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Williamsburg
September 28, 2009 6:00 AM

Meet where America began

A visit to Williamsburg means exploration of the place where the U.S. began. Nearby Jamestown was the first permanent English settlement in America and Yorktown is where the Revolutionary War ended.
For centuries, the country’s leaders have chosen to meet in Williamsburg. The Colonial capital was the site of many pre-Revolutionary War meetings. Today, Williamsburg continues to host major conferences, including the annual Business Roundtable, a group of CEOs of the country’s largest companies. President Ronald Reagan held the Summit of Industrialized Nations in the city in 1983. The Democratic Senate Caucus and NATO’s defense ministers have also met here. Recent visitors have included U.S. presidents, Queen Elizabeth, Emperor Hirohito of Japan, Lady Margaret Thatcher, Prince Charles and dozens of other heads of state.

Williamsburg is a tourist magnet. Families can explore the largest living-history museum at Colonial Williamsburg, head to championship golf courses, discount shopping outlets and nearby theme parks.

The Greater Williamsburg Chamber & Tourism Alliance
P.O. Box 3495, 421 N. Boundary St.
Williamsburg, VA 23187-3495
(800) 368-6511     (757) 229-6511
http://www.visitwilliamsburg.com
Contact: Lisa Pacheco,
Senior sales manager, conferences

Conference Hotels

Colonial Williamsburg Resort Collection
P.O. Box 1776
Williamsburg, VA 23187-1776
(757) 220-7600       (800) 822-9127
http://www.colonialwilliamsburgresort.com/groups
Contact: Tom Spong, director of resort sales

Impress your guests in the historic setting of a Colonial capital complete with the modern technology needed to create a top-notch conference. The Colonial Williamsburg Resort Collection is the official, onsite hospitality experience of Colonial Williamsburg and is adjacent to the city’s world-renowned historic area, giving guests ample activities to explore. Guests certainly won’t be bored either. There are 10 on-site restaurants and more than 60 shops.

The collection offers 67,000 square feet of meeting space in flexible rooms. Conference amenities include video presentations, computerized voting systems, large-screen video and data projection and multi-image equipment and staging.

Offer your meeting attendees Southern hospitality complete with modern meeting amenities at the Williamsburg Lodge & Conference Center. The center includes 45,000 square feet of meeting space, with a ballroom large enough for a 1,000-person banquet, four outdoor venues and a 7,000-square foot room. Or put on an exquisite meeting in the Regency-Style Williamsburg Inn, with 9,000 square feet of meeting space. Hold an intimate executive retreat at the Providence Hall Guesthouses, featuring private, lavish rooms.  Meeting space is also available at the family-friendly Williamsburg Woodlands Hotel & Suites, which has access to a number of recreational activities.

The collection is complete with a 20,000-square-foot spa providing relaxing, rejuvenating, healing therapies inspired by five centuries of wellness practices, 45 holes of golf at the Golden Horsehoe Golf Club, the site for the 2007 NCAA Division 1 Men’s golf championship.

Great Wolf Lodge
549 E. Rochambeau Drive
Williamsburg, VA 23188
(757) 229-9700       http://www.greatwolf.com
Contact: Cathy Chaplain, director of sales and marketing
(757) 345-7123
Want to throw a conference guests will remember? Then you should consider holding your next executive meeting or conference at the Great Wolf Lodge, where meeting attendees will be amazed and amused. The staff at the Great Wolf Lodge is prepared to help planners meet their business goals and make a lasting impression.  The lodge allows for plenty of “play” time when the meetings are over for the day. The lodge features a 79,000-square-foot indoor water park, the Northern Lights Arcade and the gr8_space tech center, where guests can enter video game contests and dock their iPods. The lodge also offers the Iron Horse Fitness Room to stay in shape and the Elements Spa Salon for relaxation.

The Great Wolf Lodge offers 14,500 square feet of flexible meeting space. The space includes a 92-seat symposium, in-house catering, the latest in audiovisual technology, and wireless, high-speed Internet. The Grand Oak Ballroom can seat 350 in a banquet setting and 450 in a theater style.

The Great Wolf Lodge features 405 family-sized suites and two Northwoods-themed restaurants and a contemporary café.

Kingsmill Resort & Spa
1010 Kingsmill Road
Williamsburg, VA 23185
(800) 832-5665

http://www.kingsmill.com
Contact: Charlene Clark, director of marketing
(757) 564-5338;

Let your guests escape to a private riverfront destination at the Kingsmill Resort & Spa. The resort offers guests unparalleled Southern hospitality, fastidious service and impressive amenities in a breathtaking setting along the James River.

Kingsmill’s impressive conference center offers 16,000 square feet of meeting space in 16 rooms with striking river views. Seven of the rooms make up the resort’s conference center, which has been certified by the International Association of Conference Centers. Each room opens to a deck that allows guests to enjoy Kingsmill’s beauty at outdoor prefunction events. Meeting room amenities include soundproofing, adjustable lighting, individual climate controls, ergonomically designed chairs and high-tech audiovisual equipment.
Kingsmill offers guests luxurious accommodations in its 425 villa-style guest rooms and suites. Guests will have plenty to keep them busy. They can take a break from meetings at the resort’s organic and nature-based spa. In addition, Kingsmill Virginia’s the largest golf resort, with three world-class golf courses. Amenities go far beyond your typically conference spot, offering a 15-court tennis center, a full-service marina, six restaurants and lounges and a state-of-the-art fitness center that includes indoor and outdoor pools and indoor racquetball and basketball courts.

Room report
The region offers about 5,000 hotel rooms, ranging from luxurious suites to Colonial-inspired inns to budget-conscious hotels.

Airports
Newport News/Williamsburg
International Airport
The airport is only 20 minutes from downtown Williamsburg. The airport offers nonstop flights to Atlanta, Boston, Charlotte, Fort Lauderdale, Fla., New York, Orlando, Fla., and Philadelphia.
Both Norfolk International Airport and Richmond International Airport are about 50 minutes away from Williamsburg.
Attractions
Busch Gardens Williamsburg
Colonial Williamsburg
Haunted Dinner Theatre
Historic Jamestowne
Historic Yorktown
Jamestown Settlement
Muscarelle Museum of Art
Mystery Dinner Theatre
New Town
President’s Park
Sherwood Forest Plantation
The College of William and Mary
Water Country USA
Williamsburg Ale Works

Shopping
Colonial Williamsburg Marketplace
Lightfoot Manor Shoppe
Magnolias Boutique
Merchants Square
New Town
Patriot Plaza Premium Outlets
Prime Outlets at Williamsburg
Riverwalk Landing
Village Shops at Kingsmill
Williamsburg Outlet Mall
Golf Courses
Ford’s Colony Country Club (757) 258-4100
Golden Horseshoe Golf Club (757) 220-7696
Kingsmill Resort (757) 253-1703
The Tradition Golf Club     at Kiskiack (757) 566-2200
The Tradition Golf Club     at Stonehouse (757) 566-1138
Two Rivers Country Club (757) 258-4653
Williamsburg National     Golf Club (757) 258-9642