Getting revved up for a meeting or other group function is easy in North Carolina, where beachfront, mountainside and upscale urban settings combine with all the amenities an association meeting planner could desire.
Associations will reap the benefits of everything from the latest technology to the warmest Southern hospitality and find themselves racing full speed ahead toward their goals.
Greater Charlotte: Accelerating Success
North Carolina's largest metropolitan area is Charlotte, a city that offers the perfect combination of attractions and activities, along with the added benefits of easy access and an ideal location.
Hotels with meeting space that have recently completed renovations in Charlotte include Le Meridien (formerly the Blake), which reopened following a multimillion-dollar transformation and, together with the Sheraton Charlotte Hotel, offers 55,000 square feet of event space. The Crowne Plaza Charlotte Executive Park also finished a $10 million renovation that includes its guest rooms, meeting space and public areas.
In uptown Charlotte, the Charlotte Convention Center is the core of the meetings scene, offering 850,000 square feet of total space and a number of green meeting initiatives. Also nearby is the 25,000-square-foot, open-air Pavilion at EpiCentre, which can host up to 2,000, and the adjacent Time Warner Cable Arena, which can provide space for up to 20,000 when it's not hosting the NBA's Hornets. The 1,020-seat Halton Theater at Central Piedmont Community College welcomes groups, as does ImaginOn, a center for learning and the arts that has 10 meeting rooms and two theaters.
Another choice is the North Carolina Blumenthal Performing Arts Center, with space for up to 2,100. A few miles east, the Park Expo & Conference Center has 224,000 square feet of exhibit space.
And it's hard to mention Charlotte without NASCAR coming to mind. The city is home to the NASCAR Hall of Fame, which features 40,000 square feet of exhibit space and a 278-seat theater. The entire venue can host up to 2,400.
Another local venue is the U.S. National Whitewater Center, located northwest of Charlotte-Douglas International Airport. The site offers a 2,400-square-foot conference center and a 1,400-square-foot Adventure Pavilion for up to 150. In Gastonia, just 15 miles west of the airport, the gold LEED-certified Gastonia Conference Center has 30,000 square feet of space.
Northeast of Charlotte, Cabarrus County is widely known as "The Racing Side of Charlotte." Fans flock to Concord to visit the Charlotte Motor Speedway, which offers two 23,000-square-foot infield event venues. Also on-site is the Speedway Club, which overlooks the track and has 13,000 square feet of event space. Nearby, the Embassy Suites Charlotte-Concord Golf Resort & Spa offers 308 guest rooms and is connected to the Concord Convention Center's 42,000 square feet of meeting space.
One mile away, the Hendrick Motorsports Museum & Team Store welcomes groups of up to 250, and west of the speedway is Speedpark Concord Mills, an amusement park with several meeting rooms. Also nearby is the $10 million Sea Life Charlotte-Concord Aquarium, which offers event space. Groups can also get up to speed at the Cabarrus Arena & Events Center, which can accommodate up to 7,900 people.
About 20 miles farther northwest is Mooresville, headquarters of Dale Earnhardt Inc., which offers event space for groups of up to 400. Also in town is the lakefront Mallard Head Country Club, with meeting space for up to 250 people and a championship golf course.
Continuing north, the area around Lake Norman includes the charming towns of Davidson, Huntersville and Cornelius, where the Pearl Wedding & Event Center offers more than 4,000 square feet of recently renovated event space. The area offers 19 hotels and venues that range from the Peninsula Yacht Club to Michael Waltrip Racing.
Sixty miles north of Charlotte, in Hickory, the Hickory Metro Convention Center offers 70,000 square feet of meeting space. For recreation, the Rock Barn Golf & Spa in nearby Conover has two championship golf courses, a spa, indoor-outdoor function space for up to 300 and guest rooms for up to 53 people.
Greater Asheville & the Blue Ridge Mountains: Sporting Southern Spirit
With its unique mix of businesses, and activities, not to mention the natural beauty of its Blue Ridge Mountains, it's no wonder meeting planners report high attendance levels in Asheville.
Groups visiting Asheville will find it easy to be civic-minded and environmentally friendly. The Asheville Convention & Visitors Bureau encourages visitors to contribute to local green initiatives through the Asheville Offset, a program working in conjunction with the Warren Wilson College that provides voluntourism efforts such as weatherizing the homes of low-income residents.
Groups holding meetings in the area include the North Carolina Department of Transportation, which hosted the annual meeting of the Southeastern Association of State Highway & Transportation Officials, with approximately 1,200 attendees. The Omni Grove Park Inn, which recently underwent a $25 million renovation, served as the headquarters hotel, though the group also employed the Renaissance, Aloft and Four Points by Sheraton hotels.
