South Florida
The Beaches of Fort Myers & Sanibel
Website – VisitFortMyers.com; Social media – @VisitFortMyers
While last year’s Hurricane Ian significantly impacted the Fort Myers area’s 13,000 hotel rooms and 290,000 square feet of meeting space, the Lee County continues to assure the public that the region, including Captiva and Sanibel, is getting back to business. Most businesses in downtown Fort Myers, Cape Coral, Estero, and Bonita Springs are up and running, including the majority of the largest meeting hotels and resorts, according to the VCB.
Many properties in the area, like downtown’s 243-room Luminary Hotel, were built to withstand hurricanes and flooding. The property features 10,834 square feet of meeting space and shares 30,000 square feet of event space with the Caloosa Sound Convention Center & Amphitheater. Renovated and rebranded three years ago, the convention center offers over 41,000 square feet of space and eight meeting rooms. While its championship golf course undergoes storm-related repairs, the elegant circa 1912 Gasparilla Inn & Club in Boca Grande welcomes bookings for gatherings of 10 to 300 people. The Inn’s “Inn Adventures” recreation component offers groups an array of excellent teambuilding activities, including treasure and scavenger hunts.
Other available options in the area include the 308-room Westin Cape Coral Resort at Marina Village, featuring 29,910 square feet of meeting space and holding 1,400 in its largest area. The recently renovated 462-room Hyatt Regency Coconut Point Resort & Spa in Bonita Springs boasts 82,500 square feet of newly renovated meeting space. Components include 30 meeting rooms and a 14,040-square-foot ballroom for 1,500 guests.
Marriott Sanibel Harbour Resort & Spa offers a stunning setting for Florida getaways. Nestled on 85 lush acres overlooking Sanibel and Captiva islands, the luxury property has 45,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor meeting space, many of which have lovely verandas and perfect Gulf views.
‘Tween Waters Island Resort on Captiva Island has 138 guest rooms and 12,000 square feet of indoor event and meeting space for groups of up to 150. The historic Old Captiva House restaurant onsite is available for dining and catering. Set sail and celebrate your special event with Captiva Cruises through a well-appointed, first-class service touring the local area along the Roosevelt Channel for island hopping or a sunset cruise.
The brand new 254-room Margaritaville Beach Resort Fort Myers Beach is expected to debut later this year with banquet space and five restaurants, the VCB notes. Another new build, the Hampton Inn & Suites in downtown Fort Myers, is scheduled to open in June.
For something even more unique, the Edison and Ford Winter Estates on the Caloosahatchee River are sure to please. Located next door to each other, these winter homes of two of America’s greatest innovators create a joint complex that includes a botanical garden and a museum with 15,000 square feet of exhibit space available for events. The newly restored Caretaker’s House onsite is another excellent venue for small meetings, cocktail receptions, and luncheons.
Fort Lauderdale, Broward County
Website – VisitLauderdale.com; Social media – @VisitLauderdale
Offering 24 miles of beaches, 300 miles of waterways, 3,000 hours of sunshine each year, and an array of sophisticated luxuries and cosmopolitan delights, Fort Lauderdale has long been a top choice for meeting and event planners. The region includes 31 cities and towns, eight distinct beach communities, and 38,000 hotel rooms.
“As Florida’s most inclusive and diverse destination, Greater Fort Lauderdale welcomes everyone under the sun to our vibrant and accessible community,” says Mike Pouey, senior vice president for group and convention sales for Visit Lauderdale.
Top hotels and venues include the 1,000-room Diplomat Hollywood Beach Resort in Hollywood. The hotel—recently sold to new owners for $835 million—features 209,000 square feet of meeting space and 63 meeting rooms. The largest area, the 50,100-square-foot exhibit hall, can hold 5,000 people. The Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Hollywood has 1,271 guest rooms and 120,000 square feet of meeting space. The property recently constructed a new $1.5 billion guitar hotel tower and has undergone other expansions.
The Westin Fort Lauderdale Beach Resort has 37,460 square feet of meeting and event space and 14 event rooms and can fit a capacity of 950 people in its largest area.
AAA Four Diamond Margaritaville Hollywood Beach Resort features 369 guest rooms and 30,000 square feet of combined indoor and outdoor event space. The resort’s 10,000-square-foot Compass Rose Ballroom is divisible into four sections. The ballroom accommodates up to 680 classroom-style and 850 at banquet rounds.
