Current Issue
July 2025
Touchdown! Sporting events are all the rage these days. Destinations like Orlando, Atlanta and Las Vegas are getting in on the action—and creating community while they’re at it. After reading up on how to play ball with your corporate groups, check out some alternatives venues for their next gather, as well as catch up on the latest trends in new hospitality developments. Did you know America’s first hospitality brand was powered by a female fleet? They were called the Harvey Girls, and you’ll learn all about them in this July 2025 Smart Meeting issue.
Features
July 24, 2025
Bling Your MeetingsEvents That Live and Breathe
More than ever, as attendee interest in communal experiences, outdoor environments and emotional resonance continues to grow, event professionals are moving beyond traditional venues, like hotel ballrooms and convention centers,…
July 22, 2025
TrendsThe Women Who Fed the West
The American West of the 1870s was as far as can be imagined from a five-star hospitality experience, especially along the new railroad lines that replaced the wagon train trails.…
July 7, 2025
Bling Your MeetingsNew and Renovated Properties
New and renovated properties are catching the eye of many meeting profs. Jan Freitag, a leading market analyst in the hospitality industry, explains, economic conditions are driving this trend.
July 2, 2025
Bling Your MeetingsSports Venues: Sports, Community and the Power of Relationships
Sports venues also have a way of engaging and creating memorable experiences with their local community, something meeting planners can leverage to make their events even more memorable by getting…
In Every Issue
January 8, 2026
The List: Get Smart About Sound
Colored ”noises, which refer to different sound frequencies in the way colors correspond to different light frequencies, are becoming an increasingly common way to get rest away from home. Each…
July 28, 2025
CareerTake 5: Balancing the Stage
Jessie States, CMP, CMM, consulting vice president for Meeting Professionals International, knows a few things about booking keynotes that make an impact. We asked her how she does it.
July 23, 2025
Brilliant ExperiencesHidden Gems: Dark Skies, Brilliant Insights
Stargazing can foster a sense of wonder, curiosity and the perspective that whatever your challenges, they pale in comparison to the vast cosmos. And there’s no better place for that…
July 16, 2025
Food and BeverageEssential F&B: Culinary Afterthoughts
Why inclusive F&B is more important than everOffering a meal is, of course, a time-honored ritual of inclusion. And in this moment when inclusion, as a pillar of DEI, is…
July 9, 2025
CareerAccidental Planner: The ‘When’ of Efficient Event Sourcing
How do you properly source an event? For the basics and beyond, we talked to Gaylord National Hotel Manager Ryan Verhulst, who has more than 25 years of hospitality experience.
July 3, 2025
Smart Start RadioSmart Start Radio—”Don’t Water Down the Soap”: Hospitality with Intention, One Mocktail at a Time
In this episode of Smart Start Radio, hosts Sara Robertson and Eming Piansay sit down with two trailblazers transforming the beverage experience at events: Carl Radke, entrepreneur and co-founder of…
July 1, 2025
Food and BeverageHealthy World: Certifying Us, Not Them
Discover Puerto Rico launched The Green Path, created to empower visitors to become certified ‘Responsible Travelers’ through engaging educational content and immersive storytelling rooted in sustainability.
Notes from the Road
July 29, 2025
Hotels & DestinationsNotes from the Road: Las Vegas
Las Vegas offers all the essential elements of a compelling story: from gourmet journeys worthy of a classic epic and nature-inspired interludes that read like quiet poetry, to dazzling spectacles…
July 28, 2025
Hotels & DestinationsNotes from the Road: Charlotte, North Carolina
Over the last decade-plus, Charlotte has grown into a major player, with its polished yet approachable downtown, charming hospitality and impressive mix of venues, leading to the city’s steady rise…
July 15, 2025
Hotels & DestinationsNotes from the Road: Sacramento
Marketing materials and an annual Tower Bridge Dinner put Sacramento on the map as the Farm-to-Fork Capital for all the produce in the area and creative chefs bringing home culinary…
July 8, 2025
Hotels & DestinationsNotes from the Road: Lake Geneva
Once the playground for Chicago’s wealthy in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Lake Geneva has evolved into a precious gem of a small town, rich with history, unexpected…
Destination Features
July 24, 2025
Hotels & DestinationsCentral Florida: Where Business Meets Adventure
Central Florida has everything a planner seeks: good weather, ample meeting spaces and plenty of fun locations to host team-building options paired with personal downtime.
Past Issues
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