SASHTO worked with Accents on Asheville, a destination management company that "did an outstanding job of providing transportation between the hotels all day and for all external events such as lunches, dinners and tours," said Sandy Nance, the event's chairperson. "The attendees loved the Asheville area and hospitality of all the businesses. We would highly recommend it for a conference or meeting site."
The major venue in town is the 80,000-square-foot U.S. Cellular Center (formerly the Asheville Civic Center), which recently completed a multimillion renovation. The center includes the 7,200-seat ExploreAsheville.com Arena, 60,000 square feet of exhibit space, a banquet hall and the 2,431-seat Thomas Wolfe Auditorium.
Other downtown facilities include The Venue, which has more than 13,000 square feet of space; the 6.5-acre Pack Square Park, with spaces including a new pavilion; and, overlooking the park, Pack's Tavern has a ballroom for up to 350. The Asheville Art Museum offers space for up to 150. And the Asheville Masonic Temple welcomes events with a 250-seat theater and a 3,000-square-foot dining hall. For a change of pace, The Millroom at Asheville Brewing Company also hosts events.
On the north side of downtown, near the historic neighborhood of Montford, the Coleman Place Event & Conference Center offers 4,000 square feet of space. About four miles northwest of downtown, the Crest Center & Pavilion has space for up to 1,000. And at the University of North Carolina-Asheville, the Wilma M. Sherrill Center has 133,500 square feet of space and is home to the 3,800-seat Kimmel Arena.
On the south side of the city, the Asheville Event Centre has expanded by 10,000 square feet and offers space for up to 450 people. It also presents the weekly Blue Ridge Mountain Opry Show, a dinner theater perfect for visiting groups.
Groups can also meet at the grand Biltmore Estate. Built in 1895, the estate offers more than a dozen meeting facilities located amid its 8,000 acres. Planners might organize a networking event at the Biltmore's 3,000-square-foot historic barn or a dinner for up to 500 at a hilltop venue called Diana at Biltmore. Antler Hill Village offers exhibit space, a village green with live entertainment and is home to the Biltmore Winery. Guests can also stay overnight at the Biltmore's on-site inn and cottage. In addition, construction has started on the 209-room Village Hotel on Biltmore Estate, which is expected to open November 2015.
Other hotels scheduled to open this year include Hyatt Place Asheville and the Courtyard Asheville Airport. Hotel Indigo-Downtown Asheville has recently expanded its meeting space to accommodate 38 people (up from 14).
Asheville Regional Airport, 10 miles south of Asheville in Fletcher, offers nonstop routes to St. Petersburg and Fort Myers, Florida. Fletcher is also home to the Western North Carolina Agricultural Center. The center's renovated Davis Event Center is LEED-certified and offers space for up to 3,700 and a restaurant. The Ag Center has another half-dozen venues including the 5,000-square-foot Virginia C. Boone Mountain Heritage Building and the Expo Building, with 27,750 square feet of exhibit space.
About 14 miles north of Asheville, in Weaverville, the 500-acre Claxton Farm can host up to 150. In Stecoah, 80 miles west of Asheville, the Stecoah Valley Cultural Arts Center showcases Appalachian folk art and music and can host groups of up to 50. And about 18 miles east of Asheville, in Black Mountain, the 1,200-acre YMCA Blue Ridge Assembly offers overnight accommodations and meeting space for up to 800. Also in town is White Horse Black Mountain, a performance and events center with 4,400 square feet of space.
The Piedmont: High Priorities
One of North Carolina's most populous regions is the Piedmont, known for its green rolling mountains. In Winston-Salem, the most versatile option is the Winston-Salem Entertainment-Sports Complex, which runs seven event venues around town including the Dixie Classic Fairgrounds, with 40,000 square feet of exhibit space and a 3,500-seat auditorium; Bowman Gray Stadium, which can seat nearly 18,000; and the 15,000-seat Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum and 30,000-square-foot Coliseum Annex. Other venues include The Millennium Center with meeting spaces for up to 1,500, and The Milton Rhodes Center for the Arts with flexible function space. Just a short drive from downtown, WinMock at Kinderton offers more than 20,000 square feet of space in 13 distinct venues.
The downtown Twin City Quarter, home to the M.C. Benton Jr. Convention & Civic Center, a Marriott and an Embassy Suites, offers a total of 170,000 square feet of meeting space. For future planning, Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants has partnered with PMC Property Group to convert the R.J. Reynolds Building into a mixed-use property, including a boutique hotel, which will feature 175 rooms, 36 suites and more than 6,375 square feet of event space.
Twenty miles southeast is High Point, home of High Point University and Laurel University (formerly John Wesley College). High Point Plaza Hotel and Conference Center, the largest meeting space in the area, is undergoing some remodeling. Groups holding meetings in the area lately include the North Carolina State Elks Association, the North Carolina Reading Association and the Southern Building Material Association.
