Henderson, Nevada at a Glance
Location: Southern Nevada
Access: Harry Reid International Airport (LAS); interstates 215, 515, and 11
Major Meeting Spaces: M Resort Spa Casino, Westin Lake Las Vegas Resort and Spa, Green Valley Ranch Resort Spa and Casino
Hotel Rooms: 4,500
Off-Site Venues: Bad Beat Brewing, Vegas Valley Winery, Chinitas Tapas and Sushi, The Event Plaza at Whitney Ranch
Contact Info:
Visit Henderson, NV
702-267-2323
visithendersonnv.com
Big city or small town — in Henderson, Nevada, the choice is yours.
Located just a 15-minute drive from the Las Vegas Strip and Harry Reid International Airport, Henderson offers all the logistical perks of a global city but with a more relaxed and personal touch.
“A lot of people ask, ‘Why would we stay in Henderson when Vegas is right there?’” said Ed Kirby, national sales executive at Visit Henderson, NV. The answer is clear: In addition to Henderson’s unique local attractions, the town’s more intimate surroundings are a better backdrop for lasting networking.
“If networking is important to you, the [Las Vegas] Strip does a great job, but you’re not going to keep your group together,” Kirby explains. “Everybody’s going to go to the Strip one night, and have some fun, but if you want to keep your group together and encourage networking, [Henderson is] great.”
Henderson is one of the fastest-growing cities in the country, and the second-largest city in Nevada. Over the 20 years that Kirby has lived in Henderson, he’s seen incredible growth. “When I first started with the city, we really didn’t have a downtown,” Kirby said. “And now, we have a bustling downtown with a ton of restaurants. We have apartments going up, new housing coming in, live entertainment and breweries as well.”
Depending on an organization’s needs and the meeting spaces they choose, Henderson can feel like the Strip’s playful neighbor or like a tranquil oasis that shares nothing more with the neon chaos of Vegas than a conveniently placed world-class airport.
A Retreat Within a Retreat
Alongside the charms of central Henderson, the city is also known as home to a destination-within-a-destination: Lake Las Vegas. This 320-acre reservoir is surrounded by over 3,500 acres of resorts, homes, attractions, golf courses and an idyllic Italian-inspired village packed with cozy restaurants and shops. All resorts at Lake Las Vegas are nongaming properties, and the lake’s peaceful surroundings are worlds away from the big city. “You don’t feel like you’re in Vegas at all,” Kirby said. Lake Las Vegas’ abundance of outdoor space makes it ideal for meetings that favor group activities. The lake offers kayaking, paddleboarding, a seasonal aquatic obstacle course and other water sports.
Stylish Stays
Henderson’s popular gaming hotels include Green Valley Ranch Resort Spa and Casino, which offers 500 rooms and 69,000 square feet of meeting space, and M Resort Spa Casino, a shimmering property with 390 rooms and more than 92,000 square feet of event space. “With both of those hotels you can go straight from your guest rooms to the meeting space, which a lot of companies like,” Kirby said. For smaller groups, Sunset Station Hotel and Casino is located across the street from the bustling Galleria at Sunset mall and offers 13,000 square feet of meeting space, an in-house movie theater and the largest bowling center in Las Vegas. In Lake Las Vegas, the Westin Lake Las Vegas Resort and Spa features over 109,000 square feet of event space, and the Hilton Lake Las Vegas Resort and Spa boasts nearly 42,000 square feet of space.
After the Meeting
Downtime in Henderson begins with the Water Street District, a lively downtown area with mom-and-pop restaurants, bars and live entertainment. Henderson caters to a wide range of tourism interests with nine golf courses, 180 miles of hiking and biking trails, a water park, a lion sanctuary, and the wildly popular Ethel M Chocolates Factory, which offers tours and tastings.
Sports fans are also in luck. Henderson is home to the headquarters of the Las Vegas Raiders and the WNBA Las Vegas Aces. It’s also the home base of a minor-league hockey team (the Silver Knights), a pro indoor football league (the Nighthawks) and Las Vegas’ brand-new pro volleyball team (the Vegas Thrill).
Off-site Venues
Henderson’s Artisan Booze District is home to an array of microbreweries and wineries, many of which have space to accommodate groups. Local hangout Bad Beat Brewing is a great venue for groups to gather, as is Vegas Valley Winery, which shares its space with Grape Expectations, a sister company that teaches winemaking on-site. Another popular gathering space is Chinitas Tapas and Sushi, a vibrant Asian-fusion restaurant in the Water Street District. An especially versatile option is The Event Plaza at Whitney Ranch, a customizable event space.
