SAME BUT DIFFERENT
Travel to local cities with familiar names
PLANNERS + VENDORS = ?
Pro tips on building and maintaining relationships with vendors
ADVENTURE ABOUNDS
Explore the vast wilderness of Ketchikan, Alaska
MEETINGSMAGS.COM
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SUMMER
2017
MOUNTAIN
Majesty
ELEVATE EVENT EXPERIENCES AT THESE 5 MOUNTAIN RESORTS
$6.00 USA
W H AT ’ S I N A
NAM E ? No budget for a destination
meeting outside the Northwest? These local spots are fun alternatives. By Nancy Keaton
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Best Western Premier Boulder Falls Inn (top) was built in 2015 and offers 8,000 square feet of meeting space. Santiam Excursion Trains (bottom) run between Lebanon and Sweet Home, Oregon.
H
ave you ever wanted to hold a meeting or event in some faraway place like but your company or client wouldn’t allow you to even entertain the idea because of budget? Well, with a little imagination, you can host an event in a big-name locale, and you don’t even need to leave the Northwest.
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P H OTO S : X X X X X X X
Lebanon, Moscow, Wales, Sydney—or even Washington, D.C.’s Capitol Hill—
LEBANON … OREGON! This quiet timber and farming town, located a half hour east of Oregon State University and an hour north of the University of Oregon, received its name from founder Jeremiah Ralston, who felt the cedars in the area reminded him of the Biblical stories of the cedars of Lebanon. But be aware of the pronunciation. You know how non-natives say “Or-y-GONE,” and Oregonians will always correct them to “Or-y-GUN”? Lebanon is kind of the same way. Its residents say, “Leb-aNON is the country, and Leb-a-NUN is the town.” Heck, some locals, descendants of Midwest transplants, even leave out a syllable, just saying, “Leb-nun.”
Where to Meet: The Best Western Premier Boulder Falls Inn is Lebanon’s first new hotel in several decades and was completed in 2015. Its 8,000 square feet of meeting space is state-of-the-art and includes eight meeting rooms, A/V services and full catering. In addition, the on-site 1847 Bar and Grill is tastefully decorated and offers an upscale atmosphere for both locals and guests. One of the special features of this property is its Japanese garden and koi pond. Whether you’re meandering around the walkway, stopping to watch the koi, enjoying the sunrise over the garden or seeing the garden lit up in the evening, you’ll feel relaxed and calm.
What to Do: Group and individual activities abound here. Mallard Creek Golf Course and RV Resort offers a top-notch golfing experience. The venue has been named one of the top 50 RV parks in the nation. The Santiam River makes a lazy trip through town and offers opportunities for kayaking and fishing. The Santiam Excursion Trains run between Lebanon and the nearby town of Sweet Home and offer a slow-paced, relaxing ride heading toward the Cascade foothills. For those wanting a little more fast-paced excitement, Willamette Speedway has great racing action on Saturday nights. And you can pan for gold at Quartz Creek, about a half-hour drive away. Maybe your entire team will go home rich!
P H O T O S : B E S T W E S T E R N ; S A N T I U M E XC U R S I O N T R A I N S .
MOSCOW … IDAHO! This is another city that is pronounced differently than its more famous counterpart. “Mosscow” is the city in Russia; “Moss-cō” is the one in Idaho. There are several different theories on how Moscow, Idaho, was named, including that it was named by Russian immigrants or is a variation of a Native American word. The most likely explanation is that the postmaster named it after his hometown of Moscow, Pennsylvania. One thing’s for sure: This town dodged a bullet. It could have retained its original name: “Hog Heaven.”
Where to Meet: Notable event space can be found in the historic Kenworthy Performing Arts Centre. The building opened in 1908 as the Crystal Theater. It was then purchased by the Kenworthy family in 1926. The family operated it until 2000, when it was gifted to a nonprofit group and renamed Kenworthy Performing Arts Centre. Placed on the National Historic Register in 2002, the facility hosts film and theater productions, and can also be rented for private events. The auditorium seats 275 people and has a 1,000-square-foot stage. “There are a lot of weddings there,” says Kendra Ewing of the Moscow Chamber of Commerce. “You can rent the reader board [marquee] too. It’s really sweet how they give it the personal touch.” Kenworthy’s Jamie Hill agrees. “It’s a great community gathering space. If a group has a movie that they think is important to be shown or a lecture series to bring to town, they can use the center. The community aspect is the most important thing for us.”
