florida | Entertainment Agency | Corporate Event Entertainment

Middle East in demand at AIBTM 2014

June 09, 2014· · tags: Americas Incentive, Business Travel & Meetings Exhibition, Egypt, florida, Jordan, Middle East events, Oralndo, Qatar and Morocco, the UAE

Middle Eastern destinations and suppliers will be in strong demand at the Americas Incentive, Business Travel & Meetings Exhibition (AIBTM) in Orlando, Florida, in June. The three-day show, one of the primary meetings events in the whole of the Americas, is set to confirm the upswing in the region’s meetings business, with 3,000 expected visitors and more than 18,000 prescheduled appointments – a 20 percent increase on last year. For the Middle East, the numbers represent the opportunity of securing an increasing share of business from North America. Post-show research in 2013 revealed that Hosted Buyers wanted a greater North African and Middle Eastern exhibitor presence at AIBTM 2014, with Egypt, the UAE, Jordan, Qatar and Morocco singled out as destinations of genuine interest. Of the buyers polled, 60 percent said they placed orders in excess of US$600,000 as a direct result of their participation at the 2013 show. In advance of AIBTM 2014, meetme spoke with Michael Lyons, Show Director, Reed Travel Exhibitions (RTE), to understand how Middle Eastern destinations can best position themselves to capitalise on this interest. What can you tell us about the growing popularity of the Middle East as a […]
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U.S. Hotel Openings 2014: Meeting Properties to Watch

December 11, 2013· · tags: Colorado, Corporate Meetings, florida, hotel, Hotel openings, las vegas, Meeting Properties, new york, Ohio, Streamsong Resort, USA, Washington DC

Whether you’re looking for a new home for a sun-loving incentive group, a brand-spanking-new ballroom in downtown D.C., or a sure-to-be-hot luxury boutique in Vegas, 2014 is going to be a great year to book meeting space. Here are 15 properties opening in the coming year—new construction and major reflaggings—that meeting planners will want to keep an eye on. Streamsong Resort Streamsong, Fla. • 216 guest rooms • 29,100 square feet of indoor meeting space Opening January 19 A new central Florida golf and meetings destination, Streamsong Resort will open its main lodge January 19. Located southwest of Tampa and north of Ft. Myers near Fort Meade in Polk County, the lakeside, 16,000-acre property features two golf courses—Streamsong Red and Streamsong Blue—that have already won acclaim from GOLF magazine. Built on 2,000 acres of sand dunes—some 75 feet high—left over from an old mining operation, the hilly, sandy courses are unlike any other in Florida. Group space at the property includes 24,600 square feet in the lodge, 4,500 square feet of banquet space in the clubhouse, and 40,000 square feet in outdoor venues, including a rooftop terrace. Recreational activities include sporting clays, bass fishing, tennis, an […]
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Top convention destinations: Orlando, Chicago, Las Vegas

August 22, 2013· · tags: Chigago, convention center, corporate events, destination, florida, las vegas, Nevada, orlando, USA

Orlando, Las Vegas – and National Harbor, Md. Those cities are among the top 50 destinations in the USA this year for meetings and corporate events, according to Cvent, a technology company that connects event planners with over 200,000 venues. Looking at its booking data from July 2012 to June 2013, the company found that Orlando, followed by Chicago and Las Vegas were the top go-to spots. But the list also included several new entrants, such as National Harbor, Md., Coronado, Calif., and Naples, Fla. What we see is that things shift around based on how hotels and cities invest to make the cities more attractive . . . in a very competitive market,” says Eric Eden, Cvent’s vice president of marketing. Out-of-town corporate events and meetings slowed down during the economic downturn when companies were closely watching their purse strings, but they’ve begun to rebound in large part because they are viewed as key to networking and education, Eden says. Read More
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Theme Park Inflation: Universal Orlando Becomes First to Cross $90 Admission Mark

May 23, 2013· · tags: florida, theme park, Universal Orlando, USA, Walt Disney WOrld

It’s become an annual springtime tradition. Each year around Memorial Day, some theme park—likely in central Florida—jacks up ticket prices by a few bucks, prompting the competition to follow suit with their own price hikes. This year, like last, it’s Universal Studios Orlando leading the charge. Toward the end of May 2012, the company raised its single-day admission to $88, up from $85, making Universal Studios Orlando the most expensive theme park in the U.S. Within weeks, Walt Disney World took over that title by boosting its one-day base pass to $89. That’s the adult price; kids ages 3 to 9 catch a $6 price break, with a $83 single-day ticket. This week, Universal again was out in front of the seasonal ticket price hikes, raising its single-day, single-park adult admission to $92 plus tax. The child one-day ticket now starts at $86. Read more
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Orlando theme parks get set to launch cool, new summer attractions

May 21, 2013· · tags: 3D, Antartica, Beyond Summer 2013, california, florida, George Kalogridis, Monstrous Summer, orlando, pixar, Seaworld, The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, theme parks, Universal Creative, Universal Orlando, USA, Walt Disney WOrld

There is no sound quite like that of children expressing their delight for the arrival of summer – except maybe when they’re told they’re going to Orlando for vacation. The number one tourist destination in the U.S. continues to draw tens of thousands of visitors to its many attractions, the most popular of which are theme parks. This year the big three – Walt Disney World, Universal Orlando, and SeaWorld Orlando – are prepared to entertain crowds with exciting new experiences of monstrous proportions that are definitely more than meets the eye. 1 SeaWorld Orlando – Antarctica SeaWorld Orlando will soon debut a “cool” new way to beat that heat inside Antarctica: Empire of the Penguin, a new “realm” that’s the theme park’s largest expansion in the company’s 50-year history. Featuring an iceberg-themed area, restaurant, and high-tech new immersive trackless ride that drops temperatures in the 30’s (colder than Florida gets in the winter), Antarctica will certainly turn heads when it officially debuts on May 24. The attraction is topped with 50-foot peaks that aims to bring guests to the South Pole – a far stretch from Orlando’s tropical climate. The Empire of the Penguin ride will be filled with […]
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Universal Orlando announces Harry Potter theme park expansion

May 13, 2013· · tags: amusement park, disney, entertainment, florida, Harry Potter, J.K. Rowling, orlando, theme park, Univsersal Studio, USA, Wizarding World

Disney Theme Parks To Stay Open 24 Hours Straight

April 29, 2013· · tags: Disney world, entertainment, florida, orlando, summer, theme park, USA, walt disney

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Disney will celebrate the start of the summer season by keeping three theme parks open for 24 hours straight on May 24. The announcement was made Thursday night in Orlando by Walt Disney World President George Kalogridis. Read More
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