In Greensboro, the Joseph S. Koury Convention Center/Sheraton Greensboro Hotel at Four Seasons has a variety of meeting spaces and renovated guest rooms. The Greensboro Coliseum Complex offers spaces including the 23,500-seat Greensboro Coliseum, a 2,400-seat auditorium, the 167,000-square-foot Special Events Center and a 30,000-square-foot pavilion. Other choices include the Elm Street Center, with 21,500 square feet of meeting space; the Cultural Center at Festival Park, with 10,800 square feet of space; and the International Civil Rights Center & Museum, which can host up to 225. Eco-conscious visitors may want to stay at the platinum LEED-certified Proximity Hotel, which offers an event center for up to 250. Southwest, in Jamestown, the Castle McCulloch has 24,098 square feet of meeting space.
The main campus of the University of North Carolina is in Chapel Hill. Perhaps its best-known venue is the 300,000-square-foot Dean Smith Center, home to Tar Heels basketball and designed to seat up to 21,750. Other campus options include the 44,640-square-foot Memorial Hall, with 1,434 seats; the Carolina Club with 20,000 square feet of meeting space; the William & Ida Friday Center for Continuing Education, with 12,000 square feet of space; and the Rizzo Conference Center, with 20,000 square feet of space. Planners who want to book a green conference can do so at the 29,000-square-foot Education Center at the North Carolina Botanical Garden, which boasts the state's first platinum LEED-certified public building.
The area's newest hotel is the Hampton Inn & Suites/Chapel Hill-Carrboro, with more than 3,000 square feet of meeting space. Another half-dozen local hotels in the area have been renovated.
Twelve miles east, Durham is the home of Duke University. The 10,000-seat Durham Bulls Athletic Park is open for events and has finished a $19 million renovation. Just north of the park is the 2,700-seat Durham Performing Arts Center. The 55-acre Sarah P. Duke Gardens features a small amphitheater, and the Michael Krzyzewski Center for Athletic Excellence on Duke's west campus has 56,000 square feet of space.
Also in Durham is the 120,000-square-foot Durham Convention Center Complex, home to a newly renovated convention center with 44,000 square feet of event space; the Durham Armory, with a ballroom for up to 1,400; and the 1,016-seat Carolina Theatre. Other venues include the Museum of Life & Science Butterfly House, with 90,000 square feet of exhibit space; Fullsteam Brewery, which welcomes events of up to 200; and the gold LEED-certified Cotton Room, with 11,000 square feet of function space.
New on the hotel front is the Hilton Garden Inn/Durham-University Medical Center, with 128 rooms and meeting space for up to 150 people, an Aloft Hotel and a Residence Inn.
Farther south, in the state capital, Raleigh, the 500,000-square-foot Raleigh Convention Center is silver LEED-certified. Spaces include a 4,100-square-foot mezzanine and a 32,617-square-foot ballroom. Groups holding events at the convention center include the International Bluegrass Music Association's World of Bluegrass, International Agents Alliance and East Coast Gaming Conference.
Down the street, Duke Energy Center for the Performing Arts has four venues, the largest of which is the 2,263-seat Memorial Auditorium, with 80,000 square feet of space. Other sites include the 344-acre North Carolina State Fairgrounds, with more than 400,000 square feet of space; the 19,722-seat PNC Arena, home rink of the NHL's Hurricanes; and the Walnut Creek Amphitheatre, which can host up to 20,550. On the top floors of the downtown Wells Fargo Capitol Center, the City Club (formerly the Cardinal Club) has undergone a $2 million update and offers 23,000 square feet of space.
Artspace, a nonprofit visual arts center, can host up to 500, and the Marbles Kids Museum has 39,000 square feet of space as well as an IMAX Theatre. The North Carolina Museum of Art has indoor event space for up to 275 or outdoor space for up to 2,500, the North Carolina Museum of History welcomes groups of up to 500 and the Raleigh City Museum can host up to 150. The North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences can also host events for up to 1,550.
Several local parks add to the meetings scene. Mordecai Historic Park can accommodate up to 250. South of downtown, Lake Wheeler Park has outdoor spaces for up to 5,000. And northwest of the city, within William B. Umstead State Park, the Pavilions at the Angus Barn welcomes events of up to 400. Raleigh-Durham International Airport is adjacent and has a 22,000-square-foot venue.
Hotels slated to open this year include The Mayton Inn with 45 rooms, the 128-room Courtyard Marriott and Residence Inn, the 149-room Hilton Garden Inn Crabtree Valley and the 125-room Aloft-North Carolina State University.
