Colors, textures and handheld foods are really in right now. We will see mobile food stations instead of food being placed on a table, and I think we’ll start seeing food being rolled around on creative carts and displays.”
Polci further predicts that a huge change is coming to the Atlantic City market as a whole. “[Along with us], our competitors are investing in the city, building new con- struction and renovating existing products. The destination will shift into a more meetings centric city. The Harrah’s Waterfront Conference Center was key in ushering in this new era for [Atlantic City]. We will continue to see updated meeting space, innovative menus and state-of-the- art audio-visual."
This revolution isn’t limited to the East Coast. In Las Vegas, she notes, "Caesars Entertainment… is investing $375 million in a 550,000-square foot facility (CAESARS FORUM) that will be located east of the Las Vegas Strip with bridge connections to Harrah's, LINQ and the LINQ Promenade.”
With an expected opening in 2020, the CAESARS FORUM will offer: 300,000- square feet of flexible meeting space, including two 108,000-square foot ball- rooms, two 40,000-square foot ballrooms and state-of-the-art boardrooms; confer- ence space accommodating more than 10,000 attendees; as well as a 100,000- square foot outdoor plaza.
The new venue will offer direct access to the LINQ Promenade, which features world-class dining, live entertainment ven- ues, shopping and the High Roller; as well as direct access to Harrah's Las Vegas, The LINQ Hotel, and the Flamingo Las Vegas hotels, which collectively boast over 8,500 overnight rooms. In all, approxi- mately 20,000 rooms are available at Caesars Entertainment's nine total Las Vegas properties.
Finding That Hidden Gem
"Guests do not want the 'cookie cutter' restaurant anymore, they want to find a
6 0 January z February2018
'hidden gem' or an 'out of the box' experi- ence that people are going to talk about and remember," observes Lee Leung- Ciocca, sales director and partner for Savona restaurant in Gulph Mills, PA.
Unique Experiences
According to James Ziereis, vice presi- dent of hotel sales for Tropicana Resort in Atlantic City, NJ, "In 2018, meet- ing, special event, and travel planners will be looking to incorporate out-of-the-box activities into their travel itineraries and events. Escape AC offers that for meetings, conventions and smaller groups.”
Savona, Gulph Mills, PA
She notes that, as part of this trend, planners are looking for more informal, unique venues and interactive experi- ences that allow their guests to mingle freely and have conversations in contrast to the “standard” sit down meal. “They want cocktail receptions, wine tastings, and themed activities."
Leung-Ciocca also says that she expects social media will continue grow in the year ahead and be used by guests who have become de facto “food critics” through their social media postings.
“The social media user will take their fol- lowers on their food and beverage jour- ney by posting food photos, tagging their favorite hot spots, or sharing a video of a new activity they tried,” she explains. “This generation of diners has a more sophisti- cated palate with higher expectations of their experience than in the past. They are vocal about what they want by leaving reviews and making recommendations to their friends. The successful dining estab- lishment will learn to remain relevant with these users."
With regard to how she sees 2018 shaping up for Savona, Leung-Ciocca says, "Our goal is to stay competitive, stay on top of the trends and continue to provide a memorable, one-of-a-kind experience of excellence for our guests. We will continue to think ‘outside the box,’ and to give our diners something memorable to talk about it."
“Tropicana Atlantic City’s escape room, Escape AC, is a great way to spice up a convention as it challenges groups of peo- ple to work together toward the same goal,” he continues. “Escape AC offers four classic Atlantic City themed rooms from which to choose: The Poker Room; The Boardwalk; The Casino Cage; or Backstage. Each game room provides a thrilling, yet challenging experience that requires attention to detail, critical think- ing, communication and team work in order to ‘break out.’ These 60-minute sessions are... great for team building.”
"Another top industry trend to look out for in 2018 is higher expectations in terms of product and service offered at a fair price,” continues Ziereis. “To stay ahead of the game, we renovated our North Tower and Havana Tower rooms. The newer room product has resulted in increased meet- ings business. We did the same to our meeting space and groups have been very pleased with the results. Convention groups are not just looking for a hotel to simply provide rooms, space, food and audio-visual; they also are looking for partners who embrace their vision in terms of what they want to accomplish. If we understand this, we can make sug- gestions and exceed their expectations."
Ziereis also says that Tropicana saw a large lift in 2017 with regard to their cor- porate market segment, “and I directly attribute that to the improvement in our room product and refurbishment of our meeting space. Narrowing it down further, the retail stores and food service restau- rant chains have been a large factor to our year-over-year growth, and we expect that to continue into 2018.”
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