Pelican Grand Beach Resort recently spent $7 million on guest rooms renovations and offers 10,150 square feet of oceanfront meeting and event space. The property includes a full-service spa, the Ocean View Ballroom and Terrace, and the Atlantic Ballroom and Terrace.
For future meetings and growth, the Greater Fort Lauderdale/Broward County Convention Center is undergoing upgrades and expansions of its venue space and guest accommodations. The project should be finished in spring 2025 and includes enlarging the exhibit hall to create 350,000 square feet of contiguous exhibit space, adding a new 65,000-square-foot ballroom, and constructing a new hotel, the 800-room Omni Fort Lauderdale. The hotel, slated to open in 2026, will feature 120,000 square feet of indoor/outdoor meeting space and exclusive dining, retail, and spa amenities.
The 189-room Four Seasons Fort Lauderdale Beach offers 12,900 square feet of meeting space. In the last two years, three new A.C. Hotels by Marriott—Fort Lauderdale Airport, Sawgrass, and Fort Lauderdale Beach—added 519 guest rooms and more than 7,400 square feet of additional meeting space to the area. Pier Sixty-Six Resort, a South Florida hotel icon for more than 50 years, is reopening in the fall of 2024 with significant upgrades and additions. The resort will have 395 guest rooms, suites, villas, and 42,000 square feet of indoor/outdoor meeting and event spaces. Other amenities include a marina with 164 deep-water slips, Marina Promenade with shopping and dining, outdoor bars, lounges, signature dining venues, and more.
Getting between Miami, Aventura, Fort Lauderdale, Boca Raton, and West Palm Beach has gotten easier thanks to Brightline. The eco-friendly, high-speed trains whisk passengers between these key cities. A new line linking Miami and Orlando is scheduled to open this year.
Greater Miami & The Beaches
MiamiandBeaches.com; @MiamiandBeaches
Fresh from a $620 million renovation and expansion, the Miami Beach Convention Center (MBCC) features nearly 500,000 square feet of exhibit space, a new 60,000-square-foot Grand Ballroom, up to 84 breakout rooms, a 20,000-square-foot rooftop specialty space, and nine acres of green space that can serve as incremental event space. The MBCC recently received LEED Silver certification.
Restaurants, a botanical garden, entertainment, and a beach within walking distance surround the Miami Beach Convention Center District. A new MBCC headquarters hotel, the 800-room Grand Hyatt Miami Beach, will open in late 2025 and connect to the meeting venue via an elevated sky bridge.
Miami’s second major event venue, the Miami Convention Center, is situated downtown adjacent to the Hyatt Regency Miami and within walking distance of Bayside Marketplace. The facility has 34 meeting rooms, including a 444-seat auditorium and a 117-seat lecture hall, and can accommodate from 20 to 5,000 attendees in various configurations. Yet another convention center option in Miami is the recently redesigned Miami Airport Convention Center (MACC). Adjacent to Miami International Airport, the MACC features 172,000 square feet of meeting, conference, and trade show space. This includes a 29,000-square-foot social catering ballroom and 100,000 square feet of exhibition and function space. The MACC adjoins the DoubleTree by Hilton Miami Airport & Convention Center, which features 24,160 square feet of meeting space.
Miami’s traditional hotels with meeting space include the 1,504-room Fontainebleau Miami Beach boasting 200,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor event space, and the 415-room Eden Roc, with 70,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor meeting space. For meetings with a side of golf, the 650-acre Trump National Doral Miami has five 18-hole championship golf courses for golfers of every skill level. The resort completed a $250-million renovation, which includes the restoration and expansion of 100,000 square feet of event space, including technology upgrades and the creation of a beautifully detailed 7,200-square-foot ballroom and an 8,000-square-foot terrace atop the main clubhouse with a scenic overlook.
Recent hotel openings include the 242-room Loews Coral Gables Hotel, just four blocks from Miami’s iconic Miracle Mile. The new property features more than 30,000 square feet of function space, including the 9,000-square-foot Alhambra ballroom that holds up to 850 guests for receptions.
The AAA Four Diamond Hilton Aventura Miami offers 208 guest rooms and nearly 8,500 square feet of event space, including seven meeting rooms and a 4,800-square-foot space.