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What to Do: Activities for event attendees can include renting bicycles at Paradise Creek Bicycles and taking a short ride on the Bill Chipman Palouse Trail, which runs between Moscow and Pullman, Washington. Your team can also take ice skating lessons at the Palouse Ice Rink. And Ewing says Moscow’s farmers market is a must for groups in town between May and October. “The last few years it’s been voted the number one farmers’ market in Idaho,” she notes.
(PRINCE OF) WALES … ALASKA!
Where to Meet: A 45-minute floatplane ride from Ketchikan is the Waterfall Resort. From cabins to executive suites to family-style housing, it has a variety of lodging to fit almost every need. Waterfall’s Jenna Zech says there are no roads to the resort. But that’s fine, she notes, because they’re basically all inclusive. “People pretty much just stay here,” she says. “It’s really a fishing resort, so people spend most of the day fishing. It’s a great place for incentive trips or executive trips for a team-building experience.” Zech says that the best part of the resort is that it’s small. “We have four people per boat with one guide. People who come in groups become closer, and friends are made up here every summer. After the trip, our team cleans and freezer-packs your catch for you and sends it home with you. We have an Alaska Air attendant at the resort, so guests don’t have to worry about luggage or their fish boxes until they get home. Everyone just bonds; no one is ever bored. You’re building relationships with coworkers outside of the work environment. It’s very unique; you’re not at a conference. Everyone is having an adventure.”
What to Do: If you want to spend some time on Prince of Wales before or after your meetings, you can rent a car on the island. Wildlife viewing, mountain biking on old logging roads, or kayaking around the island or on its lakes are just a few of the activities Prince of Wales Island has to offer visitors. “You can drive to the north end to El Capitan Cave. Or go to Kasaan and see the only standing whale-house building in the world, along with a totem pole trail,” says Wendy Hamilton, office manager of the Prince of Wales Chamber of Commerce. Built in the 1880s, the Chief Son-I-Hat’s Whale House is fully restored to help preserve and share the heritage of the Haida and Tlingit culture.
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(Clockwise from top): Residents of Prince of Wales Island in Alaska participate in the Hydaburg Totem Pole raising; The Sidney Pier Hotel & Spa offers groups a boutique, pampering setting on Vancouver Island, British Columbia; Waterfall Resort in Alaska provides one fishing guide per boat of four guests.
SIDNEY … VANCOUVER ISLAND, B.C.! OK, this one is a bit more of a stretch because the one in Australia is spelled Sydney, but you get the idea. The town is thought to have been named after Royal Navy lieutenant Frederick William Sidney, although there is a debate over who named it after him.
Where to Meet: The elegant amenities and stunning waterfront setting of The Sidney Pier Hotel & Spa set the tone for a pampering group retreat. Three event rooms are available for rent. The smallest—the Seaview Boardroom—is 378 square feet, and the largest—Sallas—is 988 square feet. Meeting services can include morning snacks and a lunch buffet with locally sourced and made-from-scratch foods. Sidney Pier Hotel’s Jackie May says the small, intimate boutique hotel is cozy and comfortable. “When people look at the pictures online it looks like a huge hotel. But we really only have 55 rooms; the rest are private residences. We have a small team of dedicated personnel. We pride ourselves in providing warm service. [It’s] like welcoming you into our home.”
P H O T O S : E R I C H E N N I N G ; T H E S I D N E Y P I E R H O T E L & S PA ; WAT E R FA L L R E S O R T.
Maybe the closest you’ll ever get to the UK is by way of Alaska. English Royal Navy officer Captain George Vancouver explored up and down the West Coast. Along his journey, he named the third-largest island in the United States “Prince of Wales,” after George IV.
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You couldn’t ask for a more convenient location, either. The Sidney Pier Hotel & Spa is steps away from the Washington State Ferry terminal and five minutes from the B.C. Ferry or the airport.
What to Do: Located on the northern half of Vancouver Island, Sidney has just over 11,000 residents. And those residents love to read. A lot. There are 12 bookstores within a four-block area in downtown Sidney. If you can’t find the book you’re looking for in Sidney, it probably doesn’t exist. You can also check out the world-famous Butchart Gardens and the Victoria Butterfly Gardens less than 7 miles away. For your liquid pleasure, you’ll find wineries, distilleries and cider houses. Make sure you visit the Victoria Distillers, right next door to The Sidney Pier Hotel & Spa, and try their signature gin. The family-friendly Mineral World and the Scratch Patch is also close by, providing hours of exploring entertainment for rock lovers of all ages. For a unique team-building exercise, Donna Petrie of the Sidney Business Improvement Area Society, the town’s visitors association, suggests, “You could arrange a scavenger hunt around Sidney, “Amazing Race” style. This would take some planning, but could be fun and fairly easy to do.”
