Destination Guides
Wisconsin 2012
by Kate MulcroneJanuary 1, 2012
Why Here?
Wisconsin
is known as America's Dairyland, but there's a whole lot more to this
state than milk and cheese. From sailing along the shores of Lake
Michigan to taking in the urban delights of Milwaukee, plenty of
diversions will keep attendees happy outside the meeting room.
Start Paddling
Wisconsin contains 7,446 streams and rivers. End to end they would stretch 26,767 miles, more than enough to circle the Earth at the equator.
Milwaukee
The 119-room Courtyard by Marriott Milwaukee Airport opened last month. The new-build features an ultramodern lobby and two meeting rooms, each holding up to 50 people.
The Courtyard Milwaukee Downtown
completed renovations to its lobby and dining spaces this past June.
The hotel's traditional front desk has been replaced with separate
"welcome pedestals," and guests now can connect to free wireless
Internet throughout the lobby. The property has 169 guest rooms and
offers a total of 2,649 square feet of meeting space divided into four
rooms.
The 149-room Four Points by Sheraton Milwaukee North
also completed renovations in 2011. The property updated its 7,500
square feet of meeting space spanning seven rooms (the largest of which
measures 3,872 square feet), along with its restaurant, prefunction
space and front desk area. Next up is a guest-room renovation, to take
place later this year.
The Hilton Milwaukee City Center
completed an $11.5 million renovation in December 2010 that touched upon
its 730 guest rooms, meeting spaces, lobby and fitness center. In all,
the hotel has more than 34,000 square feet of meeting space, which
includes four ballrooms and 18 meeting rooms. In 2011, the property was
awarded AAA Four Diamond status.
The Ramada Plaza Milwaukee Airport
renovated its 160 guest rooms in 2010. The property features 11,000
square feet of meeting space, including a corporate boardroom, and
offers complimentary high-speed wireless Internet access.
At the Grand Geneva Resort & Spa,
about an hour's drive southwest from Milwaukee, extensive renovations
were completed in 2010. All 355 guest rooms were outfitted with new
carpeting, draperies, bedding and furniture, as well as refrigerators
and 37-inch LCD flat-screen televisions. Bathrooms were remodeled with
new fixtures, granite vanities and high-tech mirror-TVs that disappear
when turned off.