The Palm Beaches
Website – ThePalmBeaches.com; Social media – @PalmBeachesFl
The 350,000-square-foot Palm Beach County Convention Center (PBCCC) features a 100,000-square-foot exhibit hall that can hold 6,650 for banquets, a 22,000-square-foot ballroom, and 21,000 square feet of flexible breakout space. The convention center connects via walkway to the 400-room Hilton West Palm Beach, which offers 31,066 square feet of event space and holds up to 1,200 guests seated theater style. Other hotels within walking distance include the 353-room Marriott West Palm Beach, with 20,361 square feet of event space, and the 150-room Canopy by Hilton, with 7,000 square feet of event space. The convention center area is steps from shopping, dining, and entertainment in Rosemary Square.
For even more options, particularly for gatherings of more than 800, the Boca Raton Citywide Collection, known as “the Bocawide,” is a top spot for meetings, conventions, and trade shows. Featuring more than 150,000 square feet of flexible meeting space and more than 1,500 guest rooms at four hotels, the Bocawide is accessible via walking paths, branded electric vehicles, or trolleys. Nearby, the 139-room Waterstone Resort & Marina has 8,500 square feet of unique indoor and outdoor meeting space for events of up to 125 guests. The 200-room Hyatt Place Boca Raton offers 6,000 square feet of meeting space and six meeting rooms and holds a capacity of 250 people in its largest meeting space, 2,880 square feet. The Boca Raton luxury resort offers diverse amenities, including the 80,000-square-foot Mizner Center, a 26,000-square-foot Grand Ballroom, and the 15,000-square-foot Royal Palm Ballroom.
Paradise Coast: Naples, Marco Island, Everglades
Website – ParadiseCoast.com; Social media – @ParadiseCoast
The Paradise Coast has three distinctive locations featuring everything from the luxury resorts, five-star dining, and upscale shopping in Naples to the sophisticated and quaint fishing village ambiance of Marco Island to the eco-adventures of the Everglades.
“Our destination is fully open and welcoming meeting attendees back to our beautiful resorts, restaurants, beaches, and outdoor activities. Meeting planners are continuously sold on making the Paradise Coast the setting for their events,” says Lisa Chamberlain, CMP, group sales manager of the Naples, Marco Island, Everglades CVB. The destination boasts 10,500 guest rooms and multiple venues for events.
The 809-room J.W. Marriot Marco Island Beach Resort features 120,000 square feet of spectacular indoor meeting space for up to 3,300 guests and an additional 500,000 square feet of beachfront space for up to 5,000 guests. Meanwhile, the 474-room Naples Grande Beach Resort features more than 80,000 square feet of flexible indoor and outdoor function space.
As it recovers and repairs damages caused by Hurricane Ian, the 189-room LaPlaya Beach & Golf Resort in Naples will reopen this summer. Meanwhile, the iconic Ritz-Carlton’s two Paradise Coast proprieties have other exciting developments. This summer, the Ritz-Carlton, Naples—equipped with 42,000 square feet of meeting space and 28 meeting rooms—will unveil new luxury suites, a new lobby and lobby bar, and three new dining outlets. Also new is the 4,000-square-foot Ritz-Carlton Club Lounge, featuring an exclusive cocktail bar and dramatic floor-to-ceiling ocean views.
Formerly known as the Ritz-Carlton Golf Resort Naples, The Ritz-Carlton Naples, Tiburón is also undertaking several new enhancements. These include new luxury pool cabanas, two new restaurants, and refurbished public areas and guest rooms. The resort has 16,500 square feet of event space and will finish its upgrades in 2024.
Paradise Coast group outings and offsite events will get even more interesting this fall when Seafair, the “Megayacht Experience,” sets sail. Based out of the Marco Island Yacht Club and Naples City Dock, the 228-foot luxury vessel will be the first megayacht venue designed specifically for corporate and private catered events for up to 600 guests.
Port St. Lucie, Fort Pierce, St. Lucie County
Website – VisitStLucie.com; Social media – @VisitStLucie
Along Florida’s Treasure Coast, about 60 miles north of Palm Beach, the Port St. Lucie area offers fishing, boating and diving, numerous golf courses, spring training baseball games, botanical gardens, and museums.
Port St. Lucie has large and small event spaces suitable for meetings, conventions, trade shows or conferences. The Havert L. Fenn Center in Fort Pierce is a multi-use facility with six meeting rooms and a 22,700-square-foot main exhibit hall. The MidFlorida Credit Union Event Center in Port St. Lucie has space for a wide variety of events and can seat up to 1,200 for meetings or up to 700 for banquets, with indoor and outdoor pre- and post-function space. At Port St. Lucie Botanical Gardens, a 4,100-square-foot glass-walled pavilion can accommodate up to 200 people for a meeting or up to 375 for a reception.
