Reception poolside at the Venetian - me on the far right
Las Vegas in January! Who wouldn't want to go to a conference in the desert in the middle of winter? Last week I attended the Professional Convention Management Association's 2011 Annual Conference at the MGM Grand Resort in Las Vegas. WOW! This was my first time attending this industry event and my first time in Sin City. What a conference it was...3800 delegates, fabulous keynote speakers & educational sessions, out of this world networking events and lots of time to connect with friends & clients old & new.
The world famous Las Vegas strip as we know it grew up in the 1940's and 50's with the building of casino resorts. The large resorts of today make Las Vegas a draw for large conventions. The MGM Grand alone has 5000 guestrooms, a casino, eight restaurants, seven bars & night clubs and 602,000 sq. ft. of meeting space. The 92,000-square-foot Marquee Ballroom where the PCMA opening reception and lunches were held can accommodate 6000 people. Putting it all in perspective the resort is a small city in itself.
The Cirque de Soleil show, Ka, is a permanent fixture at the MGM Grand and we took advantage of this and saw it on our first night in town. The theatre was build for Ka and I was awestruck as the stage rotated into a wall and aerial acrobats flew over our heads. My first morning there I headed out on a 20 minute walk from my room to the convention space, traversing my way around the abundance of slot machines, black jack tables and all night poker tournaments. I thought I'd seen it all when I passed the 5,300 sq. ft. betting arena with rows of theatre seating for 104 gamblers, thirty-six 60" and twenty-four 42" plasma TV's until I saw a crowd of people gathered around a glass enclosure to my right. It was the Lion Habitat of course! Three young lions were climbing around a man made hill with two trainers inside a glass room! I wasn't in Halifax anymore!
The conference and the city were quite the experience. Attending PCMA will benefit our hotel and city in the long run. The more people we can tell about Halifax the better. We're no Las Vegas but I guarantee that our unique history, landscape, entertainment and friendly Maritime hospitality will ensure a successful event for your group.
Until next time,
Denise
Inside the Venetian with some fellow Canadians
