetings market in the Florida Keys has not been too heavily impacted by the economy or antimeetings sentiment of the country in the last year and a half. “We are focused on small meetings, those with around 50 rooms,” says Stacey Mitchell, director of sales for The Florida Keys & Key West, Monroe County’s official tourism agency. “Those are still being facilitated because they can fly under the radar.” That said, she admits that the booking window has shrunk as groups make their plans later and later. It is not unheard of to have a three-week booking window, adds Jack Meier, the organization’s destination sales manager, who oversees group sales. Still, that “is extreme,” he admits, saying, “eight months or so is more common.” Based on corporate inquiries and early bookings, he predicts a slight expansion in the group business in 2010. One subset of the meetings and incentive industry Mitchell says the Keys are getting is “programs that may have gone offshore in the past.” It’s a nice trade-off, she adds, if “you want all the benefits of an offshore destination Locations like this spot at the Ocean Reef Club offer some incredible settings for a dinner or special event I SM I March 2010 I SuccessfulMeetings.com http://www.SuccessfulMeetings.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Successful Meetings - March 2010

Successful Meetings - March 2010
Contents
Editor's Letter
A Dust-Up in the Windy City
Education
Mouth for Sale
Incentive Insights
Management Matters
Meetings Law
Good Neighbor
Feast Not Famine
Spreading Out
Your Guide to Green
Places + Spaces
Houston
New York City
Florida Keys
Oahu
Quebec City

Successful Meetings - March 2010