For teambuilding or excursions, PGA Village Golf Club has three championship courses and a six-hole family short course. The Hilton Garden Inn at PGA Village has 130 guest rooms and seven meeting rooms to accommodate up to 100 guests.
In nearby Stuart, the Marriott Hutchinson Island Beach Resort, Golf & Marina offers more than 30,000 square feet of event space with 21 meeting rooms and 274 guest rooms in the original hotel and an oceanfront tower with condominium-style lodging.
Other hotels with small event spaces include Homewood Suites by Hilton at Tradition, Courtyard Hutchinson Island, and Courtyard by Marriott Port St. Lucie.
Punta Gorda, Englewood Beach
Website – PureFlorida.com; Social media – @RealPureFlorida
Punta Gorda-Englewood Beach is a charming corner of southwest Florida well-suited for gatherings of up to 400 people.
“In this era of planners and attendees searching for new and unique destinations with opportunities to connect with nature
and incorporate health and wellness into
their programs, Punta Gorda/Englewood Beach stands out,” says Jeff Berg, senior sales manager of meetings and conventions for the Punta Gorda/Englewood Beach CVB. “With the opening of Sunseeker Resort Charlotte Harbor on the horizon, we’ll soon be able to complement that with over 100,000 square feet of meeting space, more than 2,500 hotel rooms, and excellent offsite venues and attractions available throughout the destination.”
Sunseeker is scheduled to open this year as Florida’s latest luxury resort. The resort will span 22 waterfront acres and offer 785 guest rooms, 20 original food and beverage options, 18 holes of golf, and two pools. Other components include more than 55,000 square feet of event space with a main ballroom, junior ballroom, two executive boardrooms, 12 meeting rooms, and an ideation suite with three separate breakout rooms. The property also will have a dedicated banquet kitchen.
The Four Points Hotel by Sheraton recently added poolside event space with the construction of a new 3,500-square-foot Tiki bar structure which will hold much larger groups and receptions. The Four Points is also going through a complete renovation of all guest rooms; the project is scheduled for completion by late 2023. Meanwhile, the independently owned Wyvern Hotel in downtown Punta Gorda recently renovated all 63 guest rooms, updated its rooftop and pool area, and expanded the wine cellar. The Wyvern has a spacious conference room for up to 50 guests and a full-service restaurant that provides onsite catering.
Downtown Punta Gorda’s 44,000-square-foot Charlotte Harbor Event and Conference Center features 20,000 square feet of meeting and event space, accommodating 112 exhibit booths or 1,517 delegates seated theater-style. The facility also has 8,500 square feet of public concourse space and meeting rooms.
Sarasota
Website – VisitSarasota.com; Social media – @VisitSarasotaCounty
Sarasota has 37 hotels, 4,900 guest rooms, and 110,000 square feet of meeting space, an ideal setting for small to mid-sized groups. The 294-room Hyatt Regency Sarasota includes 17,115 square feet of event space and 17 meeting rooms. On Sarasota Bay, the Ritz-Carlton, Sarasota, has 266 guest rooms, 35,000 square feet of meeting space, and
14 meeting rooms. Its largest meeting space is 19,800 square feet and can accommodate 1,000 guests. In the Arts District, the Westin Sarasota features 12,131 square feet of event space and can accommodate 520 people seated theater style in its largest space.
Sarasota offers numerous unique venues varying in style and atmosphere. The Circus Arts Conservatory is a multipurpose circus arena with a permanent Big Top tent with 15,000 square feet of event space to accommodate up to 400 people banquet style and more than 1,700 theater style. The venue’s Grand Foyer holds up to 1,500 people. Groups might pair their event with a performance or give attendees a feel for circus life with trapeze and tightrope lessons.
The John & Mable Ringling Museum of Art—known as The Ringling—was established in 1927 for the people of Florida as the legacy of one of the famed Ringling brothers and his wife. Located on Sarasota Bay, the picturesque grounds include the Museum of Art, the Circus Museum, the Asian Art Center, and Ringling’s historic mansion, Ca’ d’Zan. Outdoor space is available to groups and includes The Museum of Art Courtyard, which fits up to 800.
The Big Cat Habitat & Gulf Coast Sanctuary sits on 10 acres and can accommodate up to 1,500 people for events and has onsite catering and bar services available. The property also offers animal encounters, demonstrations, and private tours. The Sarasota Classic Car Museum holds 100 vintage cars and offers indoor and outdoor event space. The museum fits 300 guests banquet style and 500 guests cocktail style.
