Las Vegas might have more bright lights, but Wisconsin has plenty of casinos, too. Washington, D.C., might have more high-profile historic sites, but Wisconsin has its fair share. And while Florida has popular watery attractions, a Badger State awash in lakes might have the most.
That’s no secret to many Wisconsinites, nor is it a mystery to people in metro Chicago, who still flock to Lake Geneva and Door County in droves, or to Twin Cities residents, who have made naturally beautiful northwestern Wisconsin their personal and corporate playground.
Lisa Marshall, communications director for the Wisconsin Department of Tourism, said the department can pitch Wisconsin to just about anybody, especially residents of the two major metropolitan areas just outside its borders. “Wisconsin is definitely an easy sell, and we’re close to home for a lot of these travelers,” she says.
Wisconsin residents, however, make up 50% of the state’s tourism travelers, which is partially because the state gives you bang for your buck. “That’s something for a meeting planner to keep in mind — that Wisconsin is a great value,” Marshall noted. “When you compare us to Chicago and the Twin Cities, you’re going to get your money’s worth.”
When it comes to corporate retreats, there is no shortage of money invested in attractive and technologically well-appointed conference facilities, nor is Wisconsin lacking for the “downtime” and team-building activities worth working into any conference schedule. Whether people prefer fishing to cycling, golf to waterparks, or restaurants to supper clubs, anyone who suggests there isn’t enough to do here simply isn’t looking very hard.
“There is no end to the options for meeting planners,” Marshall noted. “It’s all about being creative and thinking about what your attendees want when you’re hosting your meeting.”
With an in-state “getaway” mentality in mind, IB chose to focus on the following key regions outside of Madison and Milwaukee: Door County, the Kettle Moraine region, Lake Geneva-Walworth County, Northwestern Wisconsin, Vilas County, and Wisconsin Dells.
We’ll also introduce you to some new and used meeting planning resources. Marshall noted that a new website for meeting planners will be up and running in early September at meetinwisconsin.com, and she encouraged corporate meeting planners to lean on the services provided by local convention and visitors bureaus. Perhaps the most comprehensive statewide resource for corporate meeting planning (and consumer travel planning) is travelwisconsin.com.
So if you’re starting to budget for and plan your 2014 corporate retreat, IB hopes the following regional vignettes will open, or perhaps reopen, your eyes to all the possibilities right here, back in your own backyard.
Door County
Sometimes referred to as “the peninsula,” Door County has the advantage of being sandwiched between Green Bay and Lake Michigan, making it a paradise for sportsmen and women, beach lovers, and naturalists.
Laura Bradley, marketing and sales manager for the Door County Visitor Bureau, can point to 30 conference and banquet centers here, but the most notable are concentrated in Sturgeon Bay and Egg Harbor. Sturgeon Bay boasts of the Stone Harbor and Bridgeport Resorts, both waterfront resorts located right in the canal that links the bay and Lake Michigan. Further up the peninsula in the charming village of Egg Harbor, the Newport Resort caters to slightly smaller groups. On the “quieter” lake side, the Gordon Lodge resort is right on the water in Baileys Harbor and offers meeting rooms as large as 5,000 sq. ft., plus a combination of cottages and hotel rooms.
One conference facility, the Team Leadership Center in Sturgeon Bay, specializes in corporate retreats with teambuilding (zip-lining, wall-climbing, and high and low ropes), leadership development, inspirational speakers, seminars, and classes.
Between the opportunities for sportsmen and women and recreational enthusiasts, and the lineup of restaurants and supper clubs, retreat downtime shouldn’t be hard to fill. In a place famous for its fish boils, charter fishing services aplenty cater to any visitor who wants take to the water and cast for perch, pike, salmon, trout, brown trout, rainbow trout, small-mouth bass, walleye, or whitefish.
Door County is also home to eight golf courses, many with water views, including the visually stunning Peninsula State Park Golf Course in Ephraim.
The park is also home to a picturesque bike trail, but Bradley says most riders like to explore other areas, whether they bring their own bikes or rely on the many bike-rental services throughout the county. “Peninsula State Park has a great bike trail, but I would say the majority are on the back roads,” Bradley says. “Even on the highway [Hwy. 57], there are a lot of bikers.”
Kayaking tours have also taken off over the past few years, and you can find outfitters in most villages.
