<B> Lauderdale Ups Meetings</B>
By Sue Lynn
Three Fort Lauderdale hotels--The Wyndham Resort and Spa, The Clarion Hotel and Marriott's Harbor Beach--are attempting to beef up their meetings business by becoming more attractive sites for meeting planners and offering discounted incentive packages in this shoulder season.
The Wyndham Resort and Spa (originally the Bonaventure Resort and Spa, followed by The Registry Resort and Spa), has a special Small Meeting Packages program in place through the end of this year. Some packages include a complimentary cocktail reception with hors d'oeuvres, accommodations, full breakfast, lunch and dinner, standard meeting rooms, standard audio visual equipment, and morning and afternoon coffee breaks.
Through December 1998, groups booking 25 or more rooms per night, with a minimum stay of two nights, will receive a complimentary cocktail hour with accompanying hors d'oeuvres and an upgrade to a suite for the meeting planner. Jan Tucker, director of sales and marketing, said the offer will resume again June 1 through September 30, 1999.
From low season to high season room rates range between $164 and $216, and $218 and $323, respectively.
Groups requiring 50 to 100 guest rooms, with a minimum of two nights, account for about 35 percent of the resort's total annual bookings, Tucker said.
The Wyndham Convention Center, which is connected to the hotel, has 45,000 square feet of meeting space. Twenty-five function rooms can accommodate anywhere from 16 to 725 people, and four boardrooms hold from 16 to 30 attendees. The Wyndham, a self-contained resort, has two 18-hole championship golf courses, clay tennis courts, five swimming pools, a world-class spa and 496 newly renovated guest rooms.
Marriott's Harbor Beach, a Fort Lauderdale resort directly on the ocean, is a 15-minute ride from Hollywood International Airport. The meeting-friendly hotel attributes about 50 percent of its total occupancy to corporate groups, with about 5 percent coming from incentive groups.
A total of 30,000 square feet of meeting space is divided among the Grand Ballroom, Caribbean Ballroom, two boardrooms, The Hall of Cities and a beachfront area where 20,000 square feet of outdoor terraces are available for parties, receptions and events. Meeting rooms hold from 23 to 1,000 attendees when set classroom style. Pre-assembly areas are suitable for exhibits, coffee breaks, cocktail receptions, registration and hospitality sections. The convention services department is available 24- hours a day to assist meeting planners with convention and meeting needs.
The hotel has its own on-site production company for themed events, and a full-time art director/production designer. A "Magician's Guide" is available to help planners arrange their meetings. Rates are negotiable, depending upon the meeting size and the requirements of the group. They range between $139 and $159 during low season and $329 and $369 in high season.
The Clarion Hotel on Hollywood Beach's Intracoastal Waterway is located directly across the street from the beach, between Fort Lauderdale and Miami Beach.
The hotel has 309 oversized rooms, 18,000 square feet of indoor/outdoor meeting space, breakout rooms that can accommodate small groups up to 724 people classroom style, Clarion Class room upgrades, free parking and a large selection of "All Day Meeting" packages.
Room rates vary throughout the year, and discounts can be negotiated for rooms when booking a group, according to Heather Holder, director of sales. The charge for meeting rooms depends upon time of year and meal functions.
"All Day Meeting" packages offer continental breakfast, lunch buffet and afternoon break. There are seven choices of lunch buffets for $29.95 plus service/tax, per person. Meeting room rental is waived with the "All Day Meeting" package.