Winter Hot Spots: Great Places In the South To Escape Winter’s Chill

By T. WAYNE WATERS

Temperatures continue to rise all over the nation, so it might be difficult right now to think about escaping winter’s icy grip. But winter will come and it’s the prime time for business meetings in many Southern destinations, where mild temperatures, reasonable rates and the prospect of no mosquitos (not to mention no snow) draw meeting-goers toward Southern latitudes.

In the South, planners are fortunate to have many great locations for keeping Ol’ Man Winter at bay. Looking ahead to the cold days of winter, ConventionSouth has picked out a nice-’n’-toasty mix of hot spots highly suited for winter meetings: a couple of dependable big city go-tos; a few medium sized destinations that might not be foremost in mind; and a few smaller destinations with surprising meeting and recreation profiles.

From inside the historic, hot-blooded heart of Texas, Ol’ San Antone beckons winter meeting participants. Spanish Colonial missions, including the famous Alamo, offer interesting and unique adventures outside the meeting venues. At the Alamo, originally built in the mid-18th century, guided tours and history talks are entertaining and informative. Special-event space is available at Alamo Hall, a converted 1922 firehouse and the only indoor event center within the Alamo walls, which also features adjoining outdoor event space.

Almost as iconic for San Antonio as the Alamo, the city’s extraordinary River Walk is lined with all types of restaurants, bars, art galleries and exceptional shopping. It’s as fine a city stroll as you’re ever likely to find. For a real treat, take a narrated River Walk riverboat tour or arrange a dinner served on a private barge! Also, some of San Antonio’s best festivals take place during the winter season, including the sensational Luminaria, an evening public arts festival, held in late October.

(Photo: River Walk — Credit: San Antonio CVB)

Located just 10 miles south of downtown Houston, Pearland is the fastest-growing city in the  Houston region and a great hub-and-spoke spot not only for H-Town but for the entire Texas Gulf Coast region. It’s home to a University of Houston satellite campus, 11 major brand hotels and several small meeting spaces at several event/conference centers. Pearland also offers three golf venues. The little city has more than 175 acres of parks and miles of walking, hiking, jogging and bike trails.

Pearland’s great winter weather allows it to offer a year-’round edible trail with information signage that makes for a pleasant group outing. Situated along Pearland’s Connectivity Trail from Centennial Park and continuing along Mary’s Creek, the fruit trail provides delicious kumquats, persimmons, jujubes, avocados and pomegranates during late fall and early winter. Pumello (or pomelo), and grapefruit are ripe for picking during late winter.

Offering wonderful indoor attractions—including two major museums, several intriguing

political history sites and a first-class performing arts venue—Baton Rouge also pulls visitors outside, even in winter, to enjoy its Rural Life Museum and its zoo. Affiliated with Louisiana State University, The Rural Life Museum is a 320-acre outdoor museum where a collection of 32 buildings and thousands of artifacts demonstrate and interpret the 19th-century culture of Louisiana and the lower Mississippi River Valley. It has been called “one of the Top 10 outdoor museums in the world” by The British Museum of London.

For a little less culture and more pure fun, try BREC’s Baton Rouge Zoo. The Baton Rouge Recreation and Park Commission of East Baton Rouge Parish attraction sits on 147 landscaped acres about 15 minutes north of downtown and is home to more than 1,800 animals. Best of all, the entire zoo can be rented during the evening!

There aren’t too many places that are better to be in the dead of winter than a city situated at the head of a bay in an inlet of the Gulf of Mexico. One of the most arresting sites in Mobile is the USS Alabama, docked on the bay at Battleship Memorial Park. The battleship, last in duty during World War II, measures 680 feet from stem to stern, displaces more than 44,500 tons, and packs some huge guns. Individuals and groups may take self-guided tours of the behemoth or the ship may be rented for special events, with catered meals served onboard. Also at the memorial park: a WWII-era submarine, nearly 30 military aircraft, various other vintage military equipment and memorials.

Alternatively, the magnificent Bellingrath Gardens in Theodore, Ala., about a half-hour southeast of Mobile, offers 65 acres of year-’round floral enjoyment. Bellingrath’s display of cascading chrysanthemums is one of the largest in the U.S. and is on display well into the autumn. From Thanksgiving to Christmas, more than 3 million lights are on display at the gardens in the much-heralded Bellingrath Gardens and Home’s Magic Christmas in Lights. This far south, a variety of colorful camellias put on their own stunning show through the coldest months of winter. (Photo: Bellingrath Gardens —  Credit: Mobile Bay CVB)

Special Note:

The GulfQuest/National Maritime Museum of the Gulf of Mexico is slated to open in Mobile sometime in 2015.

Jax is a great wintertime locale with agreeable weather throughout the winter. It offers the variety of meeting spaces, hotels and attractions you’d expect of a sizable city, as well as plenty of great year-’round, group-friendly activities. Part of Florida’s Golf Coast, Jacksonville is a golf haven, with more than 1,220 holes and 70 courses, ranging from those at plush, oceanside resorts to popular public courses. Many offer lessons and workshops all year long.

Another grand wintertime activity available in Jax is the three-hour guided kayak ecotour in the Timucuan Preserve Estuary. Groups can select from a half-dozen Kayak Amelia tours including the Marsh Tour, which follows Simpson Creek between Big Talbot and Little Talbot Island State Parks. Along the way, you’ll be sure to see some coastal critters and hear about the salt marsh ecosystem as well as local history.

(Photo: Kayak Eco Tour Credit: Ryan Ketterman/Visit Jacksonville)

Besides uncommonly great weather year-’round, the Tampa Bay area offers lots of maritime mirth in the wintertime. It’s situated on the west coast of Florida near the Gulf of Mexico, with the Hillsborough River running alongside Tampa, the area’s major metropolis. This mid-sized city, known as one of the most affordable locales for a business meeting, also boasts Busch Gardens Tampa, The Florida Aquarium and Tampa’s Lowry Park Zoo, just to name a few popular attractions. One special enterprise, eBoats Tampa, offers guided tours, such as the business-minded Insider’s Tour and the picturesque Sunset Cruise, as well as self-driven excursions. The electric boats are very quiet, comfort able, easy to operate and conveniently located at the Tampa Convention Center Docks.