Several restaurants and supper clubs can accommodate large groups who want to sample cuisine outside the conference centers. They include The English Inn in Fish Creek, where Beef Wellington is the house specialty, and the Mission Grille, once a Catholic church in Sister Bay. The Cookery, also located in Fish Creek, is an ideal place for smaller groups and features a wine bar on its second level.
Conference Calls
Stone Harbor Resort, Sturgeon Bay
stoneharbor-resort.com
Bridgeport Resort, Sturgeon Bay
bridgeportresort.net
Newport Resort, Egg Harbor
newportresort.com
Gordon Lodge Resort, Baileys Harbor
gordonlodge.com
More details
doorcounty.com
doorcountyevents.com
doorcounty.com/group-planners
doorcounty.com/meeting-planners
(Continued)
Kettle Moraine
The Kettle Moraine takes in quite a bit of territory in eastern Wisconsin, but our focus will be Kohler, Elkhart Lake, and Waukesha County.
If there is a venue that best represents the natural beauty of the Kettle Moraine, it’s the Erin Hills Golf Course, which will host the 2017 U.S. Open Golf Championship. Its many contours will be challenging enough for the world’s best golfers, but everyday duffers can get a real sense of accomplishment just by finishing with their dignity intact. “People are in awe that we’re able to host an event of that caliber here, but when you get on the course, people understand how they were able to win that bid,” says Tammy Tritz, executive director of the Waukesha-Pewaukee Convention and Visitor Bureau.
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Erin Hills Golf Course, nestled in the heart of the Kettle Moraine, will host the 2017 U.S. Golf Open Championship. |
The 565-acre Old World Wisconsin in nearby Eagle is one of 12 Wisconsin Historical Society sites enjoying a banner year. It has a potential team-building experience called “Life on the Farm,” where guests are invited to put on a pair of wooden barn shoes, tie on an apron, and gain a sense of 19th century farm life by helping with several chores. Imagine the fun that can be had watching your supervisors split wood into kindling with a froe and mallet, using a hand-cranked gristmill to make grain into flour, or piecing a quilt.
Elsewhere, Ten Chimneys in Genesee Depot, an estate created by theater legends Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne, is open to the public as a museum and serves as a national resource for theater, arts, and arts education. Esteemed actors like Alan Alda have served as instructors.
Elsewhere, Pewaukee Lake is known for its musky fishing and for lakefront restaurants like the Lakefront Grill (with its beautiful outdoor dining area), Michael’s House of Prime, and Dylon’s Steakhouse.
Three conference facilities stand out: the Milwaukee Marriott West, which is very corporate oriented; the Country Springs Hotel Water Park Conference Center, which has its share of both the corporate and association markets; and the Holiday Inn Pewaukee, which features a Frank Lloyd Wright-inspired prairie design.
In recent years, private investment in golf courses has produced gems like Whistling Straights, past and future (2015) host of the PGA Championship, and Blackwolf Run, host of the LPGA’s 1998 and 2012 U.S. Women’s Open, both affiliated with the elegant American Club in Kohler and near the more kid-friendly Blue Harbor Resort (with waterpark) in Sheboygan. Jenna Check, associate director of conference services for the American Club, noted that in addition to the club’s five-star spa, guests can enjoy a nearby wildlife preserve offering hiking, canoeing, kayaking, and horseback riding. If you prefer the beach, there’s a nice one right along Lake Michigan, near the campsites of Kohler-Andrae State Park.
In this part of Wisconsin, the Kohler Experiential Learning Center is the place for customized team-building exercises or leadership camp. “It’s not only a ropes course type of program,” Check noted. “They offer a bit of everything.”
About 15 minutes west, Elkhart Lake’s Osthoff Resort features 20,000 sq. ft. of meeting space for corporate or association groups, plus an award-winning spa, a French cooking school, and its own version of team-building — water sports and scavenger hunts, according to Kathleen Eickhoff, director of tourism for Elkhart Lake. The Ostoff’s pontoon rides and cocktail cruises are ideal for networking, and its partnership with Quit Qui Oc Golf course, a 27-hole monster, appeals to visitors interested in golf outings and scrambles.
“Since we’re in the Kettles, it’s a big course, and it has a very attainable price point as well,” Eickhoff noted.
