Thank you for hosting our group - we had an amazing time!
Here are a few of our Long Beach highlights from the conference:
Steve Goodling, President & CEO of the Long Beach Convention & Visitors Bureau presented a keynote session to a packed room on Wednesday morning. The session focused on the strategy and creativity behind Long Beach's unique and turnkey approach to events and meeting spaces. In his talk, Goodling stressed the importance of designing meeting and events spaces that have "hangability," meaning the spaces are somewhere that people want to spend time in. Design, furniture, natural light, activities, and event planning are all part of the equation for elevating your events. Here's a photo of Steve Goodling with Gregg Shapiro, Tempest's President & Chief Creative Officer.
On Tuesday night, the entire Tourism Academy conference was lucky to experience one of Long Beach's newest turnkey spaces in action. Our opening reception was hosted at The Cove and it was an absolute blast. The Long Beach Convention & Visitors Bureau and Long Beach Convention & Entertainment Center pulled out all the stops, bringing in local food trucks, light up ping pong tables, fire pits, lounge furniture, a live DJ, custom lighting, and more. It was an inspiring event and the perfect way to kick off the week.
We've received plenty of positive feedback from attendees who enjoyed all that Long Beach has to offer. From our haunted tour of The Queen Mary to the many walkable dining and nightlife options near the Renaissance Long Beach Hotel, our group found a lot to love in Long Beach. The Long Beach Renaissance Hotel also made our experience a 10 out of 10, with responsive, service-oriented staff, beautiful meeting rooms, and delicious food.
Thank you again to everyone who helped make our event and our experience a success! See you next year in Louisville, Kentucky.