Snowshoe, West Virginia
Snowshoe is a mountain resort village in West Virginia’s Allegheny Mountains, which the Pocahontas County Convention and Visitors Bureau has dubbed Nature’s Mountain Playground because “there are just so many things to do here outside; that pretty much says it all,” said Gail Hyer, marketing specialist for the CVB.
“For people who live in concrete jungles, this is a really nice place to escape to,” she said. “If you’re coming here for business, you can take advantage of everything else that’s here.”
In the wintertime, that’s skiing, snowboarding and snowshoeing at Snowshoe Mountain Ski Resort. In the spring, summer and fall, that’s the area’s natural scenery, the season’s colors, the county’s five state parks and the region’s eight rivers, as well as the fishing, hiking, canoeing, kayaking, biking and everything else that comes with the setting, Hyer said.
Snowshoe Mountain Ski Resort has more than 40,000 square feet of flexible meeting space; that includes the 6,000-square-foot Allegheny Springs Conference Center for as many as 200 people; the Mountain Lodge Conference Center with 10 meeting rooms, including a 3,600-square-foot ballroom; and the 15,000-square-foot Expo Center for as many as 1,000 attendees.
The Inn at Mountain Quest is a historic 450-acre farm with a sprawling 1892 farmhouse that the owners converted, renovated and expanded. The conference center works well for groups of 100 people or fewer, and the bed-and-breakfast-style inn is perfect for corporate retreats and small events, she said.
www.naturesmountainplayground.com
St. George, Utah
St. George is nestled in the southwest corner of the state and is only 33 miles southwest of Zion National Park, 229 square miles where the Mojave Desert, the Colorado Plateau and the Great Basin converge to create otherworldly geography, including red and pink sandstone cliffs, slot canyons and rock formations.
“Most of our conferences stick to St. George and day trip into Zion National Park,” said Brittany McMichael, meeting and convention coordinator for the St. George Convention and Tourism Office.
Many groups that return to the city every year or ones that are from the region have already done the trip into Zion National Park. However, newcomers or national groups usually opt for a trip into Zion, McMichael said.
A group that visited in May took box lunches into Zion, where a speaker presented to conference attendees, she said. Many planners also opt to take attendees out for adventures: hiking, zip lining, horseback riding, Jeep tours and ATV tours.
“Every one of those activities is done in a different location that is equally scenic and equally unique to the area,” McMichael said, although hiking may give guests a better feel for the area.
The Dixie Convention Center in St. George has 32,000 square feet of flexible meeting space in 19 meeting rooms as well as a 46,000-square-foot exhibit hall. Red Mountain Resort and Spa has about 10,000 square feet of event space, including several meeting rooms, and can organize team-building activities, private group hikes and spa packages.