When it’s not serving as a venue of an American Le Mans event or hosting the annual meeting of the Ferrari Club of America, the diverse, 640-acre Road America property often hosts corporate groups for its adventuresome team-building activities — ATV-ing, paintball, geocaching and, of course, driving.
For outside dining, Elkhart Lake features 18 pubs and restaurants that are well suited for small- and large-group needs. The only franchise place in Elkhart Lake is a Subway sandwich shop — everything else is owned by local residents whose belief in chefs and wine lists has helped make Elkhart Lake a culinary destination.
Conference Calls
American Club, Kohler
americanclubresort.com
Blue Harbor Resort, Sheboygan
blueharborresort.com
Osthoff Resort, Elkhart Lake
osthoff.com
Country Springs Hotel
countryspringshotel.com
Pewaukee Holiday Inn, Pewaukee
holiday-inn.com
More details
elkhartlake.com
visitwaukesha.org/meetings/meeting-facilities
(Continued)
Lake Geneva/Walworth County
When people think of Lake Geneva and the surrounding area, they think of a getaway where they can play, dine, and shop. Since much of the county is also in the Kettles, they can also recreate.
For corporate retreats, the variety of outstanding conference centers is led by the luxurious Grand Geneva Resort and the amenity-rich Geneva Ridge Resort in Lake Geneva. Facilities that can accommodate retreats of any size also include the newly renovated Lake Lawn Resort on Delavan Lake, the Abbey Resort & Avani Spa on the west end of Geneva Lake (Fontana), and the Alpine Valley Resort in East Troy, which is much more than a music venue and boasts some of the best ski hills in the Midwest.
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At Grand Geneva Golf Course, you can be a real player or take in the beautiful summer scene as a spectator. |
A more rustic experience that emphasizes team-building can be found at several nontraditional conference sites, including the Salvation Army Lake Camp (East Troy), Lutherdale Ministries (Elkhorn), Covenant Harbor (Lake Geneva), Horticultural Hall (Lake Geneva), Inspiration Ministries (Walworth), and the Wesley Woods Conference Center (Williams Bay).
Walworth County features a number of beautiful bike trails that will appeal to both novice and experienced cyclists. “The White River State Trail is definitely a more novice trail, and Lake Geneva Canopy Tours has biking trails throughout their canopy course,” notes Kristen Rouse, group sales manager for the Walworth County Visitors Bureau.
Kayaking, canoeing, boating, and boat tours on area lakes are popular summer activities. Where there is water, there is also good fishing (especially for trout) and guide services to get you there. With 22 golf courses, including those at the aforementioned resorts, Walworth County is no slouch when it comes to tee time. If you’re up for a stern but fair challenge, you’ll want to check out Geneva National Golf Club, which was designed by legends Arnold Palmer, Lee Trevino, and Gary Player. In Walworth County, residents and visitors also use the sky for fun, taking advantage of services that offer rides on helicopters, biplanes, and hot-air balloons.
This is also a supper club haven, with draws like the Village Supper Club overlooking Delevan Lake; the historic and cozy Duck Inn in Delavan, which served as a speakeasy during Prohibition; and the Ye Old Hotel Bar & Restaurant in Lyons, which was built in 1860 and is still going strong. For those interested in something more contemporary, Sprecher’s Brewery has opened a restaurant and pub in Lake Geneva
Conference Calls
Abbey Resort & Spa, Fontana
theabbeyresort.com
Geneva Ridge Resort, Lake Geneva
genevaridge.com
Grand Geneva Resort, Lake Geneva
grandgeneva.com
Lake Lawn Resort, Delavan
lakelawnresort.com
Alpine Valley Resort, East Troy
alpinevalleyresort.com
More details
lakegenevawi.cc
visitwalworthcounty.com
(Continued)
Northwestern Wisconsin
For a beautiful region with natural woodlands and waterfalls, Northwestern Wisconsin tends to get lost in the shuffle. Ironically, it’s other Wisconsinites who tend to ignore it the most, while people in the Twin Cities find it a welcome respite.
Why not? This region rivals the Pacific Northwest for natural amenities, and it has more federally designated areas than most, starting with the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest. Chequamegon is the Ojibwa tribe’s term for “place of the shallow water,” and those waters feature an abundance of small-mouth bass, northern pike, walleye, and trout.