West of the city, in Cary, the Koka Booth Amphitheatre in Regency Park can host up to 7,000. Twelve miles south, in Holly Springs, phase one of the North Main Athletic Complex opened last November with a 1,800-seat multi-sports stadium, soccer fields and tennis courts. Phase two is expected to be completed in May. In addition, the Holly Springs Cultural Center has a 184-seat theater, a conference center, an outdoor stage for up to 300 and a lobby for up to 120.
In Fayetteville, the Crown Center offers a 60,000-square-foot expo center, a 10,000-seat coliseum and three smaller event spaces. The 78-acre Cape Fear Botanical Gardens is a top off-site location for functions of up to 900.
The Pinehurst-Southern Pines-Aberdeen area is known as the "Home of American Golf," which makes it particularly popular for groups that include time on the links on the agenda. Hotels that have completed renovations in the area include the Country Club of Whispering Pines, Homewood Suites by Hilton and the Pinehurst Resort. In Southern Pines, the Weymouth Center for Arts & Humanities is home to the North Carolina Literary Hall of Fame and can accommodate group functions.
About 80 miles to the east is the city of Greenville, where the Greenville Convention Center is currently undergoing a $4.5 million expansion and renovation project, expected to finish in June. Once complete, the 32-acre Convention Center Campus, which includes three on-site hotels, (Hilton Greenville, Hampton Inn Greenville, Holiday Inn), will feature 87,500 square feet of meeting space, 35 breakout rooms, and three restaurants and bars. The 57,000-square-foot Greenville Convention Center will offer a 28,000-square-foot exhibit hall, three acres of flexible green space and five outdoor areas. Groups recently holding meetings in the area include North Carolina Association of Rescue & EMS, the North Carolina Retired Governmental Employees Association and the American Public Works Association.
Fifty miles south, in Lumberton, the Carolina Civic Center, a former movie theater now listed on the National Register of Historic Places, can host groups of up to 440. In nearby Pembroke, the Museum of the Native American Resource Center can host up to 70.
Coastal Getaways: Savoring the Seaside
Extending along some 300 miles of shoreline, the barrier islands that make up North Carolina's Outer Banks are a popular destination for anyone seeking the joys of seaside ambiance.
In the town of Duck, set on the northern end of the Outer Banks, the Sanderling Resort has undergone a major multimillion-dollar renovation, which included its Sanderling Event House, and meeting spaces have been updated and reconfigured to take advantage of the resort's location, increasing its dedicated space to 12,000 square feet.
New Bern, North Carolina's second-oldest city and the original state capital, is also the birthplace of Pepsi-Cola. Its main event venue is the 45,000-square-foot New Bern Riverfront Convention Center, which can host up to 1,350. More than 400 guest rooms are within walking distance. Other choices include the Sudan Shrine Center, with space for up to 900, and the BridgePointe Hotel & Marina, which offers meeting space for up to 280. Eighteen miles south, in Havelock, the multipurpose Havelock Tourist & Event Center has facilities for up to 1,300 and more than 550 guest rooms nearby. And in Atlantic Beach is the recently reopened DoubleTree by Hilton/Atlantic Beach Oceanfront.
Farther south, on a peninsula between the Cape Fear River and the Atlantic Ocean, is Wilmington, offering year-round access to three nationally recognized beach towns and a revitalized waterfront area. It's also home to nearly 8,000 hotel rooms and suites. Along the Riverwalk, the silver LEED-certified Wilmington Convention Center offers 107,000 square feet of event space, including a 30,000-square-foot exhibit hall and a 12,000-square-foot ballroom. The center's outdoor space includes a 12,000-square-foot waterfront lawn.
Other notable venues include the University of North Carolina-Wilmington, which offers more than 24,000 square feet of space; the New Hanover County Executive Development Center, with 8,200 square feet of space; the Coastline Conference & Event Center, with 10,150 square feet of space; and 128 South, which can host up to 250 in its 19th-century building and offers views of the Cape Fear River.
In September, the Cape Fear Community College Humanities & Fine Arts Center will open with a more than 1,500-seat performance hall that may also be used for meetings and events.
Other entertaining venues include the historic Thalian Hall, home to three event venues including a recently renovated, 546-seat main stage. Restoration efforts have also enhanced the antebellum Bellamy Mansion Museum, which offers more than 5,000 square feet of space on two floors. Battleship North Carolina, now permanently berthed in the city, is available for tours or events. And on the island of Wrightsville Beach, east of downtown, the expanded Lumina Hall can host conferences of up to 160 people.
Beauty & Bounty
Against a backdrop of natural beauty-sun-drenched seashores to verdant mountain peaks-groups are certain to fare well in North Carolina. And with a bounty of options available within its forward-thinking cities, there's nothing but promising choices at a meeting planner's disposal.