The Return of Meetings & Events: Better and More Meaningful Than Ever

The COVID-19 pandemic brought the meetings and events industry to an abrupt halt in early 2020, leaving in-person conferences, trade shows, and corporate gatherings canceled or postponed indefinitely. Now, as restrictions have eased, meetings and events are resurging at a fast pace; however, they look slightly different.

Driven by purpose and value, today's meetings and events landscape focuses on experiential elements that enable meaningful connections. Destination events, in particular, allow attendees to fully immerse themselves in the history, culture, cuisine, and natural beauty of a locale for a distinctive shared experience.

As leaders in luxury hospitality and curators of authentic local experiences, properties like Marriott International's Caribbean and Latin America resorts and hotels know that human connections and cultural immersion are what differentiate destination events. With careful planning centered on attendee experiences, personalized programming, and proper protocols, in-person gatherings can continue rebuilding stronger than ever.

Thoughtful Design with Human Connection at the Core

Planning a thoughtfully designed event requires strategy and collaboration to drive deeper engagement, which is accomplished by focusing on the human experience at the core. By working together, property hospitality teams and meeting and events planners can curate a tailored experience for attendees, making the most of a destination to turn meetings into memories.

Today's attendees expect events to be purposeful and meaningful, not just informational. The goal is to move beyond standard conference rooms through community interactions and creative programs that connect attendees more intimately with regional foods, arts, residents, and environments. Hotel and resort's onsite property teams are often locals and expected to lend their expertise to creative experiences and engaging local offerings that will immerse attendees in the essence of the locale.

Venues and settings can also play a role and be reimagined to spur networking and foster collaboration, from outdoor welcome receptions to lounge-style breakouts room with unique local activities that can boost engagement. Other ways to drive engagement include excursions highlighting the destination for incentives or hands-on volunteer initiatives that allow attendees to give back to the locale. These thoughtful designs focused on facilitating human connections resulting in active participation, engagement, and enthusiasm.

Driving Engagement Through Local Immersion

For destination events, incorporating local flavor and immersive experiences is key. It's vital that programming incorporates authenticity and cultural connections – introducing a sense of the place, history, traditions, voices, skills, and ecology that make it special. This sense of community is a primary benefit of taking an event to a new region. Unique touches tailored to the destination transform meetings into unforgettable memories.

Interactive elements like cooking demonstrations of regional cuisine, mini-tours of cultural landmarks, exhibits displaying local artisan work, language lessons, or traditional crafts workshops bring the locale to life. These breakout sessions expose attendees to the destination's essence and culture.

Hotel event teams are indispensable partners that can bring a destination to life by infusing local color into every aspect of an event, from food and decor to entertainment and expert speakers. The local team can provide insider knowledge, environments, and resources to help planners craft inclusive experiences that resonate uniquely with each guest. Attendees should feel connected to the place and culture beyond just the meeting room, with memorable immersive moments that resonate deeply.

One great way to incorporate local immersion is through gastronomic experiences. At Solaz, A Luxury Collection Resort in Los Cabos, the property hosted an immersive culinary event called "The Rediscover Baja Experience" that celebrates the essence of Baja California's rich gastronomic. This bespoke event for over 160 attendees spotlighted indigenous ingredients from across Baja, California, through interactive displays and regionally inspired dishes crafted by Solaz's talented culinary team. As guests tasted their way through the event, there was a newfound appreciation for Baja's bounty, culinary artisanship, and cultural richness. By authentically showcasing the destination's ingredients, traditions, and culture, Solaz provided the attendees with lasting memories and brought the essence of the locale to life for guests through the local cuisine and connection.

Another illustration of how customized regional activities enthrall attendees is the recent incentive trip hosted by Zadún, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve, for E.J. Gallo's leadership group. The hotel's destination was the perfect backdrop to celebrate the achievements while immersing the group in Mexican culture. Their itinerary included a visit to an artisan boutique filled with unique handicrafts and textiles across Mexico, participating in a hands-on cooking class in Zadún's gardens to explore the flavors of the region, and a lavish Mexican-themed awards dinner that showcased the diversity of cuisine and heritage. By crafting interactive experiences with the art, tastes, and traditions unique to the place, Zadún promoted the locale while engaging the group, turning the event into an unforgettable cultural encounter and a memorable trip for the group.

Technology To Expand Local Impact and Reach

While planning an immersive onsite experience is important at a destination, hybrid/virtual options should be available, whether it's to expand local impact or audience reach. Hotel technology upgrades have been instrumental in extending destination events' reach and impact during recent virtual pivots. Hotels and resorts have invested in production studios, onsite broadcasting, enhanced WiFi, and streaming equipment to empower planners to share local immersion experiences virtually with in-person and online audiences. Elements can include:

• Live/recorded virtual venue and city tours accompanied by guides
• Streamed visits to cultural sites, landmarks, and neighborhoods
• Pop-up concerts and performances from local artists
• Digital field trips to farms, wineries, and artisan workshops
• Live Q&As and chats with residents on local traditions
• Interactive polls, quizzes, and surveys on local knowledge

This expansive access allows more global attendees to experience a destination's essence virtually when unable to join onsite. Hybrid tech unlocks broader yet personalized engagement to ensure in-person and remote attendees benefit from the content.

Hotel event teams at Marriott International's Caribbean and Latin America have been trained extensively on leading hybrid event technology and are an excellent resource for meeting planners to rely on. Their expertise in managing the technical aspects allows planners to focus on driving engagement through creative content and using digital technology for local immersion. Especially for hybrid events, hotel event teams should assist with logistics so planners can devote their time and energy to crafting an immersive experience for all attendees.

In the heart of the breathtaking Cancun coastline, JW Marriott Cancun Resort & Spa hosted a conference that demonstrates how events can be elevated to create transformative experiences that blend technology, culture, and business. A client requested event support for the grand launch of its multinational company's new products while seamlessly blending technology with the natural beauty of the locality. Stepping up to the task, JW Marriott Cancun Resort & Spa used cutting-edge technology to create an immersive, multisensory experience for attendees. With video mapping and immersion view, attendees were transported into the client's origins-to-present journey.

The stage was set for an unforgettable Mayan-themed display that celebrated the company's new offerings and paid homage to the region's rich cultural heritage. The pinnacle was an interactive market matching products with their brand narratives through immersive video. Attendees were enveloped in the tale of the company's growth, understanding the roots of every product and its significance within a larger narrative. By leveraging technology to amplify sensory immersion, cultural storytelling, and attendee engagement, JW Marriott Cancun created a conference that transcended meetings to become a momentous, meaningful journey shaped by the intersection of innovation, purpose, and place.

As technology advances, hotels must continue evolving their services and capabilities to deliver next-level hybrid events that drive engagement, human connection, and business results. Collaborate closely with meetings and event planners to anticipate what technology can assist in executing a seamless, impactful experience for all attendees.

While the pandemic has changed the face of meetings and events, in-person events remain a standard practice for collaboration, relationship building, and unity. With innovation and creativity, hotels and planners are rising to the challenge - and transforming group business with heightened expertise and services tailored for the next generation of meaningful meetings, incentive programs, and cultural experiences. Destination hotels and resorts are ready, and we look forward to welcoming group business back and better than ever before.

Reprinted from the Hotel Business Review with permission from http://www.hotelexecutive.com/.