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Kayaking in the Apostle Islands is but one of the “downtime” options for those who retreat to Northwestern Wisconsin. |
Then there is the St. Croix National Scenic River Way, one of the nation’s most pristine river corridors, which makes for happy campers and proud paddle sports devotees. And the windswept Apostle Islands on Lake Superior, all 21 of them, invite visitors to paddle, sail, or cruise.
Northwestern Wisconsin also contains part of the multistate North Country National Scenic Trail, the longest continuous hiking trail in the U.S, running from New York State to North Dakota. In addition, the area is home to the newly minted Frog Bay Tribal National Park, situated on the reservation of the Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa. Frog Bay features 89 acres of boreal (northern) forest and, from a quarter-mile section of Lake Superior shoreline, views of Gaylord Nelson Wilderness Area on the Apostle Islands.
“I’m not sure that people in other areas of Wisconsin realize how many federally designated recreational properties there are up there,” stated Lisa Marshall (Wisconsin Department of Tourism). “To have that many in one area, that’s quite a feather in their cap.”
With some of the most breathtaking scenery for hiking and kayaking, visitors primarily gravitate to three resorts, each nestled in natural woodlands: Heartwood Conference Center and Retreat in Trego, site of a recent Wisconsin Economic Development Summit; the new, state-of-the art Legendary Waters Resort & Casino near Bayfield, which is run by the aforementioned Red Cliff Tribe and where many of the hotel rooms face Lake Superior; and Canoe Bay, a rustic resort with villas and cottages on a spring-fed glacial lake near Chetek.
Don’t get the impression that because you’re surrounded by swimming, hiking, or snowshoeing opportunities that wireless Internet is a fantasy. The proprietors of these properties know they need to accommodate the needs of modern corporate groups, so Internet access is among the amenities offered.
Conference Calls
Canoe Bay, Chetek
canoebay.com/meetings
Legendary Waters Resort, Bayfield
legendarywaters.com
Heartwood Conference Center, Trego
heartwoodconferencecenter.com
More details
travelwisconsin.com
(Continued)
Vilas County
The towns are familiar to most Wisconsin residents — Arbor Vitae, Eagle River, Lac du Flambeau, Minocqua — and so is Vilas County’s proudly rustic yet modern brand.
Hunters and fishermen are not the only people who need apply. Corporate retreats are the specialty of facilities like Red Crown Lodge in Arbor Vitae, with its 90-seat auditorium and tailored guest experiences, and the Chippewa Retreat Resort in Manitowish Waters, with its focus on smaller groups and corporate team-building adventures. The re-energizing continues in the 300-acre wilderness setting at Camp Manito-wish in Boulder Junction and the green-built Big Bear Hideaway, with its artistic log and stone cabins.
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Red Crown Lodge’s gathering room illustrates the rustic ambiance of Wisconsin’s northern conference centers. |
In Minocqua, the Pointe Hotel & Suites and Reuland’s Conference Center share the Lake Minocqua lakefront with restaurants like Minocqua Brewing Co., the Thirsty Whale, and The Boathouse, with its Bloody Mary Bar.
Eagle River boasts a variety of conference facilities, including the Eagle River Inn & Resort, the Chanticleer Inn, Eagle Waters Resort & KeeMiCon Lodge, Wild Eagle Lodge, and the Waters of Minocqua, an indoor waterpark resort and conference center.
As for recreation, about one-sixth of Vilas County’s acreage is covered by water (the county harbors 1,320 lakes, 563 named and 757 unnamed), and with thousands of acres of public forest, the terrain points visitors in certain sporting directions. To nobody’s surprise, popular rentals include personal watercraft, kayaks, fishing boats, and pontoons.
“Anybody you talk to up here will tell you we are very fortunate to have beautiful, clear-water lakes where people enjoy fishing, swimming, waterskiing, and just hanging out the dock,” said Kim Baltus, executive director of the Minocqua Chamber of Commerce. “It’s just a great place to relax.”
Miles of bicycle trails (rentals available) include the beautiful 17-mile Bearskin State Trail, a former railroad corridor that features a gravel bed and lots of shade along its wooded path, and that crosses Lake Minocqua in a couple of spots over an old railroad trestle. How’s that for a sustainable makeover?
“We’ve got everything from paved to hard-pack soil trails,” says Cindy Burzinski, director of Vilas County Tourism. “We’ve got paved trails, mountain bike trails, and limestone trails.”