CAPITOL HILL NEIGHBORHOOD… SEATTLE! If Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., has been on your destination-meeting wish list, but there is not enough cash in your event cache, check out Seattle’s Capitol Hill neighborhood instead. It’s another area where the origins of its name are in dispute. While everyone agrees that it was named by developer James Moore, it’s unclear whether he named it with the hope of relocating the state capital to Seattle, garnering attention for his new real estate plans, or honoring his wife’s hometown in Colorado. Regardless, today it’s known for its exciting nightlife and counterculture.
What to Do: For activities in the neighborhood, Alisa Carroll of Visit Seattle suggests Rock Box, a karaoke studio. “It’s a great icebreaker for groups,” she says. The nearby Starbucks Reserve Roastery and Tasting Room is another place Carroll feels visitors shouldn’t miss. “You can watch beans being roasted and try drinks that aren’t available at any other Starbucks location,” she notes. The roastery also has rentable space: one room that can accommodate 15 to 20 people and another that will seat 100 guests. For adult drinks, she recommends the habanero margaritas at Poquitos. So there you have it. Five Northwest towns with names the same (more or less) as betterknown destinations. Paris, Olympia, Damascus—how many more can you come up with?
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Built in 1927, Melrose Market Studios is a lovingly renovated event space. “Probably about 60 percent of our use is for weddings,” says Hanna Dillard of DSquared Company, Melrose’s venue operator. The facility has 4,300 square feet of usable space, seats approximately 200 people and can accommodate approximately 250 guests for a standing event. Included in the rental fee are tables, chairs and A/V. The brick walls, high ceilings and concrete floors make for an industrial modern, chic space for entertaining. Tuxedos and Tennis Shoes is the venue’s caterer. Dillard says the best part of the facility is its location. “It’s really fun, right in the heart of Capitol Hill. It’s a completely refurbished historic building that holds a lot of people, yet it feels very intimate.”
P H O T O S : V I C T O R I A D I S T I L L E R S ; S TA R B U C K S
Where to Meet:
Top: Meeting planners heading to Sidney on Vancouver Island, British Columbia, will want to organize tastings at Victoria Distillers. Bottom: Starbucks Reserve Roastery and Tasting Room on Capitol Hill in Seattle offers meeting space for up to 100 guests.
GE T CONNEC TED BEST WESTERN PREMIER BOULDER FALLS INN boulderfallsinn.com | 541.451.1000 BUTCHART GARDENS butchartgardens.com | 866.652.4422 CHIEF SON-I-HAT’S WHALE HOUSE kasaan.org | 907.542.2230 EL CAPITAN CAVE fs.usda.gov/recarea/tongass | 907.225.3101 KENWORTHY PERFORMING ARTS CENTRE kenworthy.org | 208.882.4127 MALLARD CREEK GOLF COURSE AND RV RESORT mallardcreekgc.com | 541.258.6909 MELROSE MARKET STUDIOS melrosemarketstudios.com | 206.932.1059 MINERAL WORLD AND THE SCRATCH PATCH sidneymineralworld.com | 250.656.0791 PALOUSE ICE RINK palouseicerink.com | 208.882.7188 PARADISE CREEK BICYCLES paradisecreekbikes.com | 208.882.0703 POQUITOS vivapoquitos.com | 206.453.4216 ROCK BOX SEATTLE rockboxseattle.com | 206.302.7625 SANTIAM EXCURSION TRAINS santiamexcursiontrains.com | 541.259.6470 THE SIDNEY PIER HOTEL & SPA sidneypier.com | 866.659.9445 STARBUCKS RESERVE ROASTERY AND TASTING ROOM roastery.starbucks.com | 206.624.0173 VICTORIA BUTTERFLY GARDENS butterflygardens.com | 877.722.0272 VICTORIA DISTILLERS victoriadistillers.com | 250.544.8217 WATERFALL RESORT waterfallresort.com | 800.544.5125 WILLAMETTE SPEEDWAY trophymotorsports.com | 360.699.RACE
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