Vilas County has not neglected the premier golf courses, boutiques, galleries, and handmade merchandise, all of which are available in the towns and villages. The county is still the home of historic supper clubs like Little Bohemia in Manitowish Waters, one of notorious gangster John Dillinger’s hideaways and the site of his gang’s legendary 1934 shootout with the FBI. More fine dining is offered at Smokey’s in Manitowish Waters, Aqualand Ale House in Boulder Junction, and Riverstone Restaurant & Tavern in Eagle River.
Conference Calls
Big Bear Hideaway, Boulder Junction
bigbearhideaway.com
Chanticleer Inn, Eagle River
chanticleerinn.com
Chippewa Retreat Resort, Manitowish Waters
chippewaretreat.com
Eagle River Inn & Resort, Eagle River
eagleriver-inn.com
Eagle Waters Resort & KeeMiCon Lodge, Eagle River
eaglewaters.com
Red Crown Lodge, Arbor Vitae
redcrownlodge.com
Reuland’s Catering & Conference Center, Arbor Vitae
reulandscatering.com
The Pointe Hotel & Suites, Minocqua
thepointeresort.com
The Waters of Minocqua, Minocqua
thewatersofminocqua.com
Wild Eagle Lodge, Eagle River
wildeaglelodge.com
More details
vilaswi.com
(Continued)
Wisconsin Dells
An outsider certainly could call Wisconsin Dells the world’s largest splash park, but the self-proclaimed “Waterpark Capital of the World” is about more than playing around in chlorinated H2O. With its conference facilities, it can be part business and part pleasure.
Tifani Jones, director of sales for the Wisconsin Dells Visitor & Convention Bureau, emphasizes a whole range of facilities with conference amenities ranging in size from 5,500 to 200,000 sq. ft.: Chula Vista Resort, Great Wolf Lodge, Ho-Chunk Hotel & Convention Center, Kalahari Waterpark Resort Convention Center, and Wilderness Territory (Glacier Canyon Lodge).
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Amphibious adventure: A Wisconsin Dells duck boat splashes toward a scenic tour of the Wisconsin River, Lake Delton, and wilderness trails. |
The area also features vacation home rentals that work very well for corporate retreats. For smaller group activities, including C-level management retreats, Sundara Inn & Spa is a tranquil spot. At the Inn at Wawanissee Point, which overlooks Lake Wisconsin atop the nearby Baraboo bluffs, employers can rent the entire luxury villa, including the corporate boardroom. Spring Brook, a resort vacation home community, offers homes and villas for rent, and it’s not unusual for retreating companies to rent several — some for housing and an extra one for dedicated meeting space.
Outside the conference settings, the Dells offers everything from the zip-line and rock-climbing walls provided by Vertical Illusions, to scenic boat tours of the Wisconsin River, to supper clubs and steakhouses, to Knuckleheads Bowling & Indoor Amusement Park, complete with its team-building exercises. What’s more, the Dells’ proximity to Devil’s Lake State Park is a huge selling point for outdoor recreation.
“For the sheer downtime fun, it’s kind of like being a big kid,” Jones said.
When it comes to pleasure, the Dells isn’t all kid stuff. The locals are fond of saying that golfing and spas are a natural twosome here, with downtown shopping and local spas serving as a year-long option and two championship golf courses getting the most attention from players: the stunning Wild Rock (aka “The Rock”) at Wilderness Territory and Trappers Turn Golf Club, all 27 holes of it, operated by the Kalahari.
There are family-style restaurants, but visitors most appreciate the creative American cuisine of the High Rock Café; the fired-up smoked ribs at the House of Embers Grille; the Del-Bar’s custom-aged steaks; the beef, chops and seafood at Field’s at the Wilderness; the hand-cut beef and wines of Kaminski Bros. Chop House; and a seasonal classic, Ishnala Supper Club overlooking Mirror Lake in Lake Delton.
Conference Calls
Chula Vista Resort
chulavistaresort.com
Great Wolf Lodge
greatwolf.com/dells/waterpark
Ho-Chunk Hotel & Convention Center
ho-chunkgaming.com/wisconsindells
Kalahari Waterpark Resort Convention Center
kalahariresorts.com/wisconsin
Glacier Canyon Lodge (Wilderness Territory)
glaciercanyonlodge.com
More details
